| Bob "Derwood" Andrews | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Robert Ian Andrews |
| Also known as | Derwood |
| Born | 17 June 1959 England |
| Genres | Rock music, Punk rock, Post-Punk, Electronica, Country |
| Occupations | musician, songwriter, singer, guitarist |
| Instruments | guitar |
| Years active | 1976 - present |
| Associated acts | Generation X, Empire, Westworld, Moondogg, Speedtwinn |
Bob "Derwood" Andrews (born Robert Ian Andrews; 17 June 1959, Fulham, London)[1][2] is an English guitarist, and former member of the punk rock band, Generation X.
His guitar playing in the English punk band Generation X is at par with some of the guitar greats of all time. At the age of 17, he was one of the few guitarists in punk that would wail his Strat solos over the frantic music that Generation X and the movement was known for.
Contents |
Before Billy Idol left Gen X for fame and fortune in the States, Derwood and drummer Mark Laff quitted to form the cult band Empire along with bassist Simon Bernal. At the age of 21, Derwood was writing and singing along with honing his skills on guitar. Empire was short lived, only releasing one album Expensive Sound and one single, Hot Seat. The trio undertook four gigs, before Bernal left. After many replacements and more gigs, they then morphed into New Empire with Babel Wallace taking over on vocals, Mike Gregovich on bass and Crispin Taylor as drummer. This outfit released only a white label 12 inch, but toured in UK a lot (supporting artists like John Miles and Roman Holliday) and later in Spain, where the band enjoyed an unexpected degree of success. New Empire disbanded in early 1984.
Today they are regarded as the grandfathers of emo and one of the most influential post-punk bands.
After some time, in 1986 Derwood had moved on to his next incarnation as leader and guitarist in the British "beatbox rock'n'roll" band Westworld. Having finally found the perfect singer in Elizabeth Westwood, they achieved many hits throughout Europe and released three albums. Always pushing the boundaries of music genres, Derwood kept Elizabeth as singer and moved on to form the very eclectic band Moondogg in 1994.
In 1998 Andrews and former Twenty Flight Rockers vocalist Gary Twinn formed Speedtwinn along with Mario Barmosca and Dale Daniel. They released an album in 2003, California, right after Andrews had left the band.
1993 saw a Generation X reunion for one night only at the Astoria Theatre in London, during Billy Idol's No Religion Tour in support of the album Cyberpunk. In 2006, Andrews and Laff re-recorded Hot Seat as Empire. In 2011 Andrews reformed Empire again with vocalist Babel Wallace and drummer Jerry Judd for the recording of a song called Bed Head, soon to be appearing on the upcoming Babel Wallace solo compilation Good Things Can Happen.
In 1980, before forming Empire, Andrews and Mark Laff recorded on the first Jimmy Pursey solo record, Imagination Camouflage.
Andrews has played guitar for many people including a long stint with one of his heroes, Swamp Dogg.
Tone Poet is his latest CD and only solo album. It features his trademark guitar style along with songs from all traveled paths, even some punk banjo picking. He has just completed an autobiography on the life of a rock'n'roll musician titled Loud Guitarist.
Andrews' song catalogue has been covered by diverse artists such as U.S. Bombs and L.A. Guns.