The Andy T Band

History

It was at a Sunday night jam hosted by the Nashville Blues Society that Andy T, leading the house band, first crossed paths with Nixon. Both musicians were instantly blown away by the other's skill. Andy recalled getting goose bumps the moment Nixon sang beside him, remarking that the vocalist sang the way he wished he could.

Nixon, in turn, felt confident about their 2013 debut album, Drink Drank Drunk, sensing it would do very well. The duo committed themselves to uncovering the true essence of the blues. Their second album, Livin' It Up, saw them collaborate with saxophonist Ron Jones and pianist Larry Van Loon.

Members

Andy T Talamantez, a guitarist from Southern California, first got into music as a teen after hearing Eric Clapton. He then dug into the blues, studying players like Peter Green and B.B. King. He played in various bands around Los Angeles until 1996, when Smokey Wilson brought him on for his first tour. Two years later, he started working with Texas bluesman Guitar Shorty.

Over seven years on the road with Wilson and Shorty, Talamantez shaped his own sound and figured out how to work a crowd. He credits them with teaching him that putting on a strong show matters most, since they were both great entertainers. In 2003, Smokey Wilson and the Andy T Band put out the album Ready to Roll. Talamantez moved to Nashville in 2008.

James "Nick" Nixon grew up in Nashville and sang from childhood in church, high school shows, and opera. He later said he had to unlearn that training and sing "wrong" when he switched to rock and blues. He was part of the Jefferson Street blues scene in the 1960s and 1970s, where he met and played with Jimi Hendrix. In 1974, Nixon and his band Past, Present and Future signed with Chess Records.

During the 1960s, he also sang lead for the racially integrated R&B group King James and the Sceptres and for the New Imperials. But his longest job was teaching music for Nashville's Parks and Recreation Department, a gig he held for 35 years before joining forces with Andy T. Nixon passed away in 2018 at age 76.