Andy Anderson interview

[Ulrich]

Interview with ex-Cure drummer Andy Anderson!
(Found thanks to ChainofFlowers)

http://www.curecolours.com/curecolours/viewtopic.php?f=135&t=926

[cinamon]

those first few 'easy' questions were so sweet, lol.

[dsanchez]

the direct link to the interview

http://www.curecolours.com/curecolours/andy_anderson/andy_anderson_interview.htm

I readed the interview and personally I would have liked more The Cure related questions. There were also no questions about  Boris or Jason. It would have been interesting to hear Andy's opinion about them. Anyway, good to have news of him!

[dsanchez]

By the way, this is Andy Anderson's MySpace

http://www.myspace.com/aamuzik59/music

[alt.end]

gee, the design of his website makes me sad (!?!)

[Janko]

Pretty cool !!! Loads of stuff I never knew ...

[dsanchez]

The website is gone but I was able to retrieve the interview from the web archive:

ww.curecolours.com Interview with Andy Anderson
©2010 www.curecolours.com

Again, curecolours has been given a rare opportunity to interview someone very special to Cure fans, Andy Anderson, a session drummer, drum and tech synth programmer, and producer who is currently working on his solo project Prime Data, and the one-time drummer for Iggy Pop, Isaac Hayes, and of course, The Cure!

Andy drummed for bands such as Brilliant and Sham 69's Jimmy Purcey before auditioning for Robert Smith in 1983 and subsequently recording Japanese Whispers, Blue Sunshine (with The Glove), The Top, and Concert.

In 1984, Andy departed from The Cure and worked with artists like Iggy Pop, Isaac Hayes, Nik Turner's Sphynx, and Peter Gabriel. Now, he produces his own material for a solo project called Prime Data. So without further ado, we present to you the curecolours interview with Andy Anderson!

CURECOLOURS: Alright, here we go. First, the easy stuff...

CURECOLOURS: Describe yourself in three words or less. (This is a curecolours tradition - we ask it of all members and honorary members!)

ANDY: MUSIC-MAD, CREATIVE, GARDENER.

CURECOLOURS: How much time a week do you think you spend online?

ANDY: At the moment more than I should, my computer has blown up, so at this point in time I am not writing songs, but there is a new one on its way.

CURECOLOURS: Matrix 3. Awesome or major letdown?

ANDY: Awesome, I love Sci-Fi movies the newer the better , they are a form of escape for me, I just sit there and vegetate.

CURECOLOURS: The UK is sinking and will soon be renamed Atlantis! You have to pack up quickly and find a new place to live. Where will you go?

ANDY: Well it would have to be somewhere with lots of sun, sea and a recording studio.

CURECOLOURS: We hear you love to cook. Which dish of yours is your favorite?

ANDY: I love cooking, I love eating it, and I do a mean Sunday roast UK style, but these days I'm on a health kick, salads, fish etc. Back in the days of touring around with various bands and fast food are over.

CURECOLOURS: Ok, onto the real stuff!

CURECOLOURS: Was there a point you can look back on and say "that was when I knew I'd be a professional drummer"?

ANDY: Not really, back when I first started (on Bongo's at Festivals) I just loved music, jamming etc. and tried to play it, and then people I met along the way said that they liked what I did, so I carried on, and all of the bands I have played with and sessions I have recorded have been all by word of mouth, so any chance for me to express myself musically I went along with, and here I am now.

CURECOLOURS: Were you self taught? Or did you have someone to make it a little easier?

ANDY: My Dad was a pro boxer in London's East End and on his days off he would play drums with his pals including Ronnie Scott at Ronnie Scotts Jazz club in Soho, and when my dad was working I would sneak into the front room and try to play his drum kit. In our family we all loved music. My mum used to sing in a forties style jazz girl group and me and my brother's would jam in the hall way, Colin on tea chest string bass, Winstone on stand up piano and me bashing away on cardboard boxes.

CURECOLOURS: If you were never professionally involved with music, what career path do you think you'd have chosen instead?

ANDY: I wanted to be a Carpenter when I left school, did that for a bit then got into painting and decorating, which is what I do now.

CURECOLOURS: The kinds of music you listen to now, as well as the many bands and artists you've worked with over the years is incredibly diverse. Have you always listened to such a wide variety of music?

ANDY: Yes I have. After getting into music in the early days I got involved in session work (Session Musician) and in that business the music that I record is very diverse indeed. One minute it's an out and out Rock Beast and the next an orchestral piece on timpani's (Kettle Drums) etc. I do have a wide variety of music tastes, as long as it's good.

CURECOLOURS: Which bands or artists do you think most influenced your work?

ANDY: Jimmy Hendrix, The Who, The Small Faces, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, that will do, I could fill this interview with bands that have influenced me.

CURECOLOURS: Robert heard of your work with Brilliant before giving you a tape of the Cure and later setting you up with an audition. Were you more excited about the musical aspect of working with Robert or with the career opportunity (or both)?

ANDY: I was excited about the musical aspect of the band and Robert because I found that most of the tracks that we/they did had a unique feel and style to them, which I really loved. I like unique bands.

CURECOLOURS: It's easy to develop some preconceptions about The Cure after listening to Seventeen Seconds, Faith, and Pornography. Were you surprised with the more pop-like direction the band was taking during your work on the Japanese Whispers sessions?

ANDY: As before they are a unique band and can put there hand allsorts of styles but it always remains The Cure, which alot of bands can't do.

CURECOLOURS: Was there a huge difference in atmosphere in recording Blue Sunshine versus Cure-only releases like The Top or singles from Japanese Whispers?

ANDY: No not at all to me, all the musicians involved on those tracks/albums are in a creative mode and what ever the mood brings it brings, and ultimately the outcome is great music.

CURECOLOURS: If you had to choose from all the projects you've worked on, what do you think is the work you're most proudest of?

ANDY: THE CURE, IGGY POP and ISSAC HAYES.

CURECOLOURS: Do you still keep in touch with any of the folks you've worked with?

ANDY: LOL TOLHURST and GARY BIDDLES.

CURECOLOURS: You seem to have developed your best connections with other artists who also drum or have drummed. Any special reason for that beyond just "having something in common"?

ANDY: No special reason it just works out that way, but I will say that I hang with Bass players, Vocalist's ,Guitarist's and anyone else who wants to hang with me, "I love um all"

CURECOLOURS: The Prime Data tracks posted on your myspace page are fantastic! Is this a relatively new project?

ANDY: PRIME DATA, I have always wanted to make an album, and this is the closest I've got so far. There are new tracks in the pipe line, but my Computer blew up the other day , so everything is put on hold for the moment.

CURECOLOURS: Although currently a solo project, are there other artists you've considered working with on it?

ANDY: If it got to that stage then yeah most defiantly, I chat with a few of them at the moment, although they don't know that's what I've got planned for them.

CURECOLOURS: Are there any plans to release any official material?

ANDY: No not at this time, PRIME DATA is unsigned, but it would be nice too.

CURECOLOURS: Other than Eve (the multimedia interactive game which you worked on with Peter Gabriel to create the music for) are there any other video games you're a big fan of?

ANDY: I am not aware of this, I recorded with him a long time ago in Bath, and what happened to the tracks after that I'm unsure. I'm not into Video Games, I'd rather create music on my Computer.

CURECOLOURS: When you're not making music, describe an ideal afternoon for Andy Anderson.

ANDY: I love Gardening, and when the weather is good (rare for uk) I'm outside all the time, my Roses are well cool, and smell divine.

CURECOLOURS: If you could pass on a single piece of advise to someone who's heart is set on being a professional drummer, what would that be?

ANDY: Lock in with the bass player. There's nothing like a great rhythm section. If it wasn't for us guys, well...? The other thing is to communicate with whomever it is your playing with on stage.

CURECOLOURS: Are you a reality TV fan?

ANDY: No, but sometimes I take a peek. Work that one out for yourselves.

CURECOLOURS: Which drummer do think you admire most? Is there anyone in particular you feel is underrated?

ANDY: Mitch Mitchell: of The Jimmy Hendrix Experience he's my fave of all time. And Lol Tolhurst of The Cure. Lol has a unique style and feel. I will say that to take his driving seat with the band and learn his style wasn't easy and Lol, the good man that he is, helped me with that a great deal too.

CURECOLOURS: Is there a question you wish no one would ever ask you again? Is this it?

ANDY: When you are in a Recording Studio, recording and the Studio boss comes in and says "How long are you going to be? We're closing in half an hour."

Hahahaha, and there it is, our twenty (five) questions with Andy Anderson!

Andy is an incredible guy and one of the friendliest folks you can hope to meet. It's been an honor to chat with him and get to know him just a little bit better. (Andy thanks so much for your time and interest!)

If you haven't yet checked out Prime Data, you can do that at http://www.myspace.com/aamuzik59. There's a blistering version of Skin Jobs and about a dozen other self-produced tracks. You really need to give them a listen.

Enjoy!