• Hilary Harris
• Mark Playing that Stolen Guitar

Mark Pickerel is a country / honky tonk singer songwriter who fronts His Praying Hands band. He’s also a drummer, seen and heard throughout the years in Screaming Trees, Nirvana, Brandi Carlile, Neko Case, The Dusty 45's, Jim Carroll, Beat Happening, Mark Lanegan, and Carrie Akre. There’s a lonesome pageantry to Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands. Rock n’ roll that twangs with a trucker’s heavy heart.

So you opened the case and saw that the guy was trying to sell you your own guitar. How did that feel?
Pickerel: I was dumbfounded.

What did you do?
I told him I wasn’t an expert in acoustic guitars and that I wanted to make sure he got a good deal. I said I had a friend who knew guitars that I needed to call, and I stepped into my back office to call the cops. Last thing I wanted to do was tip him off that I knew. I didn’t want him to bolt, or do something crazy. While I was on the phone with the police, I saw the preacher’s son come in and put a Misfits box set and some Betty Page trading cards up his shirt. I could see through a window from the office. I didn’t tell the cops about the preacher’s son. I knew who he was and figured they could deal with him when they got there. The kid was a minor and I wasn’t ready to send him to the can.

How did the busts go down?
There were no sirens or anything. The cops walked in quietly. When the preacher’s son saw them, he burst into tears, producing the box set from his shirt saying he was sorry for what he had done. The officers were confused, they thought they were there to bust the guy crying. I had to say, “No, it’s this other guy, he’s the one I want you to bust. He just tried to sell me my own guitar. You can bust the kid, but I don’t want to press charges.”

What did the guitar thief do?
He was shocked. There was nothing he really could do. He went to jail. But he didn’t cry.

Did he ever find out that he tried to sell the guitar back to its owner?
Yeah. I guess he was pretty humiliated. Turns out he was a big Screaming Trees fan too. He told his friends to come in and apologize to me.

He was a Screaming Trees fan? I love that. That is perfect. What happened to the preacher’s son?
He came in and worked it off. I put the Misfits box set on hold for him and gave it to him in the end. He didn’t want his dad to find out he was into stuff like the Misfits or Betty Page.

That was very cool of you. Did people try to steal from the store often?
Oh yeah. All the time. There was this whole contingent of fashion conscious punk guys from Moses Lake who dressed all Hot Topic. They would come in and chit chat and steal Iggy Pop and Black Flag CD’s. I caught one of them trying to steal a Black Flag parka and a Black Flag skateboard at the same time.

Nice. He was going for the matching set.
One kid stole a Bob Marley box set, and was playing it for his Dad, who was a friend of mine. The Dad called me to tell me how much they were enjoying the Marley CD’s his kid had gotten from my store. I was like, “What Marley CD’s?”

For your show at the Comet, will there be any special treats?
We play early. It’s a stripped down set. Just myself, Barb Hunter (Afghan Whigs) on cello, and Johnny Sangster on guitar. I might play some kick drum with my left foot.

Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands play the Comet Saturday, Oct. 17th at 9 PM

What kind of kick drum do you use?
An early 50’s twenty-two inch Slingerland. It’s pretty beat up, but I love it. I got it in Ellensburg at a yard sale across from where I used to live. It looks like it’s a foot stomp away from destruction.

Why do you love it? Describe your drum love?
The guy who owned it before was in a band called the Sun Lighters. There was a pretty oil painting of a sunset on the head. It has that single tension that’s difficult to get right. You can’t pitch tune both heads at the same time. If you decide you want beater side to be tighter than the front head, you can’t do that. It’s a thinner shell and just resonates well. I use it for session work too. So many drum companies have gotten into these multi plies. Sometimes that’s too thick for me. This one is thin enough. And aged. I wish I still had the head with the oil painting on it.

I love drum love.
So do I.

Do you stay in touch with the guy who stole your guitar?
Ha. No. Not so much. I wish him the best.