Interviews with
Caron Vikre


Caron Vikre met with SacTV host Alex Cosper on October 27, 2013 at McKinley Park for a series of interviews about her musical background and writing ambitions. She has released six CDs and has performed many live shows in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1980 she and Wayne Hueners formed a group called Crayon, who had a local radio hit after winning a song competition.
Alex Cosper Interviews Caron Vikre
Caron talks about the beginning of her public performances in the late 1970s, leading into the period when she sang with a group called Crayon, who had a popular local radio hit in Sacramento called "Carry Me Back." The recording was produced by David Houston at Moon Recording Studio, where several local artists recorded.
Mixing a Novel with Songwriting
Writing a novel about a songwriter (who happens to have written the same songs Caron did) has become a big project for Caron. She anticipates the work to be finished within a year. Since it's her first book, she wanted to write about things she already knew about, such as singing, songwriting, painting and business.
Life at Tower Records
During the mid to late 80s, Caron worked at the Tower Records on Watt and El Camino as a CD Buyer. She explains what she did and how it gave her access to records and shows. It was a time period when Tower was a big part of the local music scene. That particular store was also important to record labels because it was a select store that reported sales to Billboard.
Secrets to Record Sales
Working at Tower gave Caron the opportunity to play her favorite music in the store, along with other clerks such as John McCrae, who went on to have national success with his band Cake. Caron confirms that in-store record play helped sales, at least a little bit, since people would inquire about the music playing. Store clerks were all about playing unfamiliar albums instead of what was on the charts.
What Music Means to Caron
Caron talks about why she got into music and how she enjoys the problem solving aspect of art. She says if schools thought more on the level that songs relate to problem solving, music might be taken more seriously as part of academic study. She talks about how her first live show at Sac State for a big crowd was a result of the Crayon hit "Carry Me Back" on the radio.
Caron Vikre's Musical Background
Reflecting on her musical history, Caron says she first began singing and writing songs at age 8. About a decade later she recorded her first song after winning a song competition at Moon Recording Studios. She also reflects on playing live at Melarkey's and Cafe Montreal.


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