In high school in the '60s, Gaudreau performed as a professional musician, playing electric guitar in his band Jimmy G & the Jaguars.
[3] Gaudreau moved to the Washington, DC area from his native Rhode Island in 1969 to become a member of the Country Gentlemen, replacing John Duffey and joining Charlie Waller, Ed Farris, and Eddie Adcock.
[4] In 1971, Eddie Adcock (banjo) assembled the progressive bluegrass band II Generation with Gaudreau, Bob White (bass), and Wendy Thatcher (guitar).
[6] Gaudreau formed Country Store in 1973 with Keith Whitley (guitar), Carl Jackson (banjo), and Bill Rawlings (bass).
[14] In 1992, Chesapeake, featuring Gaudreau, Mike Auldridge, T. Michael Coleman, and Moondi Klein, released three critically acclaimed albums on the Sugar Hill label.
[9] In 1994, Gaudreau produced Mandolin Artistry: Vol 1.: Young Mando Monsters, an album showcasing Ronnie McCoury, Adam Steffey, Radim Zenkl, Emory Lester, Wayne Benson, Dan Tyminski, Raymond Legere, and Alan Bibey.
In Good Company on CMH Records in 2006 collects tracks from Gaudreau's career, with Tony Rice, Eddie Adcock, and Charlie Waller, among others.
They played a mixture of bluegrass, western swing, gospel, and honky-tonk music, and recorded one self-titled album on the Red Beet label.