In March 2000, Dutch songwriter Jairo van Lunteren decided that his life needed to take a more musical direction. He moved to a little music town in upstate New York, where he started working on his first demo with rock 'n roll outcast Johnny Dowd. Three years down the road, he decided he needed a band. Along with guitarist Sid Green, he founded The Splendors. Within a few months, the band had become one of Ithaca, NY's most poular live acts. Produced by Bill Reynolds (also known as Donna the Buffalo's bass player and producer of The Avett Brothers' album, Emotionalism) and released in July 2005, the band's self-titled debut album was given a Jimmie Award for Rock Album of the Year by the Ithaca Journal. Gigs in New york City and at festivals in New York State and North Carolina completed the band's attempt to get their name out to a wider audience. In July 2007, The Splendors will be releasing their long-awaited second album. Singer Jairo van Lunteren will be releasing his first solo album around the same time. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.