Rock band Drivin’ N Cryin’ driving home without vintage equipment after theft

Drivin’ N Cryin’s equipment stolen

ATLANTA — Atlanta-based rock band Drivin’ N Cryin’ has plenty of reason to cry: They’ll be driving to their next gig without more than $50,000 of vintage and custom equipment that was swiped from a hotel.

A trailer packed with vintage amplifiers, custom guitars and an elaborate drum set was stolen from a Macon hotel early Saturday hours after the band finished playing at a local theater, band manager Ken Green said.

“The guys were devastated. It’s a big hit considering how busy they are — they do a minimum of 150 shows a year, and this is their living,” he said. “Old equipment is like a pair of shoes. You break it in and you get comfortable. So this was a big deal.”

The band had finished playing a Friday night gig at the Hummingbird Stage and Taproom and then grabbed a late dinner before retiring to a hotel in north Macon around 3:45 a.m. Saturday morning. When the members woke up hours later, the trailer had vanished.

“It was gone,” Green said. “We think somebody followed us and waited until the lights were off.”

While Bibb County Sheriff’s officers are investigating, Green said he and the band’s supporters are following several leads that developed after they posted the details of the crime on Facebook over the weekend.

It has already yielded some results. Green said he’s already recovered two custom-built amplifiers and an electric guitar at an Atlanta pawn shop, and he’s handing over the information of who sold the items to local police. And tipsters pointed him to two other pawn shops that may have some of the equipment.

“This is the tools of our trade,” he said. “It’s a working man’s band — they’re still out doing it. So just give ‘em a break.”

Green said the four-man band, perhaps best known for their song “Straight to Hell” and 1991 hit “Fly Me Courageous,” still plans to make the next two stops on the tour — although they may have some new equipment. The Allman Brothers Band and the Drive-By Truckers both offered to lend some gear.

Online:

Drivin’ N Cryin’: www.drivinncryin.com/