Frank Anderson (left) with The Best Westerns
Frank Anderson plays steel guitar. And he will make certain you are not confusing his instrument with the pedal steel guitar. Anderson is that rare example of the right brain left/brain dynamic working in tandem.
The tireless musician, who has backed country and western stars Rose Maddox and Tex Williams, also has a career in commercial animation and documentaries (he co-directed the critically acclaimed feature film, The Life of Reilly, based on the life of comedian Charles Nelson Reilly), as well as teaching film studies at MIAD and Appleton’s Lawrence University. Anderson’s blog is a great way to get lost for an hour or three.
Born on Basilan Island in the Philippines and raised in Manila and in rural Wisconsin, Anderson cut his musical teeth as a teen, playing in country bars 200 nights a year. He recently joined a chamber quartet in Menasha, WI.
How has the lockdown affected your creativity?
The lockdown has demanded much more creativity. I’m playing a lot more at home, collaborating on a wide range of different musicians and expanding and changing my set-up.
I’m constantly working on new material and for fun. I play along with old R&B songs, which is something I’ve done since I began playing. I usually take all the organ and horn parts or just play the guitar parts. My instrument is associated with country music and now Americana but I'm not really an avid country player.
I loved rock, R&B and classical music first and was always most excited playing against type when I began playing. Since lockdown I've embarked on a series of stop motion shorts based on my favorite bits of Wisconsin folklore.
I'm doing a lot more hand-drawn animation, which is where I began in the animation industry. But unlike pre-pandemic, which was all work for hire, it's now 100% original projects. It will be great returning to film fests around the world and having work that doesn't have a corporate logo at the end.
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Do you have a routine or schedule for staying in practice or working on new material?
I should have a routine but I’m incapable of that. However, unlike before the lockdown, I play every day and go into jags where many hours will pass by.
If I were my boss, which I am, I’d fire me—which I did during the lockdown! COVID-19 allowed me the time to take a good look at myself as an employee—gladly doing corporate animation for money and not doing original folkloric stop motion work like I used to do when I began. So, I fired that guy and hired the fellow who was once so excited about the art of animation and stop motion.
“Aeroplane” by The Know-It-All Boyfriends (featuring Chris Collingwood)
Are you making plans for when you can resume playing in front of people again?
I’m planning on playing live as much as possible when we all get out of this thing and I’m looking forward to playing with a new (to be named) duo (me and a drummer). The KIAB (the Know-it-all Boyfriends who are a combination of old friends and bandmates and fellows who, like me, played a lot of sessions at Smart Studios in Madison. Butch Vig is the drummer, James Cowan plays the toys, Alex Drossart is on keyboards. The front line of the group features the voices and guitars of Freedy Johnston, Cory Chisel, Duke Erikson from Garbage and Spooner, Chris Collingwood from Fountains of Wayne and Jay Moran (Steely Dane).
And of course, The Best Westerns, a great, great band who play western swing the way it is supposed to be played—with a rock and roll spirit. I’m always looking forward to playing with those guys and miss them a lot.
To read more stories of Milwaukee musicians dealing with lockdowns, sheltering in place and more, click here.
To read more stories by Blaine Schultz, click here.
