TommyThunderfoot and the Accelerators: The Band
TommyThunderfoot - Guitarist/Singer/Songwriter
Tommy was born in Charleston,SC on Calhoun street at the health department before it was a health department.His parents never lived in the same place for more than a couple of years,so He's from all over..
In October of 1981,He picked up the guitar for the first time playing everything on Lp,cassette,and the radio that he could.
Keeping company with musicians,Tommy learned things in a short time he could never have learned on his own.When he heard Stevie Ray Vaughn for the first time,he didn't dig it.After a few heartbreaks, he learned to love it.He took a trip through the past to find all of Stevie's influences,and their influences,and so on down the line.Now the music he didn't really dig has swallowed him whole!
One particular night on a stage in downtown Charleston,a very special singer/mentor to Tommy commented that he didn't have a nickname.Always stomping his foot on that big ol' stage,even when the band was trying to be quiet...Tommy Thundefoot was born!
Tommy has played from Charleston,SC to Santa Monica,California with frequent stops in Florida,Mississippi,and Texas.With a style and flavor all his own,and a touch like no other,you are sure to be excited and stunned when you witness Tommy in action.
"Everywhere I go,people wanna know if I'll show 'em how to play guitar,and I say"I don't know if I can show you anything you don't already know,but I'd love to play some music with you and see what happens'.See music is the only thing I ever got for free,and the only thing that I still have after all these years.I can't give it up,and it won't let me go.I just want to share it with as many people as I can,you know,make 'em happy for a while."
Stone Cold Sarah Cole - lead/rhythm guitar/vocals
The youngest member of the band,but no less important to the music,Sarah Cole brings the pure ,unjaded love of the guitar and blues to the mix with the spice and attitude of players twice her age.Though quiet onstage,most of the time,she offsets her silence with her instinct and and ability to do the unexpected.You would think being so young would deny you the connection and feel of every note,but not in this case.
At the age of 13,and with only a year's worth of lessons and a desire to play ,Sarah joined in the jam with Tommy Thunderfoot and the Accelerators .Now,with two years of playing with the band,the sky is the limit,learning any song in any style with little effort,she is proving she has what it takes to make it in the long run.-"Sarah brings that fascination with music that we all felt when we first started and reminds us of why we play in the first place.For some it's the love of the crowd,others like to be the center of attention,but there are those ,like all of the members of this band,who do it for the spirit and for the love of music.Nothing could be more satisfying,and Sarah Cole is a reminder and a perfect example of that spirit."-Tommy Thunderfoot
Craig"The Monstah"Campany - Bass
Born 9/22, Craig was raised in Florida.He joined the Air Force 1 week out of high school. He didn’t start playing in bands till he got out of the Air Force in ‘92. Since then he's been in a number of local (Charleston, S.C. area) bands.
A die hard Miami Dolphin phan and NASCAR lover,(he is from Daytona Beach, you know).
Being this is the south,we won't hold any of that against him.
Craig brings the rumbling bottom end that the blues and rock-n-roll so desparately need.Simply one of the best bass players you've ever heard and a vital part of Tommy Thunderfoot and the Accelerators.
In his own words," I play music to sooth the soul. The best part of playing music is being on stage. It just gives me a natural high to see people enjoying something that I’m producing." Truly a bass player's bass player,come see what all that rumblin' is about-"Craig IS tha backbone of this band,and it's never been this easy to make music on the fly.One of the best of the best and always on top of the rhythm,this band would stop dead in it's tracks without Craig"-
Tommy Thunderfoot
Jonathan "Eye Candy" Williams - drums and energy
Jonathan was introduced to
Tommy through his good friend Craig
"the monsta" He has been with the band since the beginning of March '07. So far, his
experience with Tommy has been "a fun-filled freight train of good ol rock n blues beats!"
It all started for him at the age of about 6
when his grandfather gave him his first set of bongos. From there, he started adding pots and pans into the mix. The rest was history. At the age of 12 he got his first drum set, an old Ludwig 5-piece, which was soon turned into a 6-piece when he added his middle school snare drum. Rock n' roll has been in his blood ever since.
His passion is playing for live
audiences. He has spent many countless
hours in studios recording, but it doesn't give him the same satisfaction as pumping up the crowd.
When Jonathan joined the band it was picking up steam from the last festival appearance,but since his arrival,Tommy Thunderfoot and the Accelerators are on fire with a brand new pulse and the passion to take the blues to the next level.
Come out and see the revival of blues and rock -n-roll through the beat of Jonathan's steady rhythm and see why this new addition is the one this band has been waiting for-"Jonathan is the type of drummer that won't let the crowd go still-full of energy and ready to change direction .Whenever you think you have it figured out,and he sees you're gettin used to it,he'll flip it around ,or double it,or cut it in half just to see how you react and never sacrifice the song in the process.If you've never seen a true master of the beat,then ya gotta come see Jonathan play."-Tommy Thunderfoot
Been There,Played Hard
Harvelle's Blues Club,Santa Monica,CA
Spirit of Suwannee Music Hall,Live Oak,FL
The Marqee Theatre,Jacksonville,FL
MudBug's,Jacksonville Beach,FL
The Freebird Cafe,Jacksonville Beach FL
Huey's in the Jacksonville Landing,Jacksonville FL
The Lava Grille,Jacksonville,FL
Center Stage at The Jacksonville Landing,Jacksonville FL
Slider's,Fernanndina Beach,FL
1878,Fernandina Beach,FL
Yesterday's,Jacksonville FL
Whitey's Fish Camp.Jacksonville FL
Momma's Blues Palace,Charleston,SC
The Sand Dollar,Folly Beach,SC
The Oasis/Reef,James Island,SC
The Kickin' Chicken ,Charleston,James Island,Mt.Pleasant,& SummervilleSC(the chicken circuit)
Banana's,Beaufort,SC
Plum's,Beaufort,SC
The Kingstree Station,Kingstree,SC
Wannamaker Park,Charleston,SC
Beaula's,Columbia,SC
The Flightline,Columbia,SC
Club 145,Charleston,SC
A Dough Re Mi,Mt.Pleasant,SC
The Wolf Track Inn,Charleston,SC
The Red Hot Blues Room,Charleston,SC
Mother Egan's Irish Pub,Austin,TX
Gino's Italian Bar and Grill,Austin,TX
Graffitti's,Austin,TX
Cumberland's Bar and Grill,Charleston,SC