Sandy Morris

More than a dozen evocative musical interludes from CBC’s popular and long-running Land & Sea television series - including the opening and closing themes so familiar to everyone who lives in the province - have just been released on CD.

Music from Land & Sea includes 14 pieces that Newfoundland musician Sandy Morris has married to the program’s moving images over the years. All of them were composed or arranged by Morris.

The recordings feature his signature guitar work and the accompaniment of Erin Best, Bill Brennan, Mary Brennan, Rick Hollett, Pat Moran, George Morgan, Byron Pardy, Angela Picket, and Billy Sutton.

The CD was Morris’s creative brainchild. He has been composing music for the program for the last ten seasons. “Land & Sea has always been very special to me,” he says. “It’s been great to be a part of the team. I think the music has added another level to the stories - it can deepen the sense of place and mood.”

Land & Sea has showcased the culture and history of Newfoundland and Labrador on CBC television for 40 years. Morris co-wrote the show’s closing theme (“Freestyle”) with Ralph Walker when the series first aired. That piece is included in the CD collection, as are two versions of the well-loved opening theme, “On the Beach” - both the one that airs on TV each week, and a newly composed longer version. No one knows who composed that tune, but its musical notation is reproduced in the CD’s liner notes.

A versatile and experienced guitarist, musician, composer, producer and engineer, Sandy Morris has enjoyed a musical career and been part of bands from the Wonderful Grand Band to Rasa and the Eight Track Favorites. He continues to perform, and has served as the musical director for numerous film and television projects and theatre productions across the province.