Knobby Knees emcee Andy Johnson rides latest Americana ‘cycle’

THOMASTON — Andy Johnson, who made a name for himself as lead guitarist/vocalist with the band Royal Johnson, has reinvented himself to a degree as a solo artist.

The middle Georgia singer/songwriter/guitarist, who, after playing a gig in Americus Friday night will emcee the downtown Albany Knobby Knees Festival Saturday and perform at the Pretoria Fields Brewery in Albany on Sunday, honed in on the Americana music of his roots in recording his first solo LP, “Help Yourself,” which has drawn sparkling reviews since its release in 2021.

Recorded at Sky South Studio in Cochran, the album includes nine very likeable songs and an unforgettable cover of the Allman Brothers’ “Pony Boy,” an apt choice since middle Georgia music fans and critics have always likened Johnson’s music to the Southern rock legends.

“As a whole, I think the new album has some good songs,” Johnson, who plays south Georgia venues in Tifton, Valdosta, Albany and Americus frequently, said in a recent interview. “I’d been steered more toward country and blues lately, and this is a reflection of that.

“It’s difficult now to get studio time; I’d like to be able to release music easier. But the way the world is now, you’ve got to play shows to make any money. It would be nice to be able to one day spend more time on craft and production. That’s my goal; it would free me up to be more creative.”

While Royal Johnson’s setlist might include a hodgepodge of Southern rock, British blues and the ’90s rock of bands like the Meat Puppets, Johnson the solo artist — who frequently brings along Trey Donnahoo, Joseph Palmer and fellow Royal Johnson bandmate James Lengel for accompaniment — has shifted more into the Americana genre.

“The songs just kind of happen,” Johnson said. “I don’t set out to do this or that when I’m writing. I listen to the songs I’ve done (on albums/EPs “Over the Edge” and “Howling”) in the past, and I wish I had the time to go back and maybe re-record them, maybe even use the same music and rewrite the lyrics.”

Johnson is a family man, and he and wife Kaitlyn spend much of their time with kids Dylan, 13, and Birdie Mae, 2, on their middle Georgia mini-farm, where they raise chickens, ducks and grow fruits and veggies in their garden.

“I’m really happy where I’m at with my music right now,” Johnson said. “I play as much as I want to, and I’ve gotten to go to some cool places and meet some cool people. The family doesn’t usually travel with me, unless I’m going to a really cool place that they want to see. Then we turn it into a little mini-vacation.”

Not, as songs like “500 Pesos to Oz,” “Wrong Before,” “Holy Alamo” and “Tennessee Fiddle Daddy” off “Help Yourself” attest, that the man who’s 20 years into a career that started in a Southern Baptist Church, takes his talent lightly.

“It’s cool having a lot of material to draw from,” Johnson said. “We kind of start off playing a set when we’re on the road, but if we get a better reaction to certain songs, we have the ability to call an audible.

“I hope to get the opportunity to work more on what I do, the craft of being a musician. But things kind of go in cycles, so I’m riding this one where it takes me. But music is such a big part of my life. I’m just grateful to have the opportunity to do this.”

Staff Photo: Tara Fletcher