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Scott Andrew has become a very well known name in Creative Commons music. Scott was the featured artist for day 5 of CC365, and I’ve also mentioned him when I found out that he planned to drop CD-Audio formatted CD’s and start selling mini-cd’s of mp3’s at his shows. He lives in Seattle, Wa.

Check out Scott’s album, Where I’ve Been and more at http://scottandrew.com/

What is your favorite food?

Currently: Annie’s mac and cheese with veggie hotdog slices.

What was the story behind getting your first insturment?

My first was a Yamaha starter acoustic guitar. My parents got it for me
when I was about ten or so and wanted to play John Denver songs. I hated
practicing but my parents wouldn’t let me quit just because it was hard.
Then when I became a teenager they got me a Yamaha electric. I had just
discovered Pink Floyd, the blues-box scale and how guitar playing
attracted the attention of girls. It was the perfect storm.

Tell me about your first band?

My first band was a prog-rock trio called Fives and Sevens. I think I
was a sophomore in college. We lasted exactly one gig: a house party
thrown by the bass player’s ex-girlfriend. I still have a
boombox-recorded tape of that show.

What is your “day job”?

I do user interface work for Amazon.com. (And no, I can’t get you a
discount

How did you discover the Creative Commons?

I had friends involved with CC when it first got off the ground. I have
to admit to being skeptical at first, because I was still coping with
the whole post-Napster “who will buy my music if it’s out there for
free?” crisis that I think some musicians are still going through. After
awhile I started to dig the idea. You’re not giving up copyright. You’re
just relaxing the rules.

What is your perception of how the creative commons license fits the emerging artist, and what effect (if any) has it had on your view of your own music and your relationship with your fans?

Well, actually I think it doesn’t matter if an artist uses a CC license
or not, because if you’re even moderately good someone is going rip your
CD anyway and that’s that. Even if there weren’t CC licenses, I’d
probably still put most of my music out there for free.

It’s great that CC has found a home with podcasting and internet
radio. I figure terrestrial radio isn’t going to play my music anytime
soon and it wouldn’t amount to much in royalties anyway. Not that I
don’t like royalties — yay, money! But I don’t see the point in
squeezing every penny out of every play. When it’s a podcast to several
thousand listeners — that’s more exposure that I ever had with radio.

You have a fairly advanced and well designed web presence, who built it and how has your site affected your ability to reach new listeners?

I’ve been tweaking my site for several years now, and I think I’m
finally at a point where I’m comfortable with it. At some point I
realized that there was no point in obscuring the music behind bios and
photos and other stuff. So I concentrated on making sure any new visitor
to the site could figure out in a few seconds whether or not this music
was something they liked.

What would you do to gain more listeners, if time money and resources were no object?

Touring. Lots and lots of touring. I love playing live. I wish I could just go out on the road for months at a time.

What are you working on now?

Right now I’m trying to concentrate on finishing songs that have been
bouncing around my brain for months. I’m a slow writer, especially with
lyrics. I’m lucky if I finish two or three songs a year. I have
songwriter friends who produce volume after volume of lyrics. I hate
those guys.

How has playing live affected what you record?

Not really. Most of my shows are solo shows, just me and a guitar, but
in the studio I like the full rock arrangement. The way it sounds in my
head, that’s the way I want it on tape. I don’t let the fact that I
don’t have a full-time band deter me from that.

Who is your musical hero? Why?

Man, there are SO many. Probably Jimmy Page, followed closely by Alex
Lifeson (of Rush).

What are your five favorite artists and, why?

(Skipping this one. Too many candidates.

What were your five favorites when you were 15?

Without a doubt: Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Police, Husker Du and the
Eagles.

Husker Du seems a little out of place in your list. What enticed a kid who listened to Floyd and The Eagles to pick up a Husker Du record?

Ah, that would be my high-school chum Patrick, who also introduced me to R.E.M., Skinny Puppy, the Smiths — “college” music. He was also a big Police fan.

What’s next for Scott?

The long-term goal is to just keep writing music and never stop.

What is your favorite word?

I make up my own words. No, really, I sing nonsense to myself all the
time. Theo Geisel would probably just stare at me as if I were mad.

What is your least favorite word?

At the moment it’s a toss-up between “judicial activists” and
“intelligent design.” Oh! And “proactive.”

What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?

Springtime! And seeing live music.

What turns you off?

At the moment it’s “Web 2.0″ but that’ll pass eventually.

What is your favorite curse word?

Gotta be the f-bomb. It goes with everything.

What sound or noise do you love?

A minor 7th. Suspended 2nd chords?

What sound or noise do you hate?

Hm. Squeaking forks on china. Anything that comes out of Pat Robertson’s
mouth. Gunfire?

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

I don’t think there is one.

What profession would you not like to do?

Conveyor belt technical support. (Note: I actually did this once.)

If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

“There’s a $10 cover for the band tonight.”

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