SANDY MASON
Sandy Mason began her professional performing career at age eleven as a vaudeville style ventriloquist, bringing comedy, music, and charm to standing ovations. Performing at top venues like
New York's Blue Angel, she and her dummy "Tommy" became a regional hit by age
twelve. Her act took her throughout the northeast working with pros like
the Four Freshmen, Connie Francis and the Four Aces.
By the time she was eighteen, she had performed at the prestigious Boulevard Room in Chicago and the Palace Theater on Broadway. Sandy was only 21-years-old when she was given her own daily TV series, “Popeye N Friends”. This popular children’s show aired on WTAE Pittsburgh for three years.
As a recording artist, Sandy had three releases with MGM Records,
two of which made it to the Billboard charts.
She later became a staff writer in New York with Sunbury Dunbar by day,
playing club gigs and restaurants at night.
During that time she wrote 30 radio and TV commercials for Coca-Cola, with two of her jingles winning CLIO Awards.
Sandy lived in Nashville for over 40 years
and was part of a incubator of its time in an informal group of musicians that included
producer Allen Reynolds, Cowboy Jack Clement and Jim Rooney. During those years her vivacious sense of life and
the desire "share the music and get it out there" helped to influence and promote many successful songwriters and musicians through the years.
Sandy Mason, who also appeared under the name Sandy Mason Theoret, is recognized as a gifted songwriter,
creating a number of hit songs. Her song "When I Dream" has been recorded over eighty times worldwide
in many languages by artists such as Crystal Gayle, Nana Mouskouri, Willie Nelson, Vic Damone, Julie Andrews,
Roger Whitaker, Mac Davis, Cowboy Jack Clement, Eddie Arnold and Nanci Griffith.
Sandy also wrote many other well loved songs with such writers as John Prine and Roger Cook ("Only Love") and
Benita Hill and Shawn Camp ("Walk on By" "Two Pina Coladas”)
the latter a #1 hit for Grammy award winner Garth Brooks.
Sandy passed from this world to the next on April 1, 2015.
Her experiences as an entertainer and
her talent as a songwriter
lives on through her music and her many publications.
New York's Blue Angel, she and her dummy "Tommy" became a regional hit by age
twelve. Her act took her throughout the northeast working with pros like
the Four Freshmen, Connie Francis and the Four Aces.
By the time she was eighteen, she had performed at the prestigious Boulevard Room in Chicago and the Palace Theater on Broadway. Sandy was only 21-years-old when she was given her own daily TV series, “Popeye N Friends”. This popular children’s show aired on WTAE Pittsburgh for three years.
As a recording artist, Sandy had three releases with MGM Records,
two of which made it to the Billboard charts.
She later became a staff writer in New York with Sunbury Dunbar by day,
playing club gigs and restaurants at night.
During that time she wrote 30 radio and TV commercials for Coca-Cola, with two of her jingles winning CLIO Awards.
Sandy lived in Nashville for over 40 years
and was part of a incubator of its time in an informal group of musicians that included
producer Allen Reynolds, Cowboy Jack Clement and Jim Rooney. During those years her vivacious sense of life and
the desire "share the music and get it out there" helped to influence and promote many successful songwriters and musicians through the years.
Sandy Mason, who also appeared under the name Sandy Mason Theoret, is recognized as a gifted songwriter,
creating a number of hit songs. Her song "When I Dream" has been recorded over eighty times worldwide
in many languages by artists such as Crystal Gayle, Nana Mouskouri, Willie Nelson, Vic Damone, Julie Andrews,
Roger Whitaker, Mac Davis, Cowboy Jack Clement, Eddie Arnold and Nanci Griffith.
Sandy also wrote many other well loved songs with such writers as John Prine and Roger Cook ("Only Love") and
Benita Hill and Shawn Camp ("Walk on By" "Two Pina Coladas”)
the latter a #1 hit for Grammy award winner Garth Brooks.
Sandy passed from this world to the next on April 1, 2015.
Her experiences as an entertainer and
her talent as a songwriter
lives on through her music and her many publications.
SANDY LOVED HER DOGS
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ALBUM LINKS
SONG WRITING HITS
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WHEN I DREAM
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"I was in a little fishing town in Florida,
called Cortez alone one night, I wrote four songs, the last one took only two minutes, it wrote itself, words and music. When I got up the next morning I sang them in order, when I sang the last one When I Dream I jumped up and danced all around the room!" |
TWO PINA COLADAS
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"It was a cold winter day, Benita Hill, Shawn Camp and I were all dreaming about anything warm, for some reason out of the blue, I said “you know I always wanted to write a song with 'Pina Coladas' in the title and if I did I would have 'one for each hand'.... at that moment Shawn started singing the chorus. We thought it would be perfect for Jimmy Buffet when Allen Reynolds heard it.....and asked to hear it again and again!
Garth Brooks has a huge hit with this song, first released on his Sevens album. Two Pina Coladas like When I Dream is recorded and released in many languages throughout the world ORIGINAL TEXT...take a listen. |
ONLY LOVE
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Nice cover of a tune written by
Sandy Mason, John Prine and Roger Cook. Jack Grochmal tells this story: I remember vividly after they wrote that beautiful song, we were recording Johnny Cash with Jack Clement producing.....Everyone was excited about the new tune. They were working it up in the studio with a host of great players and all three writers in attendance. As they were running the song down, I put the tape recorder into record and a pile of smoke rose up over the machine. It had blown up......but no one in the studio knew. I scrambled to load up a two channel machine and hit the talkback....." Rolling" and we captured the performance Live.When Cowboy and the rest came in to hear the " take " everyone said yea, that's it !!! I took Cowboy to the side asking him was he ok with that, he said yea.....That's when I told him the two track Was The Master.True to form......after the multitrack recorder was serviced.....Cowboy had me transfer the two track to the big tape and we overdubbed a string quartet.. In the end, the album was released...." The Adventures of Johnny Cash " on CBS Records. IMHO....."Only Love" was the best sounding cut on the album. |
HANDS
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In the 70's this tune was written as a Coca Cola commercial and won a CLIO award Sandy and Bill Backer.
Here is an early music video by our friend Crystal Gayle. |
THE OLD OAK TREE
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Performed here by Alamo Jones Sandy wrote this song with Roger Cook. Also know as "They Were Here Today" there are many versions in her personal library.
Sandy always credited Fairchild Oak in Ormond Beach, Florida as its inspiration. Available on I TUNES in support of the Sierra Club. |
YOU'LL COME BACK TO ME
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This song written by Sandy and Pat Algers.
Sandy liked Pat because "he knew a lot of chords." Pat called Sandy the female PETER PAN. Great tune found on Pat's SEEDS album. |
ALL I WANNA DO IN LIFE
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This well loved song written by Sandy and long time collaborator Allen Reynolds has been recorded
by many artists including Marianne Faithful, George Jones, Cowboy Jack Clement, Robin Gibbs and others. |
AFTER ALL
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Most recent release.
Written with Charles Cochran in the 1970's. Re-discovered in a drawer for the posthumous release of Johnny Cash's OUT AMONG THE STARS. Also recorded by Vic Damone. Found on Sandy's second album ONLY LOVE, released by Boot Record in Canada. |