Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside
Encyclopedia
Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside is an American
rock band
from Portland, Oregon
. The band has been described as "Rockabilly", or as having a "raw soul" 50s rock-and-roll energy sound. Sallie Ford describes it as "Rock n Roll" and that people find it "more rockin’ than they expected." The group received positive reviews from USA Today's
music critic Whitney Matheson. and from The Oregonian critic Ryan White. In 2011, they signed a record deal with Partisan Records
and released their first full-length CD Dirty Radio in May, began a US tour in June, and in August, performed on the Late Show with David Letterman
.
Ford is the daughter of puppeteer Hobey Ford, and grew up in Asheville, North Carolina
before moving to Oregon. In Portland, she worked as a waitress, and met Alaska
n fisherman Tyler Tornfelt and Ford Tennis and Jeff Munger who were "scraping by". With Ford on vocals and guitar, Tennis on drums, Munger on guitar, and Tornfelt on upright bass, they had a band in 2007. They played local clubs in the Portland area.
According to singer Seth Avett
of The Avett Brothers
, Ford's songs have that "rare quality of somehow combining fun with emotional and artistic integrity" and she "fills the room with it" and reminds him of the "energy of early rock 'n' roll." The group opened for The Avett Brothers and recorded a five-song EP entitled Not an Animal. Ford's voice has been compared to Ella Fitzgerald
, Tom Waits
, Billie Holiday
, with possible influences from Bessie Smith
and Snoop Dogg
, and used the words "two-step big beat gospel" to describe the effect. The group has toured the United States, including cities such as Seattle
, and have appeared in Nashville
. A reviewer for the Portland Mercury suggested that listeners should dress in 50s style with a "trilby
hat", and described the group as "energetic."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
from Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. The band has been described as "Rockabilly", or as having a "raw soul" 50s rock-and-roll energy sound. Sallie Ford describes it as "Rock n Roll" and that people find it "more rockin’ than they expected." The group received positive reviews from USA Today's
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
music critic Whitney Matheson. and from The Oregonian critic Ryan White. In 2011, they signed a record deal with Partisan Records
Partisan Records
Partisan Records is an American independent record label based in Brooklyn, New York. It was started in 2007 by Ian Wheeler and Tim Putnam. Their first releases were an expanded version of Holy Sons Decline of the West and The Standard's fifth studio album Swimmer...
and released their first full-length CD Dirty Radio in May, began a US tour in June, and in August, performed on the Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
.
Ford is the daughter of puppeteer Hobey Ford, and grew up in Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active...
before moving to Oregon. In Portland, she worked as a waitress, and met Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
n fisherman Tyler Tornfelt and Ford Tennis and Jeff Munger who were "scraping by". With Ford on vocals and guitar, Tennis on drums, Munger on guitar, and Tornfelt on upright bass, they had a band in 2007. They played local clubs in the Portland area.
According to singer Seth Avett
Seth Avett
Timothy Seth Avett is one of the lead singers and founding members of the folk-rock band The Avett Brothers. Avett sings and plays guitar drums and piano for the band based out of Concord, North Carolina...
of The Avett Brothers
The Avett Brothers
The Avett Brothers is a folk rock band from Mount Pleasant, North Carolina. The band is made up of two brothers, Scott Avett and Seth Avett, who play the banjo and guitar respectively, and Bob Crawford who plays the stand-up bass. Joe Kwon, cello, and Jacob Edwards, drums, are touring members of...
, Ford's songs have that "rare quality of somehow combining fun with emotional and artistic integrity" and she "fills the room with it" and reminds him of the "energy of early rock 'n' roll." The group opened for The Avett Brothers and recorded a five-song EP entitled Not an Animal. Ford's voice has been compared to Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
, Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
, with possible influences from Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith was an American blues singer.Sometimes referred to as The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s...
and Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
, and used the words "two-step big beat gospel" to describe the effect. The group has toured the United States, including cities such as Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, and have appeared in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. A reviewer for the Portland Mercury suggested that listeners should dress in 50s style with a "trilby
Trilby
A trilby hat is a type of fedora. The trilby is viewed as the rich man's favored hat; it is commonly called the "brown trilby" in England and is much seen at the horse races. It is described as a "crumpled" fedora...
hat", and described the group as "energetic."