Sam Robbins: Piles of Sand

Sam Robbins embodies the spirit of a modern-day troubadour, traveling 45,000 miles each year

with a well-worn Martin guitar and a wealth of stories gathered along the way. After a brief run

with NBC’s the Voice in 2018, graduating Berklee College of Music, and trying his hand at co-

writing country songs in Nashville, Robbins fully embraced life as a touring artist, performing

over 200 shows annually to audiences across the country. This year, he’s set to release his third

album, So Much I Still Don’t See, and has just released the album’s opening track and second

single, “Piles of Sand”. Recorded live in an old church in Springfield, MA, the sparse musical

arrangement spotlights Robbins’ clear, emotive voice and melodic fingerstyle guitar, echoing

the timeless influence of artists like James Taylor, Jim Croce, and Harry Chapin.

Inspired by a riverside walk in Nashville, “Piles of Sand” begins by inviting listeners into an

everyday scene—a construction site, the barbed wire of a nearby prison, a towering pile of

gravel. The gentle unraveling of Robbins’ vocals and guitar guides us into a meditation on time

and the impermanence of the man-made world, offering a space for listeners to reflect.

Delicate piano accompaniment adds subtle depth while honoring the song’s raw simplicity. The

chorus lyric, “I thought it was a mountain but it was just a pile of sand, towering so high, a nine

to five creation” offers a poignant reminder of the fleeting nature of our ambitions. Robbins’

storytelling blends the personal and universal, pointing out the parallels between modern-day

human creations and the crumbling of ancient civilizations, set against the backdrop of the

enduring earth. The result is a song that feels intimate yet expansive. Robbins doesn’t preach;

instead, he invites us to walk alongside him, creating a space for us to find our own meaning

along the way.

“Piles of Sand” captures Robbins’ gift for transforming ordinary moments into profound

reflections, perfectly setting the stage for his upcoming album, So Much I Still Don’t See. In an

era often driven by noise and urgency, Robbins offers something quieter— an invitation to slow

down, observe the world around us, and appreciate the delicate beauty of life’s impermanence.