| Singer/Songwriter,
Peter Sando emerged in the late 60's from the band Gandalf,
formerly the Rahgoos prior to the LP release,
appearing at various New York clubs such as "The Phone
Booth", Scott Muni's "Rolling Stone", "The Electric
Circus", Murray the K's "World", and the legendary "Night Owl Cafe" in Greenwich
Village. It was there that he met songwriters Garry
Bonner and Alan Gordon ("Happy Together", "She'd
Rather Be With Me") who brought the band to the
attention of record producers Koppelman & Rubin.
K&R signed the band and immediately started work
on the GANDALF album which was released on the Capitol
label in 1969, with two songs penned by Peter. "Can
You Travel in the Dark Alone" was a favorite of the
late Allison Steele, "The Nightbird", on WNEW-FM New
York, who would introduce it with a lengthy dose of
her inimitable psychedelic poetry. Unfortunately,
the band broke up in 1968 before the original LP was released.
At that time Peter again teamed up with Bonner and
Gordon to sing lead on two singles including their
"Dance at St. Francis" as the Barracuda on RCA which charted
briefly in 1968.
Four
original songs were recorded at Brooks Arthur's
Peter continues to write and perform his songs throughout the New York/New Jersey area folk circuit. "Creatures of Habit", the first solo CD by Peter Sando was released in 1999 on High Point Records. Comprised of all original material, it featured JOHN BROWN, ode to the militant abolitionist who sparked the Civil War, and DESERT FLOWER, which Peter describes as a "Native American lullaby." The Gandalf LP, after having been bootlegged several times (including a picture disc and a blue vinyl version) was legitimately re-issued on CD by the UK based See For Miles label in 1991, and more recently, in the USA on the highly rated Sundazed. This definitive release includes an 8 page booklet with new photos and liner notes by Mike Stax. Three of Peter's songs, co-written with composer Joe Delia, appear in the 1999 Trimark film "Time Served" with Louise Fletcher and Katherine Oxenberg. A
newer CD, Gandalf 2,
consisting of rare outtakes, unreleased demos
including the "914 Tracks", and live recordings from
Peter's personal archives circa 1967-1973 was
released on Sundazed CD and deluxe Smokey Topaz
colored vinyl LP. They are currently out of print. More
recent solo CD's include, Afraid Of The Dark, and Let There Be Love. 2020 - New Solo Album from Peter Sando: "Reason To Live"
GANDALF in 2021 "Tears of Ages".
Some old, some new original songs and covers of Tim
Hardin, Fred Neil, Bob Jenkins, and a couple of
Bonner & Gordon gems. Also included will be a
new version of Misty Roses On A Stone, a tribute
to the late Tim Hardin co-written with Jack McMahon. 2024 brings a new release of the
original 1969 LP from Jackpot Records
Click on HAPPENINGS for current info on Peter's live appearances. |
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914
Studios in 1971 and his self-produced work,
"Sandcastles" (1981), lay
unreleased until now. Many tracks
have been incorporated into the GANDALF 2 and
Songwriter's Scrapbook albums. 
