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WHEREAS: in 1966, while pursuing a graduate degree in Philosophy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Tommy Thompson and his banjo formed the Hollow Rock String Band, devoted to the old-time dance music of the southern Appalachian Mountains; and, WHEREAS: In 1972, Bill Hicks, Jim Watson and Tommy Thompson formed The Red Clay Ramblers, a band that was characterized by its distinctive Tar Heel sound; and, WHEREAS: Marcia Wilson founder of the Cat's Cradle, which was the only music venue club in the area that provided a stage setting, and who enthusiastically encouraged the regular solo performances of Tommy Thompson and with the Red Clay Ramblers; and, WHEREAS: The Red Clay Ramblers' fusion of blue grass, folk, blues and Vaudeville helped the band develop a unique, eclectic style, that helped the Ramblers develop a wide following of devoted fans from The United States to Canada, and through Europe to the Middle East and Africa; and, WHEREAS: in 1975, Tammy Thompson and the Ramblers joined the off-Broadway cast of Diamond Studs, a musical about the life of Jesse James, where Thompson earned critical acclaim for his portrayal of Cole Younger and Jesse James' mother, Zerelda Samuels; and, WHEREAS: The Ramblers headlined the first Festival for the Eno in 1980 and became even mare popular when they were introduced to the national audience of public radio through their performances on Garrison Keillor's, A Prairie Home Companion; and, WHEREAS: The Red Clay Ramblers appeared on Broadway and enjoyed a long association with writerldirector Sam Shepard, who cast them as the medicine show band in his 1993 movie, Silent Tongue; and, WHEREAS: in September 1994, Tommy Thompson played his last gig with the Ramblers at Carrboro's ArtsCenter; and, WHEREAS: Tommy Thompson's drop-thumb claw-hammer fell silent an January 24, 2003, when this talented, larger-than-life figure of North Carolina musical lore, passed on to heaven, "...just across the Blue Ridge where the high meadows lay, and the galax spreads through the new mown hay"; NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved that the Orange County Board of Commissioners celebrates the outstanding creative, cultural and intellectual contributions of Tommy Thompson's life and his deeply rooted commitment to civil rights and progressive achievements during his life, and mourns the loss of this great cultural resource, who came to represent the music of the Tar Heel State to a worldwide audience.