on by

WINDER, Ga. – The Skillet Lickers and First Baptist Church Winder are excited to partner for a barbecue and concert on Sunday, June 9, to benefit the church’s Zambia mission team.

The event is open to the public. Barbecue plates, provided by Winder FBC’s Men’s Ministry, will be available beginning at 5 p.m. Barbecue tickets are $5 and can be purchased on site. A love offering will also be collected for the mission team.

The Skillet Lickers will perform beginning at 6 p.m. The show will feature an abbreviated history of the band’s influence in the development of Country music, as well as classic Skillet Licker favorites.

This show marks the Skillet Lickers’ first public stop in Barrow County since the band performed at the Colleen O. Williams Theater in March 2018.

Additional information on this event can be found at www.fbcwinder.com/events. First Baptist Church is located at 625 Jefferson Hwy., Winder, GA 30680.

ABOUT THE SKILLET LICKERS

The Skillet Lickers’ name is synonymous with string band music in Georgia. This band from Dacula is familiar to Georgia historians and folk music fans across the world. Their recordings have sold millions and their style remains influential to the development of the country, folk, and bluegrass music. Today’s band is carrying on a tradition of string band music going back four generations and nearly a century. The Skillet Lickers are proud members of the Georgia Music Hall of Fame and Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame.

on by

SAN ANTONIO, Tx. – It’s been 85 years since Gid Tanner and his 17 year old son Gordon Tanner, along with the rest of the newly reassembled Skillet Lickers, made the roughly 1,000-mile drive from Atlanta, Georgia to the Gunter Hotel in downtown San Antonio, Texas. The group, which had disbanded in 1931, but reformed three years later for one final session with RCA, recorded what was undoubtedly their most successful album of all. The session, which featured the ‘Down Yonder’ and ‘Back Up and Push’ album sold millions in the middle of the Great Depression and set a new standard for American Country music.

A new chapter in the story was written on Wednesday afternoon as Russ Tanner, fiddle and bow in hand, walked into the historic Gunter Hotel (now operated by Sheraton) on E. Houston Street.

Russ became the first Skillet Licker to perform in the historic building since Gid and Gordon nearly a century ago.

Watch the video below:

on by 1 Comment

DAHLONEGA, Ga. – The Skillet Lickers and Bear on the Square event organizers announced the band’s return to the legendary North Georgia folk festival on Sunday, April 28, marking the band’s first performance at the event – and first visit to Dahlonega – in four years.

“Bear on the Square is the premier folk festival in North Georgia and has been for years,” says Russ Tanner of the Skillet Lickers. “It’s an honor to once again be included in the very talented lineup of some of the region’s greatest talent.”

While it’s been a few years since the Skillet Lickers last took part in the event, the band has a long history performing at Bear on the Square. This year, the band is slated to perform on the main stage on Sunday, April 28, the second day of the two-day festival, from 3:45-5:00 p.m., the final performance of the weekend.

Phil and Russ Tanner will also be leading a workshop on old-time fiddling prior to the band’s performance at 1 p.m. Anyone with an interest in fiddling is encouraged to attend this free workshop. There will be personal instruction and a live jam session.

Other bands performing at Bear on the Square in 2019 include the Georgia Crackers, Ugly Cousin, Jeff Mosier, Crooked Mile, Underhill Rose, among many others.

A full list of Bear on the Square performers can be found here.

on by

The Skillet Lickers have announced the addition of “The Frying Pan”, a brand new online store featuring official Skillet Licker apparel — including t-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, coffee mugs, aprons, hats, and much more! The new store promises many new and improved designs in a variety of different, quality products.

“Many Skillet Licker fans have inquired about merchandise recently. While we typically order one to two products in mass quantities for certain shows, we’ve never had a platform with such a huge array of items and designs available at once,” says Josh Tanner, manager of the Skillet Lickers. “With ‘The Frying Pan’ and our partnership with Spreadshirt, fans will be able to purchase their favorite designs in their specific size, style, and color at a very affordable price and have it in their hands within days.”

Tanner also says to expect designs to be added frequently. In celebration of the online store’s opening, fans can take 15% off their entire purchase through Sunday, December 30, 2018, using the promo code available on the store’s home page.

To visit ‘The Frying Pan’, click here or visit the store link above.

on by 1 Comment

CANTON, Ga.– Country music’s longest running band, the Skillet Lickers, in conjunction with the Canton Theatre, have announced the band’s return to beautiful Canton, Georgia for their latest production, ‘Glory, Glory’ at the historic Canton Theatre for three fun-filled shows on Friday, November 16that 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, November 17that 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

The historic group, founded in 1926 and spanning four generations, will tell the story of Georgia’s rich musical heritage by performing Skillet Licker favorites and classics from Georgia music greats such as Ray Charles, Jerry Reed, the Allman Brothers, Bill Anderson, Chet Atkins, and more.

“Being a band that originated in Georgia and one that continues over 90 years later in the same area, we’ve seen a lot of great artists across all musical genres that were born and raised right here in Georgia,” said Russ Tanner, leader of the modern day Skillet Lickers. “For this production, we not only want to tell our story, but give the audience a glimpse into Georgia’s rich musical tradition while putting our own Skillet Licker spin on it.”

From a banjo and mandolin to electric guitar and drums to even a saxophone, this show is expected to be one of the Skillet Lickers’ most diverse in terms musical selection and is sure to have something for everyone to enjoy.

Tickets for the show are just $15 and are on sale now at the Canton Theatre or by calling 770-704-0755. The Canton Theatre is located at 171 E. Main Street, Canton, GA. For additional information on the Skillet Lickers, visit www.skilletlickers.org.

on by

In what’s turning into an annual tradition, the Skillet Lickers are gearing up for another exciting run at the Cumming Playhouse as they star in the hit inspirational comedy, ‘Smoke on the Mountain’ from September 6-30.

The show runs every Thursday-Sunday with shows at 8pm (Thurs.-Sat.) and 3pm (Sun.). Tickets for the show are available for $27.50 – $30 at PlayhouseCumming.com.

Featuring lovable characters, hilarious comedy, inspiration, and of course, great music, Smoke on the Mountain tells the story of the first ever Saturday night singin’ at a 1930’s Southern Baptist church in Mount Pleasant, NC, with a pastor attempting to bring the church into the “modern times”. The church ladies and deacon have their reservations about the band and their stringed instruments, which they fear is the work of the devil.

This will be the fourth ‘Smoke’ production the Skillet Lickers have been involved in, performing in ‘Smoke on the Mountain’ in 2015 and 2016, and also in the sequel, ‘Sanders Family Christmas’, in 2017.

on by

The fall season has traditionally been the busiest time of year for Country music’s longest running supergroup — and 2018 will be no exception. The Skillet Lickers will kick off their latest tour — which will feature nearly two dozen shows — in Lawrenceville at the inaugural “Foot Stompin’ Festival”, held at the historic Isaac Adair House.

The festival is slated to begin at 3pm on Saturday, August 18th with the Skillet Lickers taking to the stage at 4:30pm. This show will mark what is sure to be a very busy six weeks for the band, who will play 18 shows throughout August and September, including sixteen showings of ‘Smoke on the Mountain’ from September 6-30 in Cumming, Georgia.

The 2018 Fall Tour also includes popular stops in Dacula at the Elisha Winn Fair, in Blairsville at the always-packed historic Union County Courthouse in the heart of the North Georgia mountains, and two stops at the Canton Theatre in November.

For a full list of shows in the Skillet Lickers’ 2018 Fall Tour and complete details, visit www.skilletlickers.org/tour.

on by

Skillet Licker fandom spreads far and wide. Even 94 years after his first recordings with Riley Puckett in 1924, Gid Tanner’s legacy continues to live on and thrive around the globe, even in the unlikeliest of places — like a Swedish tattoo parlor.

Olle Strandberg is a 75-year-old old-time fiddler from Stockholm, Sweden. As years passed and as he continued to master the art of fiddling, his fascination into American folk and old-time music continued to grow. He became very familiar with Skillet Licker classics of the 1920’s and ’30s and learned these early favorites on his fiddle. As he learned more and more of the Skillet Licker tunes, his love for the old-time band and its historic legacy grew. In fact, it grew so much that he felt inclined to get a tattoo of the late Gid Tanner — patriarch of the original Skillet Licker group on his upper right bicep with the inscription “Gid is my co-pilot” underneath an image of the iconic fiddler.

Olle Strandberg of Stockholm, Sweden, shows off his tattoo of Gid Tanner at the ‘Chicken House’ in Dacula, Georgia.

The picture and wording was taken from a popular Skillet Licker t-shirt. It’s probably safe to say it was the first and only Gid Tanner tattoo drawn by the tattoo artist in Stockholm.

Strandberg, a retired photographer and father of two, stopped by the ‘Chicken House’ in Dacula to check out the many different Skillet Licker artifacts and jam with Phil Tanner, Russ Tanner, and Larry Nash of the current day Skillet Lickers for the better part of Sunday evening. Strandberg also visited the grave of Gid Tanner, located at Hebron Church in Dacula.

Strandberg says he visits the United States on occasion and visits old-time music festivals along the way. “Everywhere I go … every time I go ply somewhere … I have to go around showing off this tattoo like this,” Strandberg remarked while laughing as he exposed his tattoo while reaching out his arm. “Everyone just loves it.”