If you're looking for a jam, funk, rock, punk, folk, metal, flip flop wearing, thrift store t-shirt grabbing, casserole of music, then you're looking for Strawberry Nixon. Traveling with a playlist that includes Widespread Panic, Outkast, Pearl Jam, Incubus, Snoop Dogg, Matchbox Twenty, Collective Soul, Willie Nelson, and even Brooks and Dunn (when necessary), combined with a wide variety of originals, Strawberry Nixon has been on hand to play with such acts as Ricochet, Andy Griggs, Vanilla Ice, Great White, and Afroman. Names that until now have yet to appear in the same sentence. They have unpacked their gear in six states arriving as unknowns to their audience, but often being quickly invited back for return engagements. You won't get a version of Freebird at this show but a refreshing opportunity to hear a very versatile, and surprising, setlist where somebody will say, "Wow, there's something you don't hear every day!"

The original incarnation of Strawberry Nixon was an acoustic duo comprised of Mark and his son Brandon, who returned from Atlanta during his senior year in high school. Both Swift men had been involved with other musical acts, but Brandon’s return home provided them with their first opportunity to play together professionally. While many fathers and sons struggle to hurdle the generation gap, the Swift’s mutual interest and talent for music was the bridge needed to keep their bond strong although the miles had kept them apart. “My dad is the reason I started playing music,” said the younger Swift, “And after I returned home I knew it was the only thing I wanted to do to make a living and he had the experience to show me how to do it right.” After a few practice sessions at their home, Strawberry Nixon made their debut on stage at Bayou Bill’s South in Lake Park, Georgia in the fall of 2002. Even now they keep the acoustic duo alive by playing Strawberry Nixon Unplugged gigs each week, when the schedule permits, and use these performances to iron out new covers and work through the many originals that they have between them.

After a few months of their acoustic form, a desire to expand musically struck both men, and soon a decision to form a full-fledged group was agreed upon. Once the decision was made to take on new members, it didn’t take much effort to find the guys they were looking for, as Mark Swift just thought back to his previous bands long defunct to come up with two names that fit, Aaron Strickland and Mike Mink. In 2005 they added drummer Derrick Clemons into the mix. Strawberry Nixon has a new look, but the versatility they were relying on has gone unchanged.

Along the way there have been some ups and downs, inevitable swings that time on the road demands, but they all agree that it has been fun and it always will be. Each member has many vivid memories of the past couple of years, but one story they all agree that gives them the most pride is the one relayed to them from a friend of Mark’s. Before heading to the Middle East, U.S. Army Sergeant Derek Moore of Valdosta picked up a copy of Strawberry Nixon’s acoustic CD and listened to it with his buddies while in Kuwait waiting for orders to move into Iraq. Moore emailed Swift to inform him that the CD was being played as his vehicle entered Baghdad, with a particular focus on the song Hotel Soldiers, which speaks of the brave people who give up their lives for the freedoms we enjoy.

The band members are quick to remind those who will listen, it is not all playing and writing. It is often up to them to research and get booked at new venues and load and unload a trailer full of gear each time they play, but they measure their success by more then their income. “When people are crammed at the front of the stage, requesting and singing your original songs, it is easy to forget all of the hard work that goes on behind the scenes,” Mark Swift said. “We truly enjoy being around each other and we are responsible for people having a great time, that’s pretty powerful,” Mink added.

Although they are keeping things under wraps, the band says they have had a plan from the beginning and they feel they are six-months to a year ahead of the schedule they had laid out for themselves. They are working on a new CD and they continue to knock on doors and spread their music as far as they can. They encourage those interested in their travels and tunes to drop by their web site (www.strawberrynixon.com) and check out the results of the past year. If you want to be able to say “I knew them when…,” log on to their website and check out their schedule to see when they play at a venue near you.