By Gabriella Bancheri
It’s always nice to strike up a conversation with a stranger at the bar, but it’s not every day you get to say that stranger is Willie Nelson’s iconic guitar tuner. Well, if you’re a South Jersey local who frequents the Irish Pub of Atlantic City, maybe it is.
After a long and sunny Sunday, I made my way over to the Irish Pub to end my day with a perfectly poured Guinness and, to my pleasant surprise, some good chat with Tune’n Tom Hawkins (yes, this is the correct spelling, straight from the horse’s mouth). The Texas-born AC local will travel back to his roots in Texas for a few shows with Willie before he returns home to prepare for a two-week tour on the West Coast to support Willie on the several already-sold-out shows.
When I asked Tom what Willie is like (because, well, how could I not) he said, “Just the best. There’s really nobody like him.” To be fair, I may have to concur with it because I don’t know of many other 90-year-old musicians still going on cross-country tours.
While I popped into the Pub to ask Tom a few questions about what it’s like working with Willie, I stayed for the conversation, as well as the vaguely clever and wise but refreshing turns of phrase he peppers it with. He was quick to remind me it’s not about him—that he’s in it for the music and to support a “great musician.”
What started as a weekend-long piano tuning gig for Bobbie Nelson, Willie Nelson’s sister, turned into a 45-year-long career. Since then, Tom has traveled with Nelson tuning his guitar—from all over the US to Japan to Tasmania to England—enjoying great music, drinking good whiskey, and collecting more clever phrases for his arsenal.
And while this is quite an undeniably enjoyable lifestyle, Tom insists he’s “just a guy.”
I can certainly say I learned a few things while sitting at the bar with Tune’n Tom.
First, he may be an AC local now, but his Southern charm hasn’t left him (and neither has his love for whiskey).
Second, if you end up at the Pub with him, and you decide to take your turn on the jukebox, you’d better not be playing any Elvis (or ’90s grunge rock, God help you). It’s best to stick to Toby Keith, The Pogues, and, of course, good ol’ Willie.
And lastly, he might be “just a guy,” but he’s the kind of guy who will make a conversation worth having.
My favorite part of our chat, though, was when I asked Tom about his favorite part of going on tour. His answer: coming home to AC and returning to his family at the Irish Pub.
So, who is Tune’n Tom? I can say that he’s a simple, carefree man who loves good music, Irish whiskey, and the people and places he calls home.
And that’s who he’ll be, to use one of his phrases, “If the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise.”
Gabriella is a Ventnor City resident and graduate of the University of London with an MA in Creative Writing and Publishing. Her writing is featured in a variety of digital publications ranging from food and beverage to literature to ecotourism.
