Andy Kirk | tl

There are three known artists with this name. Andrew Dewey Kirk, the band leader from 1930's/40's; Andy Kirk, a contemporary ambient/electronica musician; and Andy Kirk, a contemporary Christian musician.

1) Andrew Dewey Kirk (May 28, 1898 in Newport, Kentucky – December 11, 1992 in New York City) was a jazz bass saxophonist and tubist best known as a bandleader. He started his musical career playing with George Morrison's band, but then went on to join Terrence Holder's Dark Clouds of Joy. In 1929 he was elected leader after Holder departed. Renaming themselves Twelve Clouds of Joy they set up in the Pla-Mor Ballroom on the junction of 32nd and Main in Kansas City and made their first recording for Brunswick Records that same year. Mary Lou Williams came in as pianist at the last moment, but she impressed Brunswick's Dave Kapp, so she became a regular member of the band.

The pianist she replaced, Marion Jackson, did not take well to this but otherwise Kirk's band would be fairly stable with the incorporation of Williams. Many of its members later became known in their own right including: Buddy Tate (tenor saxophone), Claude Williams (violin), Pha Terrell (vocals) and Mary Lou's then husband, John Williams, Dick Wilson, Floyd Smith, Don Byas, "Shorty" Baker, Howard McGhee, Jimmy Forrest, Fats Navarro, and (briefly) Charlie Parker. The band was smaller than most swing bands of the time, which had advantages and disadvantages, one of which was that the loss of individuals could be more damaging. In 1941 saxophonist Dick Wilson died and in the following year Mary Lou Williams began an independent career. The band still had successes after that, as the more poppish singer was more liked by the masses. In 1942, Andy Kirk and His Clouds of Joy recorded take it and git which, on October 24th, 1942, became the first single to hit #1 on The Harlem Hit Parade, which later became Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. In 1948, Andy Kirk folded the band and continued to do music after that, but eventually switched to hotel management and real estate and also served as an official in the Musicians' Union.

2) Since persuading his parents that the idea of buying turntables and a mixer for Christmas as a 13 year old was a good idea, the now 25-year-old Andy Kirk has since been developing his early interest to way beyond just mixing records.

Guided by the early rave and jungle scene combined with hip hop influences, Andy worked his way through mixing records until in 1997 Camel Bobsled Race by DJ Q-Bert started to play whilst in a local record store in Sunderland. This subsequently sparked a transformation in the way he viewed the turntable and began to create his own scratch patterns and ideas.

Since then Andy has performed at the Annual Ministry of Sound Event in Perth Australia in 2002 and on a local radio station while on his stay in W.A. On his return from down under he teamed up with Newcastle DJ, Maroon, to form an all scratch duo called NozL and have recently been signed to Grand Central Records sub label GC3. To add to that, the pair are almost ready to unveil their own project, NozL Recordings, to release their debut EP “The Man Who Brought Us Here Has Vanished”. Whilst focusing on writing all scratch tracks, Andy’s enthusiasm for ambient electronica is almost limitless as he uses melodic themes inspired by artists such as Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada, Mum and Chris Clark as a basis for his own creative relaxation and experimentation.

3) Andy Kirk, 22, is a worship artist living in Nashville, Tennessee. .