Career
Andrade played violin as a teenager and moved to New York in the early 1920s, holding a position in Deacon Johnson"s orchestra. He picked up double-bass in 1923 and became a bandleader around the same time. Oddly enough he and Carmen McRae were neighbors and in-laws.
He held a regular gig at the Renaissance Casino and also worked the Alhambra Ballroom in Harlem, which featured high-level dancing.
Frankie Manning was among Andrade"s admirers. Helen Humes recorded with Andrade"s band on Okeh Records, but other than this, Andrade recorded little in his career, and was largely forgotten as a result.
Nevertheless, his style of arrangements was an influence on bandleaders like Fletcher Henderson and Chick Webb. Andrade spent the later years of his life teaching piano and violin.
