Review - Rock & Reel Magazine January 2010

For the past three decades, this fifty-eight-year-old singing guitarist's income had depended chiefly on leading Marmalade through their ancient smashes on the nostalgia circuit. Yet another Sandy Newman keeps a lower but more inventive profile as a songwriter, in-demand record producer and interpreter of frequently tough material, notably 'Voir Un Ami Pleurer', nestling among contributions by Robb Johnson, Barb Jungr, Attila The Stockbroker and like cult celebrities on 1998's acclaimed Ne Me Quitte Pas CD celebration of Jacques Brel.

As a measure of his talent, apart from drums plus various bits and pieces on specific tracks, every note on an overdue solo album has been hand-tooled by the man himself, largely in the privacy of his own home studio. Into the bargain, he's endeavoured to avoid a blinded-by-science approach to the general sound - and thus it's easy to perceive that 'The Blind Man', 'Over The River', the rapt title theme and another five self-penned numbers would stand as tall in essence if reduced to the acid test of just voice and piano. Newman is also most discerning in a choice of non-originals, ranging from tender 'The More I Look' by Len Hawkes, once of the post-Brian Poole Tremeloes, to a daring 'Wichita Lineman' on a collection that's been worth the long wait.

Alan Clayson
Author & Rock Biographer

Coming Soon

Sandy’s new album is almost ready for sale! He is just putting the final touches to the sleeve design now, the album is due out in March/April 2010.

If you can’t wait that long please have a look on the Music Page where you’ll find a couple of tracks to keep you going.

Or you can pre-order a copy by sending him an email.