John Andrews
Guitarist John Andrews has been on the northern New England music scene for over 25 years now. He’s recently been receiving more recognition as the latest lead guitarist for the ubiquitous April Cushman Band, a country originals band that plays many high profile gigs. Andrews work with the Cushman outfit, though, just scratches the surface of his lengthy career.
“I’ve been playing in cover bands for years,” Andrews said, “just playing the bar scene. I’ve been in rock bands for years and years and years. I got into a country band just to try it out, just to see what country was like. I really enjoyed it. I spent four years in that band. I just started getting calls from friends who needed a fill in.”
Andrews got recruited into April Cushman Band in much the same way his career has been randomly supplying him with a steady stream of gigs.
“I saw an ad for a guitar player for April, and I answered that ad,” the veteran musician said. “I knew the bass player from filling with other bands. I called, and I got an audition, and I got the spot.” After that, calls for other fill in gigs kept coming in and Andrews kept saying yes.
April Cushman Band live
“April sends ads to put up. They were playing here, they were playing there,” the guitarist said. “I started sharing those postings, and those posting would get back here and there, and people would call me on the side and say, ‘Congratulations, you’re playing with April.’ People just noticed I was out in the scene a little more.”
Andrews hails from the Deering, Hillsboro, Henniker region of New Hampshire. After 25 years, though, the musician cannot point to too many changes in the music scene since he began his career.
“It seems very similar to back then,” he said, “even the pay in some instances seems similar. Not all, bigger profile dates pay a bit better.” Before joining the April Cushman Band, Andrews did have a good deal of experience working with another band that had been doing well. That band opened doors for him as well.
EXP Band
“The EXP Band I was in before April,” Andrews began. “That band got to do some national act openers. We did some side stage work at the BankNH Pavilion up in Gilford, playing the side stage in support of the Hazy Little Stage.” It sits in a courtyard where they sell tractors and other items. Side stage work included Lynyrd Skynyrd, Zac Brown, and Toby Keith. Main stage openings slots at a place called Granite Stage Music Hall up in Laconia opening for Matt Stull.
“That band also gave me the opportunity to play in places other than bars,” Andrews said. “When I was in EXP Band, that was my first experience…” with national acts.
Solo work included mostly background music, playing for weddings, fairs, or arts shows. He was not singing or talking to the audience. He was providing their soundtrack. That all changed this year, after he started adding his own solo shows to his already busy schedule.
“When I’m playing in the bands gigs, I’m playing specific parts, and it’s challenging, and it’s really exciting to play with other musicians. When I’m playing by myself, I get to explore background music, soundscapes. It’s just a different feeling, a different side of the personality of being a guitar player.”
Sage And The Tumbleweeds
Those already long familiar with Andrews have likely seen him playing with New Hampshire jam band Sage And The Tumbleweeds, a band with a lot of ingredient genres thrown into the sound.
“We do consider ourselves a jam band, an Americana jam band,” he said. “I’ve been in that band now for almost 15 years.” He found the band’s namesake Sage Brekka at a jam and started jamming with him. Eventually, Andrews persuaded his wife, Christine Morin Andrews, to join the jam band on bass guitar.
“She’s a very creative person. She’s an artist full time,” Andrews said. “About 20 years ago, a band I was in needed a bass player. That particular band was just meeting in someone’s garage just for the sake of playing music. That band wasn’t playing out anywhere. We needed a bass player and she was always interested in music. So I handed her a bass and I said ‘Learn this.’ She did. She took it over. She’s a very accomplished bass player. It’s a lot of fun to play with her.”
Quite recently, Mr. Andrews got recruited into the Luke Combs tribute band East Coast Combs. The drummer used to play with Andrews in EXP Band.
“We’ve known each other from playing around the scene. He’s gotten me fill in gigs with other artists,” the guitar man said.
“After that drummer started East Coast Combs a year ago, that tribute band had some openings for Andrews to fill in. “That’s a scenario where they called me to be a fill guitarist. I have a hand full of dates with them filling in on nights their regular guitar player can’t,” Andrews said.
Rehearsing with East Coast Combs, Andrews looks forward to a July 19th gig, subbing on lead guitar. Andrews also will be filling with Kevin White’s Garth Brooks tribute band. “He’s based out of Nashville,” Andrews said. “He has a handful of players here in New England that he typically works with and the guitar play that he typically works with is not available for some of the gigs. That guitar player recommended me.”
As far as name dropping goes, Andrews mostly has the fine privilege to work with April Cushman Band. Landing all of those Cushman gigs gave Andrews a lot of homework, having to learn Cushman’s original music.
“When I first started working for her, she gave me a list of originals and covers to learn,” Andrews said. “Since that point, she’s added on new originals. She’s got a new album that just came out this year. As a band we all learned those songs.”
With the Cushman band Andrews got to work with highly skilled musicians. “The musicians that she works with play at a very high level, very accomplished musicians. I didn’t go to music school. I haven’t been a professional musician in the sense of getting to play every night. I’ve always had a day job. People that do it for a living it and play all the time, just play at another level. Getting to be around that is pretty special for somebody like me that just loves playing music.”
Any music fans wishing to hear John Andrews play live, here is his schedule:
