Sugarcane Jane

Anthony Crawford and Savana Lee, collectively known as Sugarcane Jane, have been lauded as “one of the best duos since Johnny and June” (Nancy Dunham, The Washington Times). So, how did this pair, now hailing from Loxley, Alabama, come together and attain such a level of acclaim?

Savana recalls meeting Anthony while she was living the aspiring artist’s life in Nashville, doing studio work, playing songwriters’ showcases and even managing a studio (Deep Field in West Meade). “He would come over and record there,” she remembers. “We were friends for probably about six or seven years before we actually got to do any kind of music together.” Just as she was intending to leave Nashville, Anthony helped her make a record. Savana continues, “When we sang together, we fell for each other for the music, and then…it all seemed perfect. So, here we are three kids later…”

Anthony’s musical career has led him all over the world, taking him from Opryland at age eighteen, to performing at the Grand Ole Opry with Roy Acuff, to touring with Neil Young, Steve Winwood, Vince Gill, and many others. Yet he confesses that he had to adjust his view of success at a certain point, away from a vision of rock stardom to something more real.“I moved away [from Nashville] with Savana and we found ‘success’—and we did not measure it by dollars, we measured it by our happiness.”

Along the way the duo has recorded eleven albums, the latest being On a Mission, out March 1, 2024, which offers a “joy ride” through rock, country, and gospel genres. This record also features a unique combination of the new and the old. “I recorded a lot of music on cassettes and tape and all that from the last 45 years…” Anthony says. “So I went back through my whole catalog, and after peeling through some really bad songs, I would find, occasionally, something where I was just spot on for what’s happening right now.” With the original demos as click tracks, Anthony then recorded fresh takes on the best from throughout his career. Savana adds, “I had never heard those songs before, and I immediately fell in love with them.”

To find out more, visit www.sugarcanejane.com. Listen to the interview here.

By Dan Walsh