MAC ARNOLD
& Plate Full O' Blues
The Band ...
Austin Brashier - guitar & vocals
Austin Brashier, guitar slinger and vocalist, has been exposed to music his whole life being from a very musical family. But it was the exposure of guitar monsters like Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix and Albert King that sent him spiraling through the tunnel of Blues. Not
wasting any time, he took his band on the road after high school, released a CD, and had the privilege of opening for or playing with many Blues greats such as B.B. King, Koko Taylor, Tinsley Ellis, Derek Trucks, and Nappy Brown. When he was not on the road, Austin was backing up many Blues artists traveling through town such as Eddie Kirkland, Phil Guy and the list goes on.
Now with Mac Arnold and Plate Full O' Blues and getting to work alongside artists such as Bob Margolin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Eddie Shaw, and Hubert Sumlin to name a few, he looks forward to the next musical adventure.
Max Hightower - harmonica, guitar, bass, vocals
Max was born and raised in the Upstate of South Carolina. At age 12, he bought his first Blues cassette tape Muddy Mississippi Live by Muddy Waters. The new and mysterious sound of the music had such an immediate impact on him that in no time he was banging around on his Grandmother’s Silvertone guitar. However, it was the Harmonica that became his instrument of choice. He found that there was something almost spiritual about having an instrument that close to his voice, giving every breath meaning. That little 10 hole harp led him down the path of composing his own songs, playing the piano, bass, guitar, singing, teaching and producing. As one of the founding members of Plate Full O’ Blues, he now tours the USA, Canada and Europe. He has even shared the stage with some of the very legends that fueled his passion for the music, like Hubert Sumlin, Willie Smith, Bob Margolin, Eddie Shaw and Leon Everette to name a few.
Mark Bumgarner - bass
Long time touring bassist with Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers. Sound man at Double Door Inn Charlotte five years before that. I started playing guitar in 1966, switched to bass early 70’s toured southeast during senior year in high school and been doing it ever since.
Ray Burr - drums
Ray Burr began playing drums at age nine and performed
throughout middle and high school before studying with Jim
Hall while attending the University of South Carolina, where
he also met longtime friend and mentor Rick Latham. After
college, Ray formed a touring funk band featuring members
of the James Brown horn section and spent two years
performing in college towns along the East Coast. He then
joined the popular beach band Men of Distinction playing
drums on their 2003 CBM Blues Album of the Year release.
Over his career, Ray has backed legendary artists including
The Shirelles, The Drifters, Percy Sledge, and Keisha Brown.
A longtime presence in the blues, he has also performed with
Chicago legend Katherine Davis, South Carolina icon Drink
Small, and Donald Ceasar. Ray is honored to now hold the
drum chair with Dr. Mac Arnold, succeeding his close friend
and respected drum clinician, Rick Latham.
In Memory of Scotty Hawkins – drums
Scotty Hawkins passed away on March 22, 2019.
Scotty was performing with Mac Arnold & PFOB
when he had a massive heart attack.
RIP Scotty, we all love you.
