Jimmy Thackery's birthday was the 17th. As a founding member of the world-famous Nighthawks, Jimmy made his mark and then went to work on his own time. Awesome player.
Big doin's this weekend. Sugar Thieves on Friday. Then on Saturday it's the annual Chico memorial with a slew of our friends chipping in to pay homage to a Chicago/Valley Blues legend. Always a rockin' good time.
Then it's PBS's turn. We stage our annual Memorial Day Fundraiser. Bob and crew throw open the doors to PBS and we present an afternoon of awesome homegrown Blues. This year we have Dennis Herrera, a newcomer from LA who moved recently to Prescott. Go figure, right? Gonna be a fun day y'all. JOIN US!!
Beautiful weather to still get out and enjoy. 80 degrees in late May. HA! Get out and get you some.
And hug somebody!
Have a week.
Sincerely,
Jim Crawford - PBS
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Mr. T
by Don Brown Sr.
Few guitarists working the blues circuit today can boast a signature sound as unique as Jimmy Thackery's. As far from an SRV clone as one can be while still playing a Stratocaster, Thackery combines elements of Nashville twang, swing, surf, hard rock, and frequent excursions into the world of jazz and still comes up with a sound that is still distinctly the blues. As a founding member of the legendary Nighthawks, Jimmy has long ago paid his dues on the road and is still going strong. DB: What made you decide to leave the Nighthawks are go out on your own? JT: We were doing over three hundred nights a year, which was exhausting. It left very little room for rehearsal or regeneration of material. We had been pretty much sticking with the same game plan for quite a few years at that point, it kind of got to the point where I could do the show in my sleep. I wasn't getting any younger, and I began to think while watching people like George Thorogood come whizzing past me, and Stevie Ray Vaughan, and all these people who were relatively unknown suddenly becoming incredibly famous. I thought if I'm going to take a shot at this on my own, I pretty much had to start doing it now. So it was a very heart wrenching decision because I'd put quite a few years into the project. It was like leaving a family. We were a very close knit bunch. The decision making process took me quite a long time to get where I could give them my notice. It was not the most comfortable thing for me to do. I figured that I owed it to myself that if I was going to move on, that I had to do it soon. DB: Have you played any shows with them their 30th Anniversary Tour? JT: Yes, actually we're doing reunion kind of shows, back together again, and having a blast doing it. It's like riding a bike, it doesn't go away. It's the same feeling up there, and it's wonderful. DB: You recently put out a record with John Mooney, and one with Tab Benoit, Charlie Musselwhite, and Double Trouble. Who else would you like to do a record with? JT: I would really love at some point to do a record with Duke (Robillard). I think we would have a lot of fun doing somthing like that. DB: Duke seems to be more of a jazz player. Would your styles mesh? JT: That is why I think this would be interesting. Don't think that old Duke can't rock. He could put that thing in high gear as easily as anybody. He's a total chameleon, the guy can assimilate any approach or style. I used to see him with Roomful (of Blues). One night he would be T-Bone Walker, then next night I'd come back and he'd be Buddy Guy, the next he'd be BB King, and it was that way all night long. DB: When is your new CD coming out? JT: The release date is tentatively sometime in April. DB: Who were your biggest influences? JT: My lawyer and my accountant. I get asked that question all the time, and my response is almost always the same. Everybody I ever listened to were influences one way or the other. Even if it was just figuring out what not to do. That's the way I think you have to approach it, you have to take what you can from everybody's performance whether it be a positive or a negative. Say to yourself "I'm not going to do that, but I'd really like to be able to do that." DB: What made you pick up the guitar? JT: I was taking piano lesson and I hit the age of 13, and raging hormones because evident. I realized that I was never going to get lucky playing piano. Every girl was swooning over the guitar players. I love the sound of the instrument, the guitar just jazzed me. There was nothing like the sound of an electric guitar with a good bunch of reverb on it. Even as a child, when I would hear "Peter Gunn," that stuff just made me go oooh, what's that noise and how can I make it? DB: Who was the first person or bands you saw live? SJK: It would have to be the thing that actually made me want to do this. In seventh grade, I went to my first dance in the gymnasium. There was a group of seniors that had a band called "The Minus Four." They were just a regular garage band, playing all the "Louie Louie"'s and that stuff. I never forgot the singer, whose name I still remember, John Harberson. He was up there with one of those electrovoice microphones. He was screaming his head off, and his veins were popping out of his neck. The guitar players were turned up real loud, so you couldn't really distinguish anything, because it was in a gymnasium. It was the coolest thing that I'd ever seen. That made me say I want to do that. DB: My first show was different. I had my uncle take me to Woodstock when I was only eight. JT: I was actually at Bonnie Raitt's parents' home, visiting her brother who was a friend of mine from school. While Woodstock was going on, I was in Harrison NY. I wasn't that far away, and I didn't even know it was going on until I got home. Bonnie's brother David and I, thirty years after our high school experience, actually did make a record together. It's on Blue Rock'it Records. It's called "That's It." It was he and I, and all the guys in the band were or are members of Tower of Power. Bonnie also makes a couple of guest appearances on it.It was the pipedream that finally came true after 30 years. We always talked about it in school, wouldn't it be cool to make a record one day? Of course 30 years later, we said why not, let's just do it. DB: Are you happy with the way your career is going, or would you like to be as big as Stevie Ray Vaughan? JT: Of course you always want to be as successful as you can possibly be. You want to be the guy who changes everything and leaves his mark. I saw what it did to Stevie, and it wasn't always that pleasant. I'm happy with the way the band is going, I think that's the thing you've got to be a little afraid of. I think that as long as you're taking incremental steps forward, and as long as you're not going backwards or staying in the same spot, that I think things are right with the world. DB: Thanks for everything. JT: It's been very nice talking with you. |
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GOT BLUES? If you are a Blues musician, a group, or a club that features Blues music, and would like to be listed, please send your info to info@phoenixblues.org and we'll be happy to list your event in our weekly Out & About section of the newsletter |
Moved? Changed email addresses? Please let us know of any changes in your address, email, or phone number so we can keep you informed about the Blues community in Arizona. Email us at: info@phoenixblues.org or write to: Phoenix Blues Society P.O. Box 36874 Phoenix, Arizona 85067 |
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OUT & ABOUT
Tuesday, May 21 Lucky Losers, 7 p.m., The Listening Room, Phoenix Carvin Jones, 6:30 p.m., Dirty Blonde, chandler Wednesday, May 22 Paris James, 7 p.m., AZ BBQ Shack, Scottsdale Hans Olson, 7 p.m., Time Out Lounge, Tempe Chuck Hall, 6 p.m., Corrado's, Carefree Thursday, May 23 Laurie Morvan Band, 8 p.m., Rhythm Room, Phoenix Sugar Thieves Duo, 6 p.m., Culinary Dropout, Gilbert Carvin Jones, 7 p.m., Old Ellsworth Brewing Co., Queen Creek Paris James, 7 p.m., St. Armand Kitchen & Cocktails, Chandler Eric Ramsey Hosts OPEN MIC, 6 p.m., Fatso's Pizza, Phoenix Eric Ramsey, 8:30 p.m., Tempe Center for the Arts, Tempe Hans Olson EVERY THURSDAY, 6 p.m., Handlebar, Apache Junction Arizona Blues Project, 8 p.m., Harold's, Cave Creek Friday, May 24 Rocket 88s, 6:30 p.m., Rags, Youngtown Chuck Hall Band, 9 p.m., Cross Eyed Cricket, Peoria Rockin Blue Geckos, 8:30 p.m., The Bench, Tempe Walkin' Cane Mark, 8 p.m., El Dorado, Scottsdale Sugar Thieves, 8 p.m., Rhythm Room, Phoenix JC & The Rockers, 7 p.m., Handlebar, Apache Junction Hoodoo Casters, 6 p.m., Desert Eagle Falcon Field, Mesa Paris James, 6:30 p.m., Scratch Pub, Mesa Carvin Jones, 9 p.m., CK Tavern, Phoenix Mother Road Trio, 7 p.m., MIM, Phoenix Saturday, May 25 Chico Chism Annual Memorial w/Rocket 88s & Guests (see poster), 8 p.m., Rhythm Room, Phoenix Dennis Herrera w/Big Daddy D, 8 p.m., Rickety Cricket, Prescott Sugar Thieves, 6:30 p.m., Hyatt Regency, Scottsdale Hoodoo Casters, 7 p.m., The Raven, Prescott Eric Ramsey, 7 p.m., The Ramada, Phoenix Paris James, 6:30 p.m., D'Vine Wine, Mesa Carvin Jones, 2 p.m., The Roadhouse, Cave Creek AZ Blues All Stars w/Chuck Hall, 8:30 p.m., Gopher Hole, Flagstaff Sunday, May 26 PHOENIX BLUES SOCIETY FUNDRAISER, 12:30 p.m., RHYTHM ROOM, PHOENIX Nina Curri w/Doug Schultze, 2 p.m., Timberline Tavern, Flagstaff Mike Eldred, 3 p.m., The Vig, Scottsdale True Flavor Blues, NOON , Copper Star, Phoenix Monday, May 27 Monday Night Blues w/Chuck Hall, 6:30 p.m., Charly's Pub, Flagstaff |
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| Weekly Jams
Rocket 88s JAM, 4 p.m., Chopper John's, Phoenix
Bourbon Jack's JAM w/Kody Herring, 6 p.m., Chandler
Sir Harrison, JAM every other Sunday, The Windsock, Prescott MONDAY
Bam Bam & Badness Open JAM, 9 p.m., Char's, Phoenix
Weatherford Hotel JAM, 6:30 p.m., Flagstaff
TUESDAY
OPEN JAM Hosted by Jilly Bean & The Flipside Blues Band, 7 p.m., Steel Horse Saloon, Phoenix
JAM Sir Harrison, 9 p.m., Char's, Phoenix
Gypsy's Bluesday Night JAM, 7 p.m. Pho Cao, Tempe
Tailgaters JAM, 7 p.m., Glendale
WEDNESDAY Rocket 88s, JAM, 6 p.m., The Last Stop (Old Hideaway West), Phoenix
Tool Shed JAM Party, 6 p.m. Gabby's, Mesa
THURSDAY Tool Shed JAM Party, 7 p.m., Steel Horse Saloon, Phoenix Jolie's Place JAM w/Adrenaline, 9 p.m., Chandler
JAM Hosted by The Scott O'Neal Band. Every other Thursday, Windsock, Prescott
Friday
Saturday Bumpin' Bud's JAM 2nd & 4th Saturdays JAM, 6 p.m., Marc's Sports Grill |
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