Sandi Griffiths (born Sandi Jensen on August 1, 1946) is an American singer. She is best known as a performer on American television's ''

The Lawrence Welk Show ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' is an American televised musical variety show hosted by big band leader Lawrence Welk. The series aired locally in Los Angeles for four years, from 1951 to 1955, then nationally for another 16 years on ABC from 195 ...

''.

Early years

A native of the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

; she started singing as a child and by the age of five, was a regular on TV by appearing on the

Art Linkletter Arthur Gordon Linkletter (born Gordon Arthur Kelly or Arthur Gordon Kelly; sources differ; July 17, 1912 – May 26, 2010) was a Canadian-born American radio and television personality. He was the host of ''House Party'', which ran on CBS radio a ...

program, ''

House Party A house party is a type of party where people gather at the residence of the party's host. Organization A house party might be organized several months or just a few hours in advance. News of a party may be spread by personal invitations, ...

''. She continued to perfect her music skills all throughout school, and in

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

, at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

where she teamed with and became friends with

Sally Flynn Sally Flynn (born July 23, 1946 in Ontario, Oregon) is an American singer and musician (also known as Sally Hart) who was a featured performer on ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' television program. A Alumnus, graduate of Brigham Young University (BYU ...

Sandi and Sally

At BYU, the duo sang at the school's

musical revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own durin ...

known as the Program Bureau, later at

Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney in ...

and then went over to

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

to entertain the troops as part of a

USO The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...

tour. After three weeks, she and Sally returned to the states to concentrate on their professional careers, in which their break came when they were asked to open for

Jack Jones Jack Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *Jack Jones (American singer) (born 1938), American jazz and pop singer *Jack Jones, stage name of Australian singer Irwin Thomas (born 1971) *Jack Jones (Welsh musician) (born 1992), Welsh mu ...

Harrah's Harrah's Entertainment (later named Caesars Entertainment Corporation, previously The Promus Companies) was an American casino and hotel company founded in Reno, Nevada, and based in Paradise, Nevada, that operated over 50 properties and seven go ...

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City, Nevad ...

. It was here that

Lawrence Welk Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was an American accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted the ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1951 to 1982. His style came to be known as "champagne music" to his radio, tele ...

and his music makers in the summer of 1967 played their annual three-week engagement at

Gail, Sandi and Mary Lou

When

left to pursue a solo career in 1972, Sandi wasn't sure about her future on the show since the program already had plenty of soloists. However, she found even greater popularity by being part of a new musical act, a girl group featuring fellow Welk stars

Gail Farrell Gail Farrell (born October 6, 1947) is an American singer and songwriter, best known for her work on the variety program ''The Lawrence Welk Show''. Biography Born in Salinas, California, she grew up in Durant, Oklahoma as an only child on her f ...

and

Mary Lou Metzger Mary Lou Metzger (born November 13, 1950) is an American singer and dancer best known as a cast member on ''The Lawrence Welk Show''. Metzger was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the only child of Ernie and Helen Metzger. The family moved to Ha ...

that sang numbers made famous by

The Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the Swing music, swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (July 6, 1911 – May 8, 1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andre ...

McGuire Sisters The McGuire Sisters were a singing trio in American popular music. The group was composed of three sisters: * Ruby Christine McGuire (July 30, 1926 – December 28, 2018) * Dorothy "Dottie" McGuire (February 13, 1928 – September 7, 2012) * Ph ...

and other famous acts. The trio, with its blend of good looks and pretty voices, also became very popular with fans of the show. In addition, she sang a few solos, toured with the Musical Family in

concerts A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...

, branched outside the organization by providing background vocals for numerous artists, and appeared in several television commercials.

Personal life

Members of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

, Sandi and her husband Brent are the parents of eight children, a foster daughter, and grandparents of sixteen children.''Welkmusicalfamily.com''
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffiths, Sandi 1946 births Singers from Los Angeles Living people American women singers Latter Day Saints from California Lawrence Welk