This year, folk music duo Banks & Shane are celebrating 50 years of making music together.
Known as “Georgia’s No.
1 Party Band,” they have entertained innumerable crowds with their original tunes and covers of beloved folk, pop, and bluegrass classics.
Banks and Shane will be on the lawn of Harmony Crossing (112 Harmony Crossing, Eatonton) at Lake Oconee Oct.
14, playing an outdoor concert as part of their 2022 farewell tour. The concert’s proceeds will benefit Harmony Medical Foundation, a local nonprofit whose mission is to expand healthcare in Lake Country and surrounding counties.
Among the many world-renowned acts Banks & Shane have played with are The Kingston Trio, The Limeliters, Kenny Rogers, Peter Paul and Mary, John Denver, and The Righteous Brothers.
“They say we opened for them,” guitar/trombonist Paul Shane pointed out.
“But I say they closed for us.”
Banks & Shane themselves are now ready to close the touring chapter of their long, illustrious career, echoing the words of George Harrison: “All things must pass.” Their “Farewell, Friends” retirement tour is a special series of concerts in which they’ve added five worldclass musicians to their standard five-piece band for one final blowout.
“There’s an old saying that you can become very wealthy in the music business; you just can’t make a living at it. For some reason we’ve been able to bust that code and make a good living for a long time, without suffering the pitfalls of the musician’s life,” banjo player Banks Burgess said.
“It’s a neat trick and I don’t know how we’ve accomplished it, but things worked out that way.”
After five decades of playing and performing as Banks & Shane, a few hints exist as to how Banks & Shane kept up their “neat trick,” including humility toward their craft, general good-naturedness, and sheer love for the music.
“It’s going to be a spectacular night,” Shane declared in a recent interview with Lakelife Magazine. “We know so many people who live at the lake; we’re always surrounded by friends when we come do these shows!” – Contributed