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The Peasall Sisters – the voices of those darling little girls in “O Brother Where Art Thou” – have stayed with their bluegrass musical roots. The whole Peasall family stays on the road most of the year touring, including a recent stop in Milton. From left are sisters Sarah, 20, Hannah, 17 and Leah, 14. (click for larger version) | |
March 17, 2008
MILTON -- The Peasall Sisters didn't quite get the break they were looking for in 1999 -- if little girls Sarah, Hannah and Leah, respectively ages 11, 8 and 6 -- can be said to looking for their big break in show business.
It was their mom Sally who heard about the casting call in Nashville for the Joel and Ethan Coen movie "O Brother Where Art Thou?" that was looking for three sisters under the age of 12. Well, Nashville is not all that far from the Peasall home in White House, Tenn., so she grabbed up the girls and off they went.
They were auditioning for the roles of George Clooney's daughters in the Coens' campy tale of epic wandering in the Depression Era South. It was the Coen brothers themselves who broke the news to Sally that the girls Sarah, Hannah and Leah just didn't "look pitiful enough" to be cast as the daughters.
"I think they were too kind to say they weren't malnourished enough, so I guess it really was a compliment," Sally Peasall said.
But the brothers did want the sisters' voices and the natural harmony "they just found all by themselves." So you could say the Peasall Sisters got half a break – if it can be said that being part of a Grammy-winning album that has sold 8 million copies is only half a break.
But if you are looking for the skinny girls with reedy voices, you won't find them.
Today, Sarah is 20 and a newlywed and leader of the Peasall sorority. She has the throaty, mature voice of the group and plays lead guitar. Hannah is 17 now, and plays mandolin while singing soprano to Sarah's alto. Leah is a coltish 14, plays a sassy fiddle and sings tenor.
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"Yes, the fiddle is pretty challenging, but it is so expressive," said Leah. "That's why I stuck with it. It expresses every emotion."
When they put it all together, it comes out very much greater than the sum of all their parts. Daddy Michael Peasall plays stand-up bass and throws in some on the vocals, but he stays mostly out of the spotlight, letting the girls stand out.
And stand out they do, with a hauntingly warm and lush harmony that rolls by the ear like a gently flowing stream.
"They were born vocally gifted. Nobody taught them that harmony. They were just born that way," said mother Sally.
So why were the Peasall family – they all travel together, Mom, Dad and the six children – singing one Sunday at Birmingham United Methodist Church? Well, they were already performing in Atlanta at the National Wild Turkey Confederation Convention (that's the bird not the bottle), and the Rev. John Wolf, senior pastor at BUMC knew somebody who knew the Peasalls like to sing at churches, and that was it.
"We like to make the church a place for the family to come and to enjoy themselves. This seemed like a way to do that," Wolf said.
One Sunday afternoon last month there they were, playing their mostly traditional brand of bluegrass and gospel music, and very much enjoying it like the family outing it was. Younger brother Joseph, 11, joins in with electric guitar and even sister Emma, 7, comes out to clog for the audience.
Little baby Julia, 4, acts as the road manager ("She tells us when it's time to stop and when to eat," says Mom).
The girls all enjoy performing, always have. Sarah remembers at the age of 2 standing up and singing Christmas carols, and then throwing in the theme from "The Beverly Hillbillies." She had to be destined for stardom.
"I don't know if I knew I had a special talent. I just knew I loved it," Sarah said.
What Sarah has -- all of the girls have -- deep down is a love of music. Far from being pushed into a professional career, the sisters picked up instruments themselves, and only after showing talent and an aptitude for music did lessons come.
It was a momentous decision for the family to decide to pursue a music career for the family, and not one made without a lot of prayer for guidance. They believe they are following God's purpose in what they do, and that sustains them on the road for three-quarters of the year.
And they have played everywhere from Carnegie Hall to the Grand Ole' Opry and all points in between. Most recently they agreed to play for an entire school district in Kentucky. They put on 22 shows in nine days and played to 8,000 students.
"That will teach you how to go on as a professional, because you don't have time to enjoy the music like you normally do. And you still have perform for that audience," said Hannah, the thoughtful one.
Their life on the road is not as disruptive as it may appear. First, they all travel together so there are no separation anxieties. The children have always been home-schooled by their mother, and wherever they are there are opportunities to learn.
Certainly they have learned about music. They have had the chance to play with some of the greats country and bluegrass music. They have sung backup on an Emmylou Harris album and toured with bluegrass legend Ralph Stanley ("O Death") among others from the "O Brother" tour.
But is their father Mike and maternal grandfather Jimmy Brasher ("He could play anything with strings," said Leah.) to whom the sisters say are their music mentors.
Their father, Mike, calls it the "best job in the world" because it is something they can do as a family. He is a former music minister and he and the family consider their music a mission as well as a vocation.
"But so much of the music business is not about the music. It is easy to get discouraged," Daddy Mike said. "But we encourage one another and have lots of prayer meetings and ask are we doing what God wants. As long as we feel that way, we're going to do it."
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