Bow Thayer
| Bow Thayer | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | William Bowman Thayer |
| Born | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Origin | United States |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instruments |
|
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Labels | Big House Publishing |
| Website | www |
| Notable instruments | |
| Bojotar | |
Bow Thayer is a songwriter, guitarist, banjoist and multi-string instrumentalist currently based in Stockbridge, Vermont. His career spans over two decades with bands including the 7 League Boots, Elbow, Jethro and The Benders as well as solo work. Bow is also the founder of the Tweed River Music Festival and has various songtitles signed with Big House Publishing.
Founded in 1990, the Seven League Boots included Bow Thayer, Bobby Sullivan, bassist Richard Feins, and drummer and vocalist Mike Press. The group hailed from Hingham, Massachusetts and formed in Boston. In 1990 and 1991, they pressed multiple singles to 7” vinyl before releasing their first and only LP, 12 Songs, on Constant Change. The group embarked on a tour spanning three years, during which time they shared the stage with bands including Fugazi, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Redd Kross, The Buck Pets, The Lemonheads, Buffalo Tom, and Beck. They also were known to influence Rage Against the Machine, and Pearl Jam was an opener in its early days. The group disbanded in the mid-1990s but played a reunion show at the Tweed River Music Festival in 2012.
Following 7 League Boots, Bow formed the band Elbow. Elbow was composed of Bow on guitar, banjo and vocals, bassist and vocalist Jeremy Moses Curtis and drummer Michael Press. The group released 3 records and frequented both the Boston and New York circuits. The band’s sound was characteristic of the minimalist approach of the electric blues overhaul and was based around slide guitar and a trash-can drumset. During the same period of time,Bow was also a part of Jethro, playing banjo and singing lead vocals. Also in the band were frequent collaborator Jeremy Moses Curtis on acoustic guitar, Danielle Demarse on bass and vocals and Sean Staples on mandolin. The group combined Bow’s pop-structured songs with the aesthetic of bluegrass and was well received. Both groups eventually moved to Vermont.
In the early 2000s, Bow would return to the Boston area frequently to play with The Benders. With Bow, guitarist Jabe Beyer, and bassist Nolan McKelvey as the chief songwriters, the group also included Sean Staples on mandolin, and Tim Kelly on dobro. The Benders embodied the classic bluegrass outfit and built a following locally. The Benders were known for their original and unique take on string band music while using a traditional recording style, where the five players arranged in an arc around two microphones and essentially recorded live. The debut self-titled record was released in 2001, followed by The Benders II in 2002, and the studio recording Mountain Radio in 2003. The latter two releases were on Pig Pile Records.
...
Wikipedia