(Editor's Note-This is the sixth in a series
of reflective narratives written by members of
the H-Southern-Music Advisory Board. Those of
Bill Malone, Kathy Ogren, Brian Ward, Jeff
Todd Titon, and James Akenson can be found on
the H-Southern-Music homepage.

Professor Gregg Andrews is a professor of
history at Texas State University-San Marcos. He
received his PhD. from the University of Northern
Illinois, with an emphasis in labor history.
Andrews is the assistant director of both the
Center for Texas Music History and the _Journal
of Texas Music History_. A singer-songwriter,
Andrews also founded Dr. G and the Mudcats, whose
debut album, _Mudcat_, arrived in stores last
year (2005).

Below is Andrews’ account of tracing his path to the
study of southern music. We at H-Southern-Music
welcome the feedback of list members to Andrews'
commentary.)


I grew up in the remnants of a company town on the
Mississippi River just a mile south of the cave made
popular by Mark Twain's fictional characters in Hannibal,
Missouri. My father, who worked as a hammer driller and
handled dynamite at the local cement plant, was a
musician who died from emphysema when I was 15 years old.
He loved and played country music, and shortly before he
died taught me my first song on the guitar--Jimmy
Rodgers's "Waiting for a Train." For reasons that I did
not understand at the time, I was particularly attracted
to the theme of hard times and blues influences on
Rodgers's music. I also grew up on gospel music and gave
my first public performance in a small rural Church of the
Nazarene, where they even tolerated me when I went electric.
I took guitar lessons from a really good black jazz
guitarist but quit when he refused to let me play rock and
roll. He hated rock and roll, but, of course, at that time
in the mid-1960s, rock was what I wanted to play. I have
long regretted the decision to quit taking lessons from him.

My father and mother had sixth-grade educations, but my
mother pushed education. In graduate school, playing music
with friends not only provided a great release from the
rigors of grad school but also reinforced my interest in
the role of music in American cultural history. As a labor
historian, I have been particularly drawn to the music of
Woody Guthrie, Aunt Molly Jackson, and Leadbelly, and their
role in the politics of Popular Front culture in the late
1930s. As my own understanding of the relationship between
class, race, and culture deepened in grad school, I began
to write my own songs, some of which were political protest
songs, to express my own identity and often a profound sense
of alienation as a class-conscious "river trash" boy in
academia with a deep love of country music and the blues.

Not surprisingly, I love honky tonks and spend a great deal
of time in them, performing and enjoying the music of others.
It was through my scholarly interest in working-class culture
that I became even more interested in studying the role of
country music. About seven years ago, I proposed to the
Department of History here at Texas State University, San
Marcos, that we create a Center for Texas Music History. We
encountered a bit of opposition from a couple of
traditionalists in the department, but thanks to great support
from the chair, dean, and others in the administration, Prof.
Gary Hartman and I launched the Center. Gary, a western swing
musician who received his Ph.D in History, is the director and
I am the assistant director.

Since the creation of the CTMH, we have produced a journal,
offered a range of classes in Texas music history at the
undergraduate and grad levels, sponsored performances and
symposiums, and done a lot of outreach to encourage the
integration of Texas music history into the public schools.
Our emphasis is on the cultural cross-fertilization of Texas
music through the intermingling of African-American,
Mexican-American, and Anglo elements. Last semester I taught a
graduate seminar, "Popular Music and Social Movements in 20th
Century America." We also offer special topics courses in the
History of Country Music and History of Blues and Rock and Roll.
All of these courses have attracted great interest and high
enrollment.

Like Prof. Bill Malone, who earlier this week participated in a
symposium in our department, I also combine academic interests
with performance. I have stepped up my own songwriting,
performing, and recording. In September, 2005, I released my
first CD, "Mudcat," (under the name of Doctor G), a collection
of twelve original songs that show strong southern influences.
The CD, which has been getting considerable airplay on Americana,
country, and community radio, walks the line between country and
swampy blues. "Mudcat" was produced by Kent Finlay on his new
indie Cheatham Street Record Label. Kent, a songwriter and
retired teacher, teaches the History of Country Music as an
adjunct for us. He operates Cheatham Street Warehouse, where
George Strait and Ace in the Hole Band played their first 40-50
gigs beginning in October, 1974. I also do live performances
with my band, Doctor G and the Mudcats, and often include music
and performance when I give invited talks and presentations at
history-related academic conferences.

I really enjoy interdisciplinary perspectives on the study of music
in American culture and politics, and I have thoroughly enjoyed the
discussions to date on this discussion group. Kudos to Michael
Bertrand for doing the legwork to set up H-Southern Music.

Gregg Andrews ("Doctor G")
Assistant Director and Professor of History
Center for Texas Music History
Department of History
Texas State University, San Marcos
San Marcos, TX 78666

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