Sandra Ann Dillon (May 19, 1960 – August 4, 2022) was an American singer-songwriter. She released several solo albums, describing her music as "jazz-punk western blues", and also worked with

Ensemble Modern Ensemble Modern is an international ensemble dedicated to performing and promoting the music of modern composers. Formed in 1980, the group is based in Frankfurt, Germany, and made up variously of about twenty members from numerous countries. Hi ...

and

Man Parrish Manuel "Man" Parrish (born May 6, 1958) is an American songwriter, vocalist and producer. He, along with artists such as Yellow Magic Orchestra, Kraftwerk, Art of Noise, Arthur Baker, Afrika Bambaataa, John Robie, Jellybean Benitez, Lotti Golde ...

.Harris, Craig
Sandy Dillon Biography
,

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

. Retrieved August 6, 2016

Career

Born near

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mon ...

, Dillon took up piano at the age of 6, and studied Orchestral Composition at

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cou ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

, before moving to New York City where she lived at the Chelsea Hotel. She played

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage presence. ...

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

in ''Rock n Roll: The First 5,000 Years'' where she was spotted by Tony DeFries, who had managed both

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

and

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the " Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band The Stooges, who w ...

. DeFries steered her to

Elektra Electra was a daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra in Greek mythology. Electra or Elektra may also refer to: Greek mythology *Electra (Pleiad), one of the Pleiades * Electra, one of the Danaids, daughter of Danaus and Polyxo * Electra (Oc ...

, for whom she recorded two (unreleased) albums ''Candy From A Stranger'' (produced by

) and ''Flowers'' (co-produced by

Mick Ronson Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session music ...

and

Dieter Meier Dieter Meier (born 4 March 1945) is a Swiss industrialist, musician and conceptual artist. He is the frontman of the electronic music group Yello, which was co-founded (with ex-member Carlos Perón) by music producer Boris Blank. He is a vocal ...

), those songs previewed in a performance at

Ronnie Scotts Ronnie may refer to: *Ronnie (name), a unisex pet name and given name * "Ronnie" (Four Seasons song), a song by Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe *"Ronnie," a song from the Metallica album '' Load'' *Ronnie Brunswijkstadion, an association football stadium ...

alongside Ronson on guitar. Elektra released her third set as her debut album. Dillon moved to London where she met her husband Steve Bywaters, who was a member of the

Churchfitters The Churchfitters are an English folk group. They were founded in 1978 by singer/songwriter Anthony McCartan from Belfast and multi-instrumentist Geoff Coombs from Essex (later a founding member of the band Kip Keano), after a band they had prev ...

(also known as the Blue Lighthouse Brigade in alternate form) alongside Pete Brown (bass and sax), Geoff Coombs (mandolin, whistles and vocals) and Angus Wallace (guitar and vocals). Steve Bywaters subsequently went on to produce several of Dillon's albums. She signed to

One Little Indian One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In ...

for whom she recorded ''Electric Chair''. In 2000 she released ''Las Vegas Is Cursed'', a collaboration with

Hector Zazou Hector Zazou (11 July 1948 – 8 September 2008) was a prolific French composer and record producer who worked with, produced, and collaborated with an international array of recording artists. He worked on his own and other artists' albums, inclu ...

and ''East Overshoe''. In 2001 Steve Bywaters died after suffering a heart attack. Dillon went on and recorded the well-received ''Nobody's Sweetheart'', produced by Julius from Kinobe and featuring guest vocals from

Heather Nova Heather Nova (born Heather Allison Frith, July 6, 1968) is a Bermudian singer-songwriter and poet. , she has released eleven full-length albums, six EPs and twelve singles. Biography Heather Nova was born Heather Allison Frith on Bermuda, a B ...

, which was the first of Dillon's albums to be released in the US, in 2004. She then recorded the album ''Pull the Strings'', which was released in 2006. Her 2008 album, ''Living in Dreams'', was recorded in Germany together with her new husband Ray Majors (

Mott The Hoople Mott the Hoople were an English rock band formed in Herefordshire. Originally known as the Doc Thomas Group, the group changed their name after signing with Island Records in 1969. The band released albums throughout the early 1970s but fai ...

The Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band's core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist and later bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samw ...

) and produced by David Coulter. Dillon and Majors also contributed vocals and guitar to Sisters Euclid's album ''96 Tears'', a collection of cover versions. Dillon died in London in August 2022. Her death occurred just hours apart from that of her husband, Ray Majors.Sandra Anne Dillon Obituary
/ref>

Discography

Albums

*''Dancing on the Freeway'' (1995),

*''Skating'' (1996), Bonjour * ''Electric Chair'' (1999),

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

* ''12 (Las Vegas is Cursed)'' by Sandy Dillon &

(2000),

Crammed Discs Crammed Discs is an independent record label whose output blends world music, rock, pop, and electronica. Based in Brussels, Belgium, Crammed was founded in 1980 by Marc Hollander of Aksak Maboul and has since released around 375 albums and 2 ...

* ''East Overshoe'' (2001), One Little Indian * ''Nobody's Sweetheart'' (2003), One Little Indian * ''Pull the Strings'' (2006), One Little Indian * ''Living in Dreams'' (2008), Tradition & Moderne * ''Flowers'' (2013), NRX * ''Shipwrecked'' (2013)

Singles

*"Flowers" (1985), Mainman *"Shoreline" (2007), One Little Indian

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dillon, Sandy 1960 births 2022 deaths 21st-century American women American women singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Massachusetts People from Barnstable County, Massachusetts