On Our Way To Crazy

Andy Osenga came first. Well, the Normals did, anyway. I was a freshman at North Texas and a friend of mine would not shut up about this band she’d found on a Forefront sampler. A couple of years and a couple of albums later and they were one of my favorite bands. I saw them play several times, including their last show as a band when they opened for Caedmon’s at A&M. A Place Where You Belong is one of my favorite records of all time.

Andy Peterson came next. I’d driven up to Waco to see Bebo play. He had two openers – Justin McRoberts and Andy Peterson. By the time Andy Peterson was done I had completely forgotten about Bebo. I was enthralled with this guy and his voice and his storytelling. I immediately went out and bought everything he’d ever done, and I’ll buy everything else he ever puts out.

The last of the Andys to enter my life was Gullahorn. Again, a Caedmon’s opener, this time on the UMHB campus with his wife, Jill Phillips. I remember it clearly because I thought he looked like Aaron. (He doesn’t, really.) He writes those songs that make you laugh, then make you cry, then make you laugh through your tears.

So when last week, thanks to a random facebook comment that showed up in my news feed, I saw that they would be doing a (free!) show together as Andy and the Andys, I was all over it.

They, of course, did not disappoint. Apparently there are actual Andy and the Andys songs, not just their individual music. It’s right up my alley – kind of folksy, three-part harmony, lots of acoustic guitars and clever lyrics. They also did an in-the-round portion that led to me sitting ten feet from Andrew Peterson while he sang “The Silence of God” and trying not to freak out or sing along or do anything stalkerish. That is an incredible song.

A lot of times we miss out on big tours here in Nashville – as a ‘music town’ we have a (generally deserved) reputation as being a tough crowd. No one can just enjoy a show. They have to watch critically and silently judge and think about how their band should be up there instead. But there is a definite upside to living in the same city as a lot of your favorite musicians – they play around town. A lot. For cheap. And every now and then, you find youself at a show that seems custom made for you.