Sanford-Townsend Band

The Sanford-Townsend Band
Origin	Alabama
Genres	Pop rock, blue-eyed soul
Years active	1974-1980
Labels	Warner Bros.
Past members	Ed Sanford Johnny Townsend Roger Johnson Otis Hale Jerry Rightmer Jim Varley

The Sanford-Townsend Band was a rock and roll band in the United States. They scored a hit single in 1977 with "Smoke From A Distant Fire".

History

The Sanford-Townsend Band featured Alabama keyboardists Ed Sanford (from Montgomery, AL) and Johnny Townsend (from Tuscaloosa, AL), who previously worked together in a Tuscaloosa-based band called Heart (not to be confused with the band of the same name fronted by Ann & Nancy Wilson from Seattle/Vancouver).

After reuniting in Los Angeles, Sanford and Townsend signed a publishing deal with Chappell Music and began writing songs, most notably "Peacemaker" for Loggins and Messina, which was co-written by Sanford and Townsend with Kenny Loggins.

Their 1976 self-titled album started getting attention when "Smoke From a Distant Fire" reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 in Cash Box, recorded at the famous Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in Alabama. The album was retitled with the name of the hit song and re-released. The band supported the song by opening for Fleetwood Mac on their Rumours tour, as well as concerts with the Marshall Tucker Band, Charlie Daniels, Jimmy Buffett, Foreigner, Heart and others.

The band's follow-up albums, entitled Duo-Glide and Nail Me To The Wall, were significantly less successful. Sanford and Townsend returned to their careers as session musicians and songwriters.

Ed Sanford co-wrote "I Keep Forgettin'" with Michael McDonald, which appeared on McDonald's debut solo album in 1982.

In 2008, John Townsend formed the Toler/Townsend Band with Dan Toler. Townsend's tenor voice remains substantially unchanged from thirty years prior.

Principal Band Members

• John Wayne Townsend: Lead Vocals, Keyboards
• Ed Sanford: Keyboards, Vocals
• Roger Johnson: Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
• Otis Hale: Guitar, Woodwinds, Backing Vocals
• Jerry Rightmer: Bass, Backing Vocals
• Jim Varley: Drums

Discography

Albums

• Sanford Townsend Band (1976)
• Smoke From A Distant Fire (1977) US #57
• Duo-Glide (1978) US #92
• Nail Me To The Wall (1979)

Singles

Year	Single	Chart Positions
		US	AU
1977	"Shake It to the Right"	-	-
	"Smoke from a Distant Fire"	9	44
1978	"Eye of My Storm (Oh Woman)"	-	-

External links

• Allmusic entry
• "Smoke From A Distant Fire" Songfacts entry
• Johnny Townsend site
• Johnny Townsend Myspace
• Video of "Smoke from a Distant Fire" on YouTube
• Official site of The Toler-Townsend Band