Biography
Sara Watkins rose to attention through Nickel Creek, the progressive bluegrass ensemble whose lineup also included her brother Sean and early companion Chris Thile. Momentum the trio built across Americana circles during the 2000s opened doors for Watkins to contribute session performances on releases by rock and country acts, allowing her to cultivate recognition apart from the band. After Nickel Creek entered an indefinite hiatus, she initiated her solo path in 2009 and thereafter shifted fluidly between folk and adult alternative territories, a range reflected in the Watkins Family Hour appearances she shared with Sean at Los Angeles venue The Largo and in her role co-founding the singer/songwriter supergroup I'm with Her, whose first album surfaced in 2018.
Born June 8, 1981, in Vista, California, Sara began studying fiddle while still young, matching her older brother Sean’s pursuit of mandolin. A shared tutor introduced Sean to Chris Thile, and the three launched Nickel Creek in 1989, the same year Sara turned eight. Their debut performance took place in Carlsbad, California, after which the group became a regular presence at bluegrass festivals throughout the 1990s. Audience growth led to independent releases Little Cowpoke in 1993 and Here to There in 1997. Alison Krauss’s endorsement secured them a Sugar Hill contract, and she produced the self-titled Nickel Creek album issued in 2000, an immediate success within bluegrass and Americana circles that expanded steadily in subsequent years. Side projects aided that expansion, among them Mutual Admiration Society, which united all three Nickel Creek members with Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones; the ensemble released an album and toured in 2004.
Nickel Creek’s standing in modern bluegrass and Americana facilitated Watkins’s 2008 solo signing with Nonesuch Records. John Paul Jones produced her self-titled debut, issued in April 2009. Despite the solo step, she maintained ties with her former bandmates through recurring Watkins Family Hour shows at The Largo with Sean and continued collaborative appearances alongside a wide array of folk, country, and rock artists.
Blake Mills produced her second solo set, Sun Midnight Sun, which arrived in September 2011. Nickel Creek reconvened for A Dotted Line in 2014, followed the next year by an official Watkins Family Hour album. She moved to New West Records for Young in All the Wrong Ways in 2016.
In 2017 Watkins joined Aoife O’Donovan and Sarah Jarosz to form I'm with Her, whose debut See You Around appeared in February 2018. Watkins Family Hour issued Brother Sister in 2020; the fiddler then resumed solo work with Under the Pepper Tree in 2021, a children’s album prompted by the arrival of her newborn.
Born June 8, 1981, in Vista, California, Sara began studying fiddle while still young, matching her older brother Sean’s pursuit of mandolin. A shared tutor introduced Sean to Chris Thile, and the three launched Nickel Creek in 1989, the same year Sara turned eight. Their debut performance took place in Carlsbad, California, after which the group became a regular presence at bluegrass festivals throughout the 1990s. Audience growth led to independent releases Little Cowpoke in 1993 and Here to There in 1997. Alison Krauss’s endorsement secured them a Sugar Hill contract, and she produced the self-titled Nickel Creek album issued in 2000, an immediate success within bluegrass and Americana circles that expanded steadily in subsequent years. Side projects aided that expansion, among them Mutual Admiration Society, which united all three Nickel Creek members with Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones; the ensemble released an album and toured in 2004.
Nickel Creek’s standing in modern bluegrass and Americana facilitated Watkins’s 2008 solo signing with Nonesuch Records. John Paul Jones produced her self-titled debut, issued in April 2009. Despite the solo step, she maintained ties with her former bandmates through recurring Watkins Family Hour shows at The Largo with Sean and continued collaborative appearances alongside a wide array of folk, country, and rock artists.
Blake Mills produced her second solo set, Sun Midnight Sun, which arrived in September 2011. Nickel Creek reconvened for A Dotted Line in 2014, followed the next year by an official Watkins Family Hour album. She moved to New West Records for Young in All the Wrong Ways in 2016.
In 2017 Watkins joined Aoife O’Donovan and Sarah Jarosz to form I'm with Her, whose debut See You Around appeared in February 2018. Watkins Family Hour issued Brother Sister in 2020; the fiddler then resumed solo work with Under the Pepper Tree in 2021, a children’s album prompted by the arrival of her newborn.
Albums
Singles
