The inspiration…

From The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN - September, 1997

“Andy Tanas, in dyed blond hair and the remnants of eye makeup, sat in his hotel room on a 1984 night. A member of Krokus, he'd been on stage sweating in a pair of tight leather pants while playing heavy metal on his bass.

“I'm playing these old Carl Perkins songs like “Boppin' the Blues” he said. “And I look in the mirror across from the bed and I'm thinking “Who is this guy sitting here?'”

What do you do when you're raised in a musical Mecca like Memphis where the best music has always come from mixing one style of music to another? Memphis has always rebelled against conventional ideas when it comes to art. So here's a guy that loves Don Gibson and Johnny Cash as much as The Who and Humble Pie. You know what…it just might work!

In 1975 Andy toured as part of an audio crew with Lynyrd Skynyrd, Marshall Tucker, Outlaws, Wet Willy, Charlie Daniels, Climax Blues Band, Status Quo, Peter Frampton, .38 Special, Jerry Lee Lewis and many others.

After hearing some of Andy's material, Gary Rossington and Ronnie Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynryd encouraged him to give up the audio end and pursue playing and songwriting more seriously. In 1977, he joined Black Oak Arkansas as a bassist, vocalist and songwriter. Black Oak signed with Capricorn Records and released ""Race With The Devil"" in 1977 and ""I'd Rather Be Sailing"" in 1978. Two songs of Andy's appeared on ""I'd Rather Be Sailing"": You Keep Me Waiting and Innocent Eyes. Constant touring kept him busy until January of 1980 when the band disbanded. At that point the line-up included a fifteen year old guitar whiz named Shawn Lane.

In 1980, Andy relocated to Los Angeles and worked with various local bands including Legs Diamond, Shandra Beri, Marcus Malone, Chuck Gerard, Michael Monarch and Jon Hyde of Detective as well as others. Local bands and recording sessions kept him busy off and on until 1983.

He was offered the bassist/background vocalist slot with Swiss hardrocking outfit Krokus in 1984. He was in four videos including the MTV concert video that year, toured the U.S., Canada, South America and Europe until leaving the band in 1985 because of direction differences.

He released a four song EP in 1989 that he wrote, produced and financed, which received good reviews as well as airplay on college radio, mostly in the southeast. It was a mix of hard rock with a lot of country influence that for 1989 was a little ahead of its time.

In 1991, he formed The Rompers, a rock-country band that showcased his material and vocal style. They played all over the L.A. and Orange County area and opened for Commander Cody, Mark Collie and others until he relocated back to Memphis in May of 1993.

In 1995 he completed an eight song demo that caught the attention of some labels and publishing companies in Nashville. Although it was crudely recorded, the vocal style and songwriting stood out enough that they asked for more songs.

In 1997 he released ""Memphis Boy vs The Eight Track From Hell"". A hybrid mix of country and rock with different subject matter. This lead to meeting Stu Baker with Hayden’s Ferry Records in Arizona. He was invited to be on the ""Jukebox Cantina"" compilation with fourteen other artists including The Ignitors, Dan Israel, Grievous Angels and Ronnie Glover. ""Jukebox Cantina"" charted well and received favorable reviews worldwide giving Andy notice for his cut You Gotta Love Her.

In 1998 he started production on ""Songs From The New South"" using Cody Dickinson from North Mississippi All Stars and Robert Barnett from Big Ass Truck on drums, Bryan Ward from Bonepony on mandolin, and Gretchen Priest on violin/fiddle. Veteran engineer Voytek Kochanek, who’s worked with Ozzy, Steve Vai, and Peter Frampton, recorded and co-produced. SFTNS took four years to record and mix but the result is probably the most unique approach to this genre yet.

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