Tom Piazza is celebrated both as a novelist and as a writer on American music. His eleven books include his latest, the novel A Free State (Harper). The book is a riveting chase novel that follows a runaway slave, Henry Sims in 1855, as he uses his wits and musical ability to avoid capture. Piazza’s previous books include the novel, City of Refuge, the post-Katrina manifesto, Why New Orleans Matters, and Devil Sent the Rain, a collection of his essays and journalism. He was a principal writer for the innovative HBO drama series Treme, and the winner of a Grammy Award for his album notes to Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues: A Musical Journey. Piazza lives in New Orleans.

The Soul Tones are Damein Wash and Effie Burt on vocals, Ricky Burkhead on drums, Jason Ball and Phil Baquie on guitars, and James McCleod on keyboards. The group specializes in Motown, R&B, blues, soul music and old school rock and roll. The band members all live in Oxford.

The Randy Rogers Band will release their seventh studio LP, Nothing Shines Like Neon, in January. The CD, produced by Buddy Cannon (Kenny Chesney, Willie Nelson) will be the follow-up to the group’s 2013 release “Trouble,” which reached No. 3 on the Billboard country chart and No. 9 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The Texas-based band has charted seven singles on the Billboard Country charts. Rogers will perform as a duo with his fiddle player. Following their Thacker appearance, Rogers and his full band will perform at 8 pm at the Lyric.