Song writing founded in country music with a healthy dose of rock 'n roll.

8 MP3 Songs
COUNTRY: Country Rock, ROCK: Country-Rock

Show all album songs: Sandy Stringfellow Songs


Details:
Itâs often been said about Sandy Stringfellow that his vocal timbre has the resonant feel of a modern day Johnny Cash.
âThat puzzles me a bit,â he confided in a recent interview. âJohnny Cash has been a musical influence and inspiration for me since high school, but his voice has a deeper pitch than mine.â That may be true, but when you listen to him itâs quite clear that Sandy Stringfellow means what he sings about in his songs.

His fascination with songwriting was evident from the age of seven, when he would compose simple self-taught piano instrumentals. Since his early teens, songwriting has been the consistent professional goal in his life.
âI enjoy writing songs that tell a story. As a songwriter, itâs more interesting for me to write about different people, places and events rather than focusing exclusively on first hand encounters.â

Sandy Stringfellow began taking piano lessons at age nine, drum lessons at age eleven, and guitar lessons at age thirteen. Born and raised in Gainesville, Florida, he played electric guitar and drums in various local bands. Looking back on his formative years, he recalled the wealth of regional talent.
âWhen I was a teenager in Gainesville, there were some exceptional bands in that area of Florida. The Maundy Quintet had two members end up in the Eagles. Mudcrutch became Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Duane and Greg Allman, Lynyrd Skynyrd; it was a rich musical environment.â

Having played in local groups since junior high, he began to understand the considerable difficulty of forming a band unified in musical direction.
âThe seventies were a frustrating time for me musically. I learned that musical synergy is an elusive thing. I was earning my living by alternating between commercial carpentry and retail audio/musical instrument sales. I listened to country music and rock ân roll mostly, along with some bluegrass and R&B.
Country music didnât enjoy the main stream popularity it has today. It seemed as if most of the musicians I met in Gainesville back then were immersed in glam rock, new wave, heavy metal or punk. I remember going to various band auditions where the objective was to see who could play the loudest.
I found it equally frustrating that nobody I knew of was writing songs or even interested in trying, except for Tom Petty. The thing about Tom was that his song writing was so exceptionally good, even back then, that it was somewhat intimidating to engage in musical discourse with him. Not that he was condescending or anything like that. He just knew so much.
Iâd been around super talented musicians before. Benmont Tench and I played together in our first band. Bernie Leadon used to show up at some of the local bluegrass picking parties.
But Iâd never been around anyone who seemed to know the first thing about song writing, and here was this local cat writing better songs than most of what was being played on the radio.
In my senior year of high school I used to hang out at the infamous farm house just to listen to Mudcrutch practice sessions. It was obvious to me that Mudcrutch had something special. There was a definite musical synergy born of talented musicians, excellent songs, and a common creative direction.
I tried for some years to find or cultivate the musical vibration that existed with Mudcrutch. In reality, they were so far above and beyond what was reasonable to expect. And yet, I continued to dream. It finally became apparent that, for me at least, it was time to do things differently.â

Since then Sandy Stringfellow has been writing and recording songs in his home studio. Heâs a songwriter that covers a lot of ground. Donât be surprised if he takes you from hard hitting political commentary to humorous romance, from heart rending ballad to an up tempo tune that rocks your socks.
His unvarnished down to earth style, originality, and common sense are a refreshing change from the predictable and worn out renditions that remain the standard fare for many acoustic guitar-toting entertainers. The irresistible qualities of hope, understanding, humor, and love that permeate his songwriting provide for a memorable musical experience.