Jimmy Thackery

by Richard Skelly
Singer, songwriter, and guitar virtuoso Jimmy Thackery has carved an enviable niche for himself in the world of electric blues. Known for his gritty, blue-collar approach and marathon live shows, Thackery was for many years part of the Nighthawks, one of the hardest-working blues bar bands in North America; since the late 80s, hes been touring and recording under his own name, and has found widespread acceptance on the festival circuit. His hard-edged, tough-as-nails approach to guitar playing and his trios driving rhythm section holds appeal for fans of both the straight-ahead blues of Muddy Waters and the roots rock of Bruce Springsteen and Joe Grushecky. Like the Nighthawks and Grusheckys Houserockers, much of the material Thackery performs can safely be called blues or blues-rock. Hardcore blues like Its My Own Fault and popular blues-rock chestnuts like Red House from Jimi Hendrix are fair game for Thackery & His Drivers, who include Michael Patrick on bass and Mark Stutso on drums and vocals.
Born in Pittsburgh, Thackery was raised in Washington, D.C. In high school, he played in a band with Bonnie Raitts brother, David, who exposed him to the music of Buddy Guy; Thackery saw both Guy and Jimi Hendrix perform in Washington, D.C. Thackery joined the Nighthawks in 1974, after being introduced to harmonica man Mark Wenner by fellow guitarist Bobby Radcliff, who was then based in D.C. Thackery recorded more than 20 albums with the Nighthawks and toured the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Japan. He left the band in 1987 and struck out on his own, needing a break from the Nighthawks 300-nights-a-year tour schedule.
He formed a new band, Jimmy Thackery & the Assassins, and toured the East Coast heavily with that band until they split up in 1991. Since then Thackery has been leading a trio, Jimmy Thackery & the Drivers, and quickly forged a name for himself on the blues festival and club circuit through a prolific recording pace and a lot of roadwork. His albums for the San Francisco-based Blind Pig label include Empty Arms Motel (1992), Sideways in Paradise (Jimmy Thackery and John Mooney, 1993), Trouble Man (1994), Wild Night Out! (1995), Drive to Survive (1996), and Switching Gears (1998). In 2000, Thackery released Sinner Street. In 2002, Thackery signed on with the blues division of Telarc Records, releasing We Got It in 2002 followed by True Stories in 2003, Live in 2004, and Healin Ground in 2005. Switching to Rykodisc, he released In the Natural State in 2006, followed by Solid Ice on Telarc Records in 2007.
His 1998 album includes guest performances by Joe Louis Walker, Lonnie Brooks, Chubby Carrier, and Francine Reed, but any of Thackerys albums will delight fans of tough, heavy, driving guitar playing. For a taste of his thorough mastery of several styles, Drive to Survive touches on rockabilly, jazz, bebop, and surf music. Most of Thackerys albums include at least a few covers mixed in with his batch of self-penned songs.