Andrew Cheshire (born June 21, 1962) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

guitarist. As a child, Cheshire played piano but switched to the guitar at age 10. While studying fine art, he played jazz in local bands around

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

, New York. By 1980, Cheshire moved to

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

where he began attending

jam session A jam session is a relatively informal musical event, process, or activity where musicians, typically instrumentalists, play improvised solos and vamp over tunes, drones, songs, and chord progressions. To "jam" is to improvise music without exte ...

s at clubs such as the Blue Coronet and Pumpkins. During this time he had the opportunity play with

Harold Mabern Harold Mabern Jr. (March 20, 1936 – September 17, 2019) was an American jazz pianist and composer, principally in the hard bop, post-bop, and soul jazz fields.Feather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira (2007) ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz''. p. 42 ...

Kenny Barron Kenny Barron (born June 9, 1943) is an American jazz pianist, who has appeared on hundreds of recordings as leader and sideman and is considered one of the most influential mainstream jazz pianists since the bebop era. Biography Born in Philadel ...

Gil Coggins Gilbert Lloyd "Gil" Coggins (August 23, 1924 – February 15, 2004) was an American jazz pianist. Coggins was born to parents of West Indian heritage.

Dewey Redman Walter Dewey Redman (May 17, 1931 – September 2, 2006) was an American saxophonist who performed free jazz as a bandleader and with Ornette Coleman and Keith Jarrett. Redman mainly played tenor saxophone, though he occasionally also played ...

, and

Louis Hayes Louis Hayes (born May 31, 1937) is an American jazz drummer and band leader. He was with McCoy Tyner's trio for more than three years. Since 1989 he has led his own band, and together with Vincent Herring formed the Cannonball Legacy Band. He i ...

. In 1991, Cheshire had become a member of drummer Walter Perkins group and began forming an association with members of the

M-Base The term "M-Base" is used in several ways. In the 1980s, a loose collective of young African American musicians including Steve Coleman, Graham Haynes, Cassandra Wilson, Geri Allen, Robin Eubanks, and Greg Osby emerged in Brooklyn with a new sound ...

collective. During this period he recorded his first sides as a leader, which appear on the album ''Water Street Revival''. In the mid-1990s, Cheshire formed associations with tenor saxophonist Rich Perry, bassist Ron McClure, and pianist

Don Friedman Donald Ernest Friedman (May 4, 1935 – June 30, 2016) was an American jazz pianist. He began playing in Los Angeles and moved to New York in 1958. In the 1960s, he played with both modern stylists and more traditional musicians. Early life Fr ...

; the latter recording two albums together: Cheshire's ''This is Me'' (1996) and Friedman's ''Attila's Dreams'' (1998) dedicated to Friedman's friend and musical associate,

Attila Zoller Attila Cornelius Zoller (June 13, 1927 – January 25, 1998) was a Hungarian jazz guitarist. After World War II, he escaped the Soviet takeover of Hungary by fleeing through the mountains on foot into Austria. In 1959, he moved to the U.S., wher ...

. Cheshire has written compositions for jazz ensemble. His other musical interests encompass world music and classical, for which he completed a string quartet. As an electric guitarist, Cheshire's interest in amplification led him to design and build guitar amplifiers with original circuits and visual themes. His oil paintings adorn the covers of most of his albums.Andrew Cheshire: Music Art
.Retrieved 24 October 2009.

Discography

*''This Is Me'' (Joule, 1996) *''Another View'' (Joule, 1997) *''Water Street Revival'' (Joule, 1998) *''Magic'' (Joule, 2000) *''Guitar Noir'' (Joule, 2001) *''Faces'' (Joule, 2002) *''Morning Song'' (Joule, 2003) *''Pavane Pour Une Infante Difunte'' (Joule, 2003) *''Four Ages of Bob'' (Joule, 2004) *''Man is an Island'' (Joule, 2005) *''Silent Trees Falling'' (Joule, 2006) *''Virtual String Quartet'' (Joule, 2007) *''Ballads'' (Joule, 2010) *''Another View Live!'' (Joule, 2014) *''Pyramids'' (Joule, 2014)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheshire, Andrew American jazz guitarists 1962 births Living people CIMP artists Sitar players Erasmus Hall High School alumni American male guitarists Guitarists from New York (state) 20th-century American guitarists Jazz musicians from New York (state) 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians