Jimmy Thackery

Singer, songwriter, and master of the electric guitar Jimmy Thackery established a distinctive place for himself within the realm of blues music through his raw, working-class style and lengthy concert performances. For an extended period he belonged to the Nighthawks, among the most tireless bar bands on the continent, before beginning to headline and record independently in the late 1980s, which brought him broad recognition at festivals. His aggressive, no-nonsense guitar work and the propulsive rhythm section of his trio attract listeners drawn to the direct blues approach of Muddy Waters as well as the heartland rock of Bruce Springsteen and Joe Grushecky. Much of the repertoire Thackery presents with his Drivers—Michael Patrick on bass and Mark Stutso on drums and vocals—falls squarely into blues or blues-rock territory, whether hardcore selections such as “It’s My Own Fault” or well-known blues-rock numbers like Jimi Hendrix’s “Red House.”

Pittsburgh-born Thackery grew up in Washington, D.C., where he performed in a high-school group alongside David Raitt, Bonnie Raitt’s brother, who introduced him to Buddy Guy’s music; he later witnessed performances by both Guy and Jimi Hendrix in the capital. In 1974, after Bobby Radcliff, then living in D.C., connected him with harmonica player Mark Wenner, Thackery entered the Nighthawks and went on to record more than twenty albums while touring across the United States, Canada, Europe, and Japan. He departed the group in 1987 to pursue a solo path, seeking relief from their annual schedule of roughly three hundred shows.

Thackery next assembled Jimmy Thackery & the Assassins, maintaining a busy East Coast touring schedule until the band disbanded in 1991. He subsequently launched the trio Jimmy Thackery & the Drivers, rapidly building a reputation on the blues festival and club circuit through steady recordings and extensive roadwork. The albums he released on the San Francisco-based Blind Pig label were Empty Arms Motel (1992), Sideways in Paradise with John Mooney (1993), Trouble Man (1994), Wild Night Out! (1995), Drive to Survive (1996), Switching Gears (1998), and Sinner Street (2000), the last of which incorporated saxophonist Jimmy Carpenter. In 2002 he moved to Telarc’s blues imprint, issuing We Got It that year, followed by True Stories in 2003, Live in 2004, and Healin’ Ground in 2005. After signing with Rykodisc he delivered In the Natural State in 2006, then returned to Telarc for Solid Ice in 2007 and Inside Tracks in 2008.

Switching Gears features guest appearances by Joe Louis Walker, Lonnie Brooks, Chubby Carrier, and Francine Reed, yet every Thackery recording offers enjoyment for admirers of forceful, high-impact guitar playing. Drive to Survive, for instance, explores rockabilly, jazz, bebop, and surf styles, illustrating his command of multiple idioms, while most of his releases intersperse several covers among his original compositions.