About Me

I've always been part of the independent music scene, starting in high school (1986-1990) where my friends and I produced "coffeehouse" concerts to promote environmental protection, featuring bands from around Massachusetts. By college I was a trained jazz pianist and expanded my interest in music to audio production and radio dj’ing. My show during morning prime time, Crandall's Corner, was a favorite among KAOS Radio listeners looking for independent folk and celtic tunes in the morning. My passion for radio led me to become the station's Program Director until 1995 when I moved to Portland, Oregon.

Prior to graduation from the Evergreen State College I wrote a piece on the Rounder Records brand, one of the pre-eminent independent record labels in the United States that brought some of the first recordings of George Thorogood and Alison Krauss to the masses. Their values paired well with mine as they strove, and still do, to take a risk on artists they believe in, even without being mega sellers. These two artists happen to sell very well, but most of Rounder’s other artists comfortably live as lower-grossing musicians. At the Folk Alliance Conference in Portland, OR I presented my piece to Ken Irwin, Rounder Records co-founder. Two years later I saw him at a Philo (a Rounder label) event/ Club Passim fundraiser in Boston and he commented on how good my piece was. So perhaps my fate was sealed at that time as someone who understands how to appraoch the independent music business.

My work life in Portland started with a position at Hear Music (because I love independent music), the predecessor to what is now a record label for Starbucks Coffee. After that stint I led a meandering path through organic produce wholesaling, tall-ship sailing, non-profit business management, communications and marketing, and finally to today's small business Crandall's Corner. Throughout this path I have been energized by and involved in the independent music scene in Portland as a friend and advocate of musicians, and a core coordinator for events including Voices for Silent Disasters, the Portland Jazz Festival and the Rogue Bones & Brew.

Some of my most memorable musical experiences are the most unexpected and the most intimate. This is why I love independent music, where the audience can be part of the show. There are no security guards, no troughs in the restrooms, no overpriced food and drink, just a room or hall full of music lovers who there to listen to some great music and discover the unexpected.

To our success!

-Spencer Crandall, Crandall’s Corner LLC, Portland, OR