JOHNNY SANDLIN

Johnny Sandlin found fame on the hard edge of Southern Rock as one of the men most responsible for the sound that came out of Macon, GA in the ‘70s.  His music career began in the early sixties playing with other musicians who went on to leave their mark in music history including; Dan Penn, David Briggs, Norbert Putnam, Jerry Carrigan, Roger Hawkins, Eddie Hinton, and fellow “Hour Glass’’ band members, Paul Hornsby, Pete Carr and Gregg and Duane Allman.

When “Hour Glass” broke up, Sandlin became staff drummer for Tone Studios in Miami but soon moved to Macon where he again joined the Allmans, first as the drummer in the Capricorn rhythm section and then as recording engineer, producer and Vice-President of Capricorn and head of A&R.  As part of the powder keg of talent that blasted Capricorn Records to stardom, Sandlin produced, mixed and mastered albums for the “Allman Brother’s Band”, Gregg Allman, Gregg and Cher, Richard Betts, Elvin Bishop, “Wet Willie”, Bonnie Bramlett, Alex Taylor, “Cowboy”, Delbert McClinton and many others.  He has five platinum albums and ten gold albums to his credit.

Since leaving Capricorn, Sandlin has worked as an independent engineer and producer and when he’s not playing bass with the recently reformed “Capricorn Rhythm Section”, he stays busy recording in his own studio, Duck Tape Music, in Decatur, AL and at 2nd Street Music Hall in Gadsden, AL.

PAUL HORNSBY

In the mid ‘60s, while living in Tuscaloosa, AL, Paul Hornsby teamed up with Eddie Hinton and Johnny Sandlin to form “The 5 Minutes.”  It was during this period they first met and became friends with Gregg and Duane Allman.

In early ’67, at the same time Hinton decided to leave the band, the “Allman Joys” broke up.  Hornsby and Sandlin joined Gregg and Duane and along with Mabron McKenny hit the road with the pioneer Southern Rock band, “Hour Glass.” After a disappointing recording experience with Liberty Records, “Hour Glass” disbanded in late 1968 and Paul returned to Tuscaloosa where he formed a new band, “South Camp”, with friends Chuck Leavell, Bill Stewart and Charlie Hayward (later bass player with the Charlie Daniels Band.)

At the time Duane signed with Phil Walden, there was talk of putting a band together again with Allman, essentially reforming the “Hour Glass”.  Hornsby declined, instead accepting a position at Capricorn Records first as studio staff musician in the Capricorn rhythm section, then later studio manager and producer. 

In the mid ‘70s he left his position as staff producer to do independent productions.  During his career he has produced albums on “The Marshall Tucker Band”. “The Charlie Daniels Band”, “Wet Willie”, “Grinderswitch”, etc, earned 9 gold and 4 platinum records and is represented in the Alabama Music Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame.  In addition to playing keyboards with the “Capricorn Rhythm Section”, Paul owns and operates Muscadine Recording Studio in Macon, Georgia.

SCOTT BOYER

The son of a former Rockette, Scott Boyer was a natural for the music business.  In 1965 he formed the ‘The Bitter IND” with high school friends, David Brown and Butch Trucks (future “Allman Brothers” drummer) later changing the name of the band to the “31st of February.” It was under this name they recorded their first album for Vanguard Records at Criteria Studio in Miami.

The “31st of February” played open-air concerts at Riverfront Park in Jacksonville with  “One Percent” (later “Lynrd Skynrd”) and the “Second Coming” (with future Allman Brothers members Berry Oakley, Dickey Betts and Duane Allman.) The band expanded briefly to include Duane and Gregg Allman long enough to cut demos that later appeared in the 1971 release “Duane and Gregg Allman – The Early Years” on Bold Records.

After the band broke up, Scott’s prolific songwriting eventually led him to Orlando where he met Tommy Talton and the two quickly emerged as the driving force behind the newly formed “Cowboy.” In 1973, “Cowboy”, with new drummer, Bill Stewart, toured with the Allman Brothers Band after which, Boyer, along with Talton, was recruited as member of the Capricorn rhythm section. Boyer continued to write songs that were recorded by ‘”Cowboy”, Gregg Allman, Bonnie Bramlett, other Capricorn acts and others, with his ‘Please Be With Me’ recorded by Eric Clapton on the Grammy winning “461 Ocean Boulevard” in 1974.

In 1976 Boyer left Macon, moving to Fairhope, AL, Los Angeles and finally to Decatur, AL in 1989 where he joined Johnny Sandlin, long time friend from Criteria and Capricorn, in the recently formed “Decoys.” Today, Boyer continues to write, record and perform with “The Decoys” and has reunited with long time Macon friends to play and tour with the “Capricorn Rhythm Section.”

TOMMY TALTON

Originally in the band “We The People”, Tommy Talton, along with Scott Boyer, founded the 1970s Capricorn Records group “Cowboy.”  The band toured throughout the United States from Carnegie Hall in New York City to Winterland in San Francisco and virtually every city in between.

In addition to touring with “Cowboy”, Tommy performed as a member of the Capricorn rhythm section, recording with artists such as Martin Mull, Bonnie Bramlett, Corky Lang, Gregg Allman, Dickey Betts, Clarence Carter, Alex and Livingston Taylor, Arthur Conley and many more.  Around 1975 he joined forces with Johnny Sandlin and Bill Stewart as “TSS” and released an album on Capricorn Records under that name.

BILL STEWART

Bill Stewart is no stranger to radio; he began his career playing drums on recording sessions at station WSIZ in Ocilla, GA. Later, he moved on to playing small clubs throughout the southeast, but it wasn't until he joined "South Camp" with Paul Hornsby, Charlie Hayward and Chuck Leavell ("Allman Brothers", Eric Clapton, "Rolling Stones") that things began to really happen for him.

Shortly after Capricorn Records opened its doors for business, Stewart, through his connection with Paul Hornsby, found himself in the studio recording with the original members of "Wet Willie."  Johnny Sandlin, producer of the session, asked Bill to join Capricorn to take his place as studio drummer and to assist in the A & R department.   Bill accepted the offer and remained at Capricorn for the next six years. In addition to his studio work with the Capricorn rhythm section, he toured with Capricorn acts "Cowboy", Alex Taylor and Delbert McClinton and for a while as backup drummer for Jaimoe with the "Allman Brothers Band.”

While at Capricorn, Bill worked and performed extensively with Gregg Allman and when Allman married Cher and moved to Los Angeles, Stewart was asked to move with them.  After two years in California, he moved to Atlanta where he has remained ever since, playing live, doing session work and, when not playing with the "Capricorn Rhythm Section", working on his independent music projects.