Independently Owned, Locally Grown, Community Loved
By Georgia McDonald
Let’s play a game of musical chairs – the hot seat edition. Each week, I will pull up a chair with one of the talented local musicians who keep the Whitsundays singing, dancing and coming back for one more.
This week, I sat down with soloist Andrew Baldino, known locally as Baldi, who first began performing in the Whitsundays 16 years ago, in fast-paced 10-day trips from Adelaide that would leave him feeling like he needed a holiday from his holiday.
The clock would strike 11pm, the crowd would begin to gather and Andrew would take the stage with his band to play into the early hours at Paddy's Shenanigans in Airlie Beach, before getting up the next day to do it all over again.
Over time, something changed. What started as a regular work trip became something more. The Whitsundays became more than just a pit stop to perform. Weeks spent here turned into whole winters as it became clear that Airlie Beach was somewhere Andrew could build a life around the music he loves.
Today, Andrew still has his calendar full with bookings, but in-between gigs, he enjoys morning swims and time spent with his dog, having found a balance that allows him to enjoy days in nature, as well as nights in the bars.
"I redid my relationship with the Whitsundays. I never used to completely understand when people called this place paradise," Andrew reflects. "But now I get it."
After sixteen years of returning to the Whitsundays, Andrew has become a familiar face in the local music scene. He now plans his calendar months in advance, returning each winter to perform across venues throughout the region.
Andrew notes that one of things that keeps many musicians like him coming back is that unlike many parts of Australia where gigs can be confined to weekends, the Whitsundays offers musicians daily opportunities to perform.
While love for the place, and for the music, constitute major parts of the equation, Andrew has always approached music as a profession – because to make it work, you’ve got to be willing to hustle.
Success, he says, comes from building a broad repertoire, gaining as much performance experience as possible and learning to “read the room” and understand what each audience needs before playing the first song.
It’s advice that he now passes on to young musicians:
"Don't just play songs you like. Think about who's in front of you.”
His advice is reflected in the songs he chooses to perform, which bring together generations. When it comes to getting a crowd going, Andrew says there a few songs he can always rely on such as The Pina Colada Song, Valerie and Walking on Sunshine.
Andrew credits much of his musical influence to one band - The Beatles.
“I listened to a heap of The Beatles when I was younger. They are probably the most important to me as far as diversity and what they did, and of course, the amount of times I might refer to them in my brain.”
As for what he is listening to himself, Andrew says in the last year, he discovered American country singer Don Williams.
“He's very well known in the country scene, but I feel like he filled a massive gap in my country music knowledge. His songs are very simply beautifully crafted songs about love and life. So I'm a Don Williams fan at the moment.”
Andrew’s Song Recommendation For The Week:
♫ Tulsa Time – Don Williams ♫
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