It’s time for another weekly installment of “Meet Pink Martini”. This week we give you Andrew Borger, the newest member of our little orchestra and secret agent of the drum kit. This road warrior has provided the pulse for numerous legendary musicians, from Tom Waits to Norah Jones to kd lang, and has performed on the Grammys, Sesame Street and Saturday Night Live (could you ask for a better tv resume?). He’s far too nice to be so talented, but somehow he manages. Relocating from Brooklyn to Portland with his partner and daughter in 2016, Andrew joined Pink Martini in 2018 and quickly became invaluable to us both in the recording studio and on the concert stage. We asked him a number of our favorite questions; feel free to ask additional questions to Andy in the comments section!
1. If you could have seen any musician in concert, dead or alive, who you never got to see live, who would it be?
The second Miles Davis quintet
2. What Pink Martini song gets stuck in your head?
Lilly, because my kid asks to hear it 73 times per day. She calls it “Lilly Stay”
3. If you had a robot that could do one household chore for you… what would it be?
Keep me organized
4. Who is your favorite movie director?
The Coen Brothers
5. What was the first concert you ever saw?
My first big arena show was the “For Those About to Rock” tour by AC/DC
6. If you could have one dish from any restaurant appear instantly anytime, which?
Ike’s wings from Pok Pok
7. What music would you choose as a soundtrack to your most triumphant moment?
A tie between “Gonna Fly Now” from Rocky and the theme from “Chariots of Fire”
8. What’s your favorite sweet/dessert?
My mom’s lemon bars
9. What illustrated animal or object would star in your children’s book?
Poppy Octopus
10. Who do you wish would play you in Pink Martini: The Movie?
Ricardo Montalbán
11. Pride of Lions, Pod of Whales… what would you call a pack of squirrels?
An incursion
12. Are you on the party bus or sleepy bus?
I’ve been on both! They each have their good points.
13. If you could safely tour any ancient civilization, which?
Westeros
14. What is your favorite non-musical hobby?
Cooking and gardening
15. If you were instantly skilled enough to have any one other occupation in the world besides musician, what would you choose?
Ski racer
16. If you had complete creative control, what book would you like to turn into a movie?
“Backbeat”, the biography of Earl Palmer
17. What is your favorite city in the world?
Barcelona is great! But Portland is the best.
18. What’s the most fun thing about being in Pink Martini?
The wide diversity of musical styles.
19. How did you choose your musical instrument?
I played pots and pans before I could walk and just stuck with it
20. How are you keeping sane and calm during this crisis and these weeks of quarantine?
Cooking, gardening, carpentry projects, napping with my 3 yr old.