Early in his photographic journey, Andersen wasn’t sure where this path would take him, when a childhood friend, who was involved with a local band, asked for his help.  This request opened a corridor to his future.

 

“My start in music photography began while I was attending Amarillo College and was approached by a band called Blackstone,” Andersen said.  “I was hired to shoot promotional photographs for the group and found music photography was an area I enjoyed.  I got to know the members of the band and began hanging out with them.  Six months after that first shoot, they took me to photograph them at a Battle of the Bands competition in Dallas.  They won the contest, and the next day the group played in the Cotton Bowl in front of 80,000 people. I decided then that I really liked this kind of work.”

 

Andersen’s interest in band photography continued to grow.  He was a fixture at the rock stage at Amarillo’s annual Funfest in Thompson Park.  He would photograph each act that performed and then show and sell the photographs to the various band members.  At times he received backstage passes when big concerts played the Amarillo Civic Center, or The First United Bank Center at WT, and at other times he would sneak his professional camera in to capture photographs of the musicians performing. 

 

Andersen continued photographing bands, shooting them live, but also producing staged promotional images.  This work is how he met The AmaTones, a punk rock/new wave band from Amarillo.  After photographing several shows and getting to know the members, his connection to the band expanded.  Andersen soon was filling in when they needed someone to take the cover charge at the door.  When the door was covered, Andersen often helped on-stage, tuning guitars changing strings, and he eventually was running sound for the group.

 

Through the years the AmaTones changed members and names, they became New Congress for a time, before finally settling on The Blue Johnnies.  As the Blue Johnnies continued to improve, professionals began handling the sound board, and Andersen became the lighting director and stage manager, all while continuing to photograph their shows and shooting promotional images.

 

“The AmaTones recorded and put out a vinyl 45 single, and New Congress released a full-length LP,” Andersen said.  “After they became The Blue Johnnies, several cassettes were produced along with four full-length CDs.”  Andersen photographed the group through a number of recording studio sessions, using these and outside shoots to produce the original photography work for most of these projects.

 

Although Andersen no longer works with bands on stage, he still enjoys the music scene and continues to capture photographic images as often as he can.  From symphonic to jazz, country and numerous genres of rock music, Andersen has photographed promotional images for decades and understands what it is like to be on stage and living out a dream.