But on May 1, Sobule passed away in a house fire. She was 66 years old. "She is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule, and her beloved nephews, Ian Matthew and Robert and Robert’s wife Irina," an announcement notes. "She is also survived by numerous beloved cousins and countless friends."
The show at Swallow Hill will now be an informal gathering hosted by Ron Bostwick, a friend of Sobule's, from 105.5 The Colorado Sound, starting at 7:30 p.m.
Several of Sobule's friends shared statements about the musician.
John Porter, Jill’s manager, shared this: “Jill Sobule was a force of nature and human rights advocate whose music is woven into our culture. I was having so much fun working with her. I lost a client & a friend today. I hope her music, memory, & legacy continue to live on and inspire others.”
Sobule’s booking agent, Craig Grossman, offered this: “I was fortunate enough to get to know Jill beyond a professional relationship. No one made me laugh more. Her spirit and energy shall be greatly missed within the music community and beyond.”
“Jill wasn’t just a client," adds Ken Hertz, Sobule's attorney for decades. "She was family to us. She showed up for every birth, every birthday and every holiday. She performed at our daughter’s wedding, and I was her 'tech' when she performed by ZOOM from our living room (while living with us) during the pandemic.”
Singer-songwriter Jill Sobule has a hit new song out, but don't expect to hear it on the radio anytime soon.
Courtesy Shervin Lainez
Jill Sobule was born and raised in Denver before she took off for New York City to pursue her dreams. While her 1990 debut album, Things Here Are Different, failed to chart, her self-titled sophomore follow-up from 1995 put her on the map. It also helped that the music video for "I Kissed a Girl" featured the heartthrob of the time, Fabio Lanzoni.
But it was Sobule's dazzling voice and wit that made her unforgettable to many faithful fans. She went on to release several more albums, including Happy Town (1997) and Pink Pearl (2000), which led to her opening for Don Henley. Her next two albums, 2004's The Folk Years 2002-2003 and 2009's The California Years, were self-released via her own label, Pinko Records, with the second completely crowd-funded via Sobule's website.
She was also known for her collaborations: In the late '90s, she toured with Richard Barone as the Richard & Jill Show, and she was in Lloyd Cole's band the Negatives for its run from 1997-'98. While her album sales stalled, she moved to Los Angeles, where she began to work in film and television, providing music for the Nickelodeon show Unfabulous; she wrote four songs for the debut album of that series' star, Emma Roberts. Sobule also acted as a lead in the film Mind the Gap, for which she provided several soundtrack songs, and joined her friend, comedian Julia Sweeney, for a collaborative show of stories, comedy and music. In 2023, the Hill Jr. High alum wrote and produced an off-Broadway play, Fuck 7th Grade, inspired by her awkward adolescence and experience coming out as queer.
Even though mega commercial success and stardom didn't find her, Sobule's songwriting was always acclaimed by critics. Her website lists a quote from the New York Times: "Jill Sobule can claim her place among the stellar New York singer-songwriters of the last decade. Topical, funny and more than a little poignant ... grown-up music for an adolescent age."
Sobule's humor, which often interlaced with her songwriting, was always on display. While opening for the band the Fixx in March, she debuted a song called "JD Vance Is a Cunt."
"It’s not my best song," she told us, "but it does get to the point. ”
In our recent interview, Sobule was still a Denver woman at heart. She shared her love of the Nuggets in particular, telling Westword that when some concerts landed on game nights, she had a unique way of learning the score: “I was playing a show somewhere in New York during the championship run two years ago, and there was a game, so I said to the audience, ‘I don’t like people on their phones, but after my song, would you guys tell me the score?’ So instead of people clapping for my songs, they’d cheer or jeer, depending on the score.
“I have priorities,” she quipped.
Sobule also told us that, while she hasn't lived in Denver for more than thirty years, it always felt like home. “Going back at first, you’d kind of feel weird. You’d have weird memories,” she said. “Then the last couple years, when I come back to Denver, I’m like, ‘I want to move back. This is the best place on Earth.’”
