Tom Mason and the Blue Buccaneers

Tom Mason and the Blue Buccaneers are a wild band of Nashville musicians who dress like pirates and play a rollicking mix of piratical sing-alongs, rousing historical rave-ups, afro-Cuban tinged ballads, Cajun sea shanties, and bluesy Irish jigs, transforming big festivals, performing arts centers, and urban nightclubs into bustling seaside taverns at the turn of the seventeenth century.

From Tom regarding his initial cancer battle in 2022:  While sailing solo and doing my best to avoid the Sea of Corona, I somehow managed to cross the Tropic of Cancer. To be specific, stage 4 colon cancer, with a bit drifting into the liver. (Why couldn’t it have been semi-colon cancer?!) I’ve been extremely lucky: last summer Director Jim Warren and Nashville Shakespeare Festival artistic director Denice Hicks gave me full support, allowing me to continue as Feste and as music director in “12th Night” while undergoing chemo. Michael Webb, Jeff Thorneycroft, and all the musicians and singers involved help me get the CD “What You Will” out and ready for opening night. The crew of the Blue Buccaneers did so much to make it easy for me at the Pilgrimage Festival, the Tennessee Medieval Faire, and a Christmas show, and my wife Whitney, along with my family and friends have made the day to day far less taxing. I’ve also been lucky to have health insurance thanks to the Affordable Care Act, and I’ve received great assistance from two wonderful organizations, Music Health Alliance and Musicares.

My chemotherapy continued through early February, and I’m due to have surgery in late March, and I’m very optimistic. I’m writing and recording for both a solo CD and a new Blue Buccaneers CD. We’re returning to the Tennessee Pirate fest in May, we have Midwest tours in the summer including the Minnesota State Fair, and we’re back in Panama City Beach in October.

Some friends have set up a GoFundMe campaign to help us through the coming months. I’m am so grateful and blown away by the response. Thanks so much for all who have given. Here is the link: https://gofund.me/bccfe419

Thanks for all the love and support. I feel it every day, and can see the sails approaching on the horizon, ready to get us all sailing again.

Tom was an early supporter of the Maritime Music Directory International.  He and I communicated often about various projects, and both of us longed for our musical groups to perform together at a tall ship festival one year. — Dean Calin

29 August 2024 update:  Tom’s sister, Martha Mason Miller, reports that Tom is in hospice in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  While his family requests privacy, they encourage Tom’s friends to post notes on his Facebook page.

31 August 2024 update:  Tom passed peacefully in his sleep last night.  He is honored and mourned by all who knew him.