Andy Lewis

Who was Andy Lewis?

Andrew Joseph "Andy" Lewis was the original bassist of Australian band The Whitlams. Back in October 1985 he had joined a power pop band, The Plunderers, on keyboards, guitar and harmony vocals under the pseudonym, Andy Waterhole. He soon left The Plunderers and, in 1992, he formed The Whitlams but left them in late 1995, and went to Melbourne, Australia to join The Gadflys. He battled a gambling addiction and committed suicide in February 2000, aged 33, after putting an entire weeks' pay in a poker machine and losing it all.

Blow Up The Pokies had been co-written by Tim Freedman as a statement on the destruction he saw in Andy's life due to his gambling not long before Andy's death, and was awaiting release as a single at the time. Tim soon after wrote The Curse Stops Here, a heartrending piece describing being the 'last one' from the original line-up of The Whitlams, and voicing his determination to survive. The Curse Stops Here was included as a B-side track on the Blow Up The Pokies single.

A month after Andy's death a benefit concert was held at the Metro Club in Sydney to raise money for his partner and child. The event was hosted by Paul McDermott, Mikey Robbins and Steve Abbott, and performers included Max Sharam, and The Gadflys. Andy also played bass on Frank Bennett's 1996 recording Five O'Clock Shadow.