BIO Andy McGaw
From an Interview with Sara Walsh, Democrat and Chronicle Rochester NY USA
at the Screamin’ Eagle Inlet NY 1998
Born? Yes Ha Ha!
Where were you born? Montreal 1961
Did you grow up in Montreal? No, St Basile Le Grand on the south shore.
What High School did you go to? RVRHS McMasterville Qc.
Is that a public school? Yes
So, do you speak French? I speak a kind of homemade version of fronglais which is some French some English sometimes.
Did you graduate? No, came close though
Why do you think? Girls
Girls? Ya, plus I wasn’t a good student. I wasn’t a good reader. It was hard for me to concentrate at that age when constantly surrounded with girls. Also, it’s hard for me not to laugh when I’m not supposed to laugh.
Did not graduating make things difficult? No, Dad got me a job with the railroad.
Are you rich? Oh ya. I got more money than the tooth fairy.
How would you describe your childhood? Great. Good parents and lots of freedom. We locked horns once in a while, but I learned from it.
When was your first kiss? Grade 8 Christmas dance. My sister held a piece of mistletoe over my dates head, and I bowed to the pressure. Everybody was looking at me. Good thing I was sitting down cause I fainted a little. Scared the hell out of me.
How long were you afraid of girls? I wouldn’t say I was afraid of girls. I just knew that I would likely embarrass myself cause I didn’t know what the hell to do. I almost fainted the second time to but I got over it. Although, when I first met my wife-to-be I barffed every time I was in her company for the first few weeks. I got over that to. Good thing.
When did you first start playing guitar? Age 11 for about 2 weeks. I quit to play road hockey. Started again after a heart break when I was around 13.
Who broke your heart at 13? A girl named Lynn. She wanted to get busy with romance but all
I could do was hit her with a pillow. You know… so I wouldn’t make a fool of myself. I didn’t know what to do, terrified.
What was your music influence growing up? Story songs at first like “How Much Is That Doggie
In The Window” and “Wreck of the old 97” Hank Snow railroad bum songs but by age 13 I switched interest to stuff like Lightfoot, Croche, Dylan…
Have you ever been arrested? Well, the cops took me home a few times when I was a kid for trespassing on the local golf course. That’s where I made my money.
Did you get in trouble with your parents? No. Mom would say to me “go downstairs and take off your dirty clothes”. I could hear her at the back door talking it over with the cop. I’d go right back again the next day. It only happened about 3 or 4 times over 5 years or so. I could usually avoid capture hiding in the woods with my sack of golf balls.
When did you first start recording your songs? 1996ish I think.
Are you working on anything new? There’re always different ideas bouncing around in my head. Sometimes I laugh right out loud when I’m alone. I see humor in things that shouldn’t be laughed at sometimes. Maybe it’s a coping mechanism.
Maybe you could be a comedian? Ya, tell myself jokes and make myself laugh! I still pull faces in the mirror. I used to do a pretty good Archie Bunker, made my sister laugh.
What is your favorite food? Spaghetti.
Do you travel allot? Not as much as I used to.
What is your favorite destination? Quebec City.
Why Quebec City? Great spaghetti, the history, the warm people culture.
What’s your favorite drink? Hard to beat a cold quart of milk
I meant alcoholic drink. Red wine if I’m full, beer if I’m hungry. Can’t drink beer on a full belly.
What kind of guitar do you play most often? Kind?
Ya, like electric, acoustic? Acoustic.
Would you regard yourself as a great guitar player? No. I know what a good guitar player is and it ain’t me. I’m not a great vocalist either but that’s ok, it doesn’t matter for what I do.
Well thanks for this. Do you want to send a shout out to anyone? No.