The Lovesick Drifters
Garrett Newton: At the age of 14 Garrett talked himself onto the Carolina Road tour bus headed to Florida. He worked concessions and ran errands for the band just to play two songs per show on his banjo. At the age of 17 had his own band and record deal with Pinecastle Records. His CD entitled Young Heart, Old Soul was aptly titled, because now at the age of 22, Garrett is keeping the music of Hank Williams Sr. alive as front man and rhythm guitar player for The Lovesick Drifters.
Lizzy Tobell: At the ripe old age of 2, Lizzie started playing drums with the help of her dad Donavon, who spent several years in Nashville as a touring drummer. Lizzie has made guest appearances with bands from all different genres including, The Malpass Brothers, The Super Grit Cowboy Band, Lorraine Jordon and Country Grass, Highway 58 and scores of others. At 11 years old Lizzie is now holding down the beat in her first band.
Steve Shannon: Steve is a graduate of the Berkley School of Music who hails from the state of Wisconsin. There he toured the mid-west as a guitar player with several regional bands. Several years ago, he moved to North Carolina and retired from the music industry. At a chance meeting with our bass player, Steve was asked to jam with some other local musicians. After a three-hour jam session, it was imperative that he come out of retirement and join this new project.
Clyde Mattocks: Clyde has done it all. From producer, session musician to mentor of young aspiring musicians like Lizzy. Clyde has ditched his pedal steel and his Telecaster for a 1949 Gibson Steel that was once owned by Don Helms, Hank’s longtime steel player. In 1974 Clyde founded the Super Grit Cowboy Band. With four albums on their own Hood Swamp Records label, they had five singles chart on the Billboard Top 100 country charts. Clyde has also released albums with his bluegrass band, Highway 58 as well as solo projects. Ask any musician from Nashville to the east coast and they will tell you Clyde Mattocks is a world class musician.
Alan Hicks: In middle school Alan’s dad would take him to the local TV station to play on a morning music show. Then at the age of 15 he began playing bass in a high school rock band that went on to tour the East Coast for the next seven years. In the late 70’s, he landed a job playing with The David Allan Coe band. He recorded three albums with DAC on Columbia Records. In the 80’s he was drafted by Clyde Mattocks as the bass player for Super Grit for next ten years. He has also worked as a session musician for numerous artist as well as a songwriter for several country artist.
Dan O’Day: Dan’s brother Roger gave him a fiddle in 1956. Dan’s lifetime career was in radio for fifty years. He co-emceed “The Farmarama Show” and played in the stage band in the mid ‘60s on KGBX Radio in Springfield, Missouri. He concentrated on his radio career and played fiddle very little until he formed his own bluegrass group in 1999 that played regionally. He moved to Winterville, NC in 2017. Shortly thereafter he met Clyde Mattocks and played for while in Highway 58. Clyde persuaded the group to have Dan join the Lovesick Drifters. And now, Dan is proud to be a member.
