Sid Griffin

Sid Griffin is that rare artist who has distinguished himself in a number of contexts and on two continents. While best known as the leader The Long Ryders, as a musician, songwriter, producer, author, and archivist, Griffin has become a pivotal member of the roots rock movement, both in the United States and the United Kingdom.



Born in the suburbs of Louisville, KY, Sid Griffin developed an appetite for music as a teenager, playing in a cover band called the Frosties that specialized in hits of the '50s and '60s, and in 1977, at the age of 21, he moved to California, eager to immerse himself in the Los Angeles rock scene (though he was also attending law school to appease his parents). Griffin soon joined a short-lived punk outfit called Death Wish, but in 1979 his musical taste took a turn to the sounds of the past, and he jumped ship to play guitar with a group called The Unclaimed, who specialized in '60s-style garage rock. While Griffin's musical enthusiasms continued to be rooted in the 1960s, he began to nurture a passionate interest in folk-rock and country-rock, in particular the sounds of The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers.

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