Don Thacker's Online Art Journal

This weekend I'll be exhibiting in the 16th Annual Telephone Factory Art Show. This will be my fourth time participating in this event, and once again I'll be in our friend Sunny's loft 102. Joining me will be artist Amy Prasad and potter Lori Buff, and Kate will once again provide the snacks.

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The past two weeks, I had the awesome opportunity to perform bluegrass music eight times. I recently became the Hicks with Picks bass player, and last week I was on bass for another show at WRFG 89.3 Atlanta and for a set at our church's annual bluegrass festival. I finished last week filling in for Jeff on banjo at our usual Sunday Gospel at the Rock.

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This weekend will be my big debut playing banjo with Hicks with Picks. I have subbed as the banjo picker for our Sunday 9am Gospel at the Rock service many times, but this will be my first time outside Rock Spring. Jeff Dore normally plays the five string, but he is also a great guitar player. When our regular guitar player Chas is out, Jeff slides to his place and I swap my bass for my banjo.

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This post is relevant to both my visual and aural artistic endeavors. On the 24th, my church, Rock Spring Presbyterian, is hosting our second annual bluegrass festival. I'll be playing bass with two different groups. At one o'clock Mike Nugent, Sonny Houston and I will play an assortment of bona fide gospel bluegrass standards. Right now we are calling ourselves the Sans Banjo Boys, although I guess on the poster we are called "And More!".

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I wanted to annouce that Kate and I are the proud parents of Everett Charley Thacker. He was born 8/16 at 3:09am and he and Kate are doing very well. So you might see some baby paintings and drawings on here in the near future...

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So I'm now officially the bass player for the band Hicks with Picks, the house band at Rock Springs Presbyterian Church. Kate and I joined Rock Springs a couple of months ago and have really enjoyed becoming a part of the congregation.

We originally visited Rock Springs because I wanted to check out the 'Gospel at the Rock' service, which is every Sunday at 9am and features bluegrass music with the service. I actually didn't know much else about Rock Springs. I figured that it would be like other churches we have visited, and that I might be able to get Kate to go with me from time to time to enjoy some old time music.

But low and behold, it wasn't just like other churches (in a good way) and we were very taken with Pastor Karen, the service and everyone we met that first day.  It felt like home from the get-go and Kate was even more excited than I was.

Kate told the guys in the band how we found the church because I play banjo. Then, the next thing I know, they invited me to play banjo with them. From there, one thing led to another and my buddy Joe and I bought an upright bass. Since taking up the bass, I've not only played on Sunday mornings, but at Old Tucker Fountain, on the Peach State Festival on WRFG, and at the Church of Atonement as part of the Hicks touring band.

Every now and then, I get to fill in on banjo for Jeff Dore, the banjo player and a lead vocalist. Above is a video of Mike, Allison and me a couple of weeks ago. Jeff, Chas (guitar) and Mary Gowing (lead vocals) were out so Mike switched from Mandolin to guitar and we played with Mike and Allison doing the singing. You can find more Hicks with Picks music and a sample of an RSPC service at the RockSpringsPresby YouTube channel. I still like banjo pickin' quite a lot, but I've really been happy being the bass player. It's pretty cool when you lock in that rhythm and everyone starts tapping their toes and clapping. And thanks to the band for letting me figure this whole band stuff out as I go along.

PS, this first song is for Chris and Ben. I can't hear it without thinking of you two singing it about 30 years ago.

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John and I drove up north a bit Saturday morning. I wanted to show him some of the excellent landscape vistas we have  in Georgia, so we went up to Dahlonega and on over to Neel Gap. We walked a few feet on the Appalachian Trail, but spent most of our time hiking the Byron Reese, then setting up on a spot on the Freeman Trail. I had found this spot a few years back and knew John would like it. Indeed he did, and except for the annoying roar of some of the motorcycles on the road below, it was idyllic. 

It was just fantastic to be hanging out with John all weekend. The style he is painting now is really awesome and fitting to the kind of work he's done over the years.  I especially dig the flower painting and hope to see it in person before too long. The energy he brought also helped me along, as I was able to hit the color notes on the sunlit mountain better than I have before. Thanks to John for coming to see us. The dogs already miss him.

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We had a wonderful visit with John this past weekend. Friday night, John, Clyde and I went down the street and setup in Freedom Park for a little plein night air. I did this piece and the lit up part is the top of the Bank of America Plaza. The moon was full, but it wasn't in our view until after we were done. It was a good time exercising the mighty brights and wrestling with the limitation of the night sky with another painter. Plus, it never hurts to have a companion when you are hanging out in a city park at midnight, even when you have the protection of Clyde the Wonder Dog.

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I was happy to wake up this morning to find that the end of the world hadn't happened. I have too much to I'd like to accomplish.

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Last weekend Kate went to the beach with her Mom, so I decided to split town also and catch some Spring painting and a bluegrass festival. Luckily, Dad was up for joining me on the trip. As I've mentioned before, Dad is a great painting trip companion, as he is happy to go with the flow and does a great job meeting people along the way.

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