Thacker Mountain Radio Hour Rocks Into The New Year

Off Square Books was the place to be on Thursday night as Thacker Mountain Radio Hour kicked off its first show of the New Year.
With the help of a strong lineup of authors, storytellers and musical guests, the packed bookstore was treated to quite an entertaining evening.
Host Jim Dees was in mid-season form as every quip, one-liner and joke left the audience in laughter.
The house band, the Yalobushwhackers, set the tone for the chilly evening with a rocking two-song set.
The first guest of the evening was author Tim Gautreaux. The Louisiana native invited the audience into his world with a passage from his new collection of comical short stories titled Signals. The ever-present themes of his works include blue-collar families, bayous and the signature heat of rural Louisiana.
Performance artist Diane Williams instantly attained the audience’s attention with her charisma and storytelling ability. Williams interpreted stories from her latest work of fiction called “Mississippi Folk and the Tales they Tell: Myths, Legends, and Bald-Faced Lies.” The Millsap’s College teacher had the crowd rolling as she told the tale of a young boy who thought a baby possum was his new brother.
Next on stage was the Nellie Mack Project, a Mississippi Blues trio. With thundering lead bass lines and some impressive fiddle playing, the trio transported the crowd down to the legendary crossroads of Highway 61 for some good old-fashioned Mississippi Blues with a twist. Mack, a Jackson, Mississippi native, gave an electrifying performance as she slapped the bass and danced around the stage.
Following an impressive act, the Austin, Texas based Nightowls, took the stage. The R&B/Soul band laid claim the old saying “everything is bigger in Texas” by crowding the stage with a staggering ten-piece set band. The Nightowls, who are used to playing at large venues such as Austin City Limits and South by Southwest, filled the narrow corridors of Off Square Books with a huge music festival sound. The audience responded positively to the unique blend of old school meets new school funk and soul.
The Thacker Mountain Radio Hour is open to the public every Thursday at Off Square Books from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Listeners can also tune in on Mississippi Public Broadcasting (MPB) Radio.

By Colin Sullivan, an intern for HottyToddy.com and a senior IMC student of the Meek School of Journalism and New Media at Ole Miss. He can be reached at cdsulli1@go.olemiss.edu.
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