William Tonks - Thrasher Photo and Design

William Tonks
by Susan Youngerman,
photos by McGinnis Leathers and jason Thr asher
G
uitarist and songwriter William Tonks
is the Kevin Bacon of the Athens Music scene. It would be difficult to come
up with an established artist or producer
in Athens that has not collaborated with
Tonks over his two and a half decade career.
A native of Montclair, New Jersey, Tonks’ father moved
the family to Savannah, Ga. to fulfill his dream of restoring
one of the city’s stately old rowhouses. The shy nine-year-old
had a hard time fitting in, but young Tonks found solace in
the guitar. “We lived downtown, so it wasn’t like you could
run out and play in the yard. I guess if
that uprooting didn’t happen, I probably wouldn’t play the guitar.” His
determination to master the instrument
found him taking classical lessons on
an old Harmony archtop given to him
by his sister that was “largely unplayable.” Comically, practicing chords on
the Harmony was such a challenge that
the occasional bite mark found its way onto the upper bout
of the guitar.
All of the practice eventually paid off, and Tonks became the frontman for Penguin Lust, his first self-described
“good band,” formed while he and other members were attending the University of the South. After graduating with
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February 2012
an English degree, he decided to move to Athens and pursue
further education. Grad school proved not to be his true calling, but he most certainly ended up in a town designed to
encourage his passion for the guitar. After the 1985 breakup of Penguin Lust, Tonks had a
three-year run with the Gravity Creeps, recording an album
with legendary producer John Keane. It was at this time
that Tonks began writing music in earnest. After the end of
Gravity Creeps, he found the Dobro, a self-taught instrument
which he has mastered and continues to play today.
Playing in bands like Redneck Greece Deluxe, Workhorses of the Entertainment/Recreational Industry, The Hot Burritos, Barbara
Que and Bloodkin, Tonks has been part
of eleven record albums. These days
find him working on a children’s album
with Todd Nance of Widespread Panic
in a band called the Romper Stompers,
as well with the acoustic Mr. Jordan/Mr.
Tonks. He has also found his way back
into the band Bloodkin, who have been described by Steven
M. Deusner in Pitchfork, “… as if the legacy of Faulkner or
even Keats were alive on vinyl rather than in ink.” It seems
like William Tonks landed not so far away from that English
degree after all.
Southern Distinction