"You Don't Know Jack!..."

...but you're about to meet him. Jack. Jack Thomas. Woodcarver extraordinaire that expanded his talents into flute making...and I dare say none can compare, not from what I've ever seen. When I had moved to Charlotte several years ago, I discovered the Carolina Flute Circle, an informal gathering of some of the neatest, most talented players, makers, and appreciators of the Native American flute...and was adopted into their fold. At my first meeting, Jack was one of the makers present that took the time to answer my endless questions in depth, and got me stoked to begin my own flute-making Journey.

Jack axing me a question...(photo: Sam Granade)

Last Saturday we held one of our gatherings down in Saluda, South Carolina, and Jack was there with his incredible creations. He and I posed for the above picture and held a mini-caption contest with it...as you'll see below, that ain't no tomahawk he's holding...it's a playable flute! And he trusted me enough to attempt to solve a sound issue on his latest basket-weave flute (also below)...it was a bit daunting to actually take that work of art and start whacking at the sound hole with files...I think it's pretty evident we're a bunch of crazy fools that love to have a good time, hence the pic.

Look closely at the frog flute...I think with this one pic alone you can see why Jack is revered as a flute-maker in a class by himself. From blanks of basswood he meticulously hand-carved the basket-weave design...the exact number escapes me, but he told me it was simply about 700 cuts in one direction, then 700 cuts in another direction. Yeah, Jack, sounds do-able. Think I'll just go whittle one for myself this afternoon, maybe two....NOT!!! And the frog...from his extensive experience as a master carver, he brings to life everything he creates with extraordinary precision. He is inspiration for us all, which is an understatement.

His latest off-the-chart creation is the gator you see pictured above...still in it's formative stages, it, too, is a flute...the mouthpiece is the gator's mouth, and if you flip it over you'll see all the playing holes on his belly. If you notice the dark circle on the tail, that's one of the tuning holes that let's the air escape. It's simply mind-boggling what he can do.

Here's a closer look at the tomahawk flute, with the mouthpiece just off the edge to the left. So when you pick it up and play a song with it, and do a really bad job doing so, you can truly say, "Ugh, what a hatchet job!!"

Here is a peek at his latest exclusive creation that he'll present to Grammy Award winning Mary Youngblood, master native flutist who will be in Charlotte in a couple of weeks to premier the release of the new movie "The Spirit of Sacajawea"...and, a few days later, she'll be giving a concert at the Schiele Museum in Gastonia Sunday evening April 1. That ticket is worth every penny and then some for those that want to attend.

So, now you know Jack. A little bit anyway. If you ever meet him, prepare to meet a kind, caring gentleman with an eternal twinkle in his eye.