ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
4 Man String Band keeps the show going By Kathy Dean The 4 Man String Band may seem new to Atlanta’s local music scene, but that doesn’t mean it’s a group of rookies. The four members are local boys who are done with their day jobs, and between them, they have over 198 years of musical experience. The first time the four — George Eckard, Clark Brown, John Miller and Charles Absher — got together to practice was in January 2019. Their first live performance followed just a month later at the Intown Coffeehouse. “We really enjoy playing together, and I think our fans can see that in our music,” Brown said. As they keep playing, band members have maintained a sense of humor about the project. “Our fan base is mostly friends and family, plus folks from the Central DeKalb Senior Center, where I think we’re the ‘official’ house band,” Absher said. That may be in part because band members can relate to their audiences at the center. Eckard is 70 years old. Brown, Miller and Absher are 68. “I think it’s important to note that I’m the youngest in the
band,” Absher said. “I’m not sure the other members of the group appreciate me pointing that out.” “We think he’s young, but shows promise,” Eckard said.
George Eckard
Meet the band
Eckard, who lives in Decatur, plays guitar, harmonica, banjo and mandolin. He has been in the Atlanta area since he was
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OCTOBER 2021 | AtlantaSeniorLife.com
11, when his parents moved the family from Baltimore in 1962. “I’ve played music all my life, and now that I’m retired, this how I spend my time,” he said. Eckard played guitar in a rock ‘n roll dance band in high school and did some solo singer/songwriter performance in college. After receiving his business degree from UGA, he worked in the information technology (IT) field. “From 1985 until I retired in 2017, I worked for a financial services company, Primerica, doing various IT related activities,” he said. “It was a great career. I went from punch cards to the
internet.” In the late ‘90s, Eckard got together with a group of friends to play music socially; after a while they started performing as The Unusual Suspects. He said that’s when his interest in songwriting was renewed. “I made a little money as a musician over the years,” he said, “but realized early on that the benefits and retirement plan were a little meager. For me, playing music is an excellent and enjoyable retirement activity.” Brown contributes mandolin, guitar and foot tambourine. Until recently, he
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