“Kim Wilson of the Fabulous Thunderbirds in AOL Blues Chat” Advertisement, October 16, 1995, by Beverly Howell
"ROLL
OF THE DICE" is the album KIM WILSON has spent his whole life preparing
for. And, "Roll of The Dice,"
represents a new era for THE FABULOUS THUNDERBIRDS ... who are:
Kim Wilson,
Vocals & Harp
Kid Ramos
Guitar
Fran
Christina, Drums
Mark
Carrino Bass
Gene
Taylor, Keyboards
"Roll
of The Dice," The Fabulous Thunderbirds' debut on PRIVATE MUSIC, attracted
veteran producer Danny Kortchmar (Don Henley, Billy Joel) who achieved
"honorary lifetime T-Bird member" status, by guiding this
"low-down and nasty" collection of twelve songs, mostly co-written by
Kim Wilson, including three by Kim and Danny.
Kortchmar added guitar throughout the sessions. "I've got the power
going on this one," says Wilson. "It makes me very happy. It's the first time I've been able to get
this kind of sound on a T-Birds record.
I've also got to give credit to the whole band, right up front, with a
special acknowledgment of Fran Christina.
He's been there all along, giving this band an unshakable foundation,
and he's a solid friend. That's what
the T-Birds are all about."
Kim Wilson
has been around music since his early days growing up in Detroit, but it wasn't
until high school that he started to develop a passion for the blues. He says, "My dad was a popular singer
on the radio. He and my mother would
sing together. I and guitar lessons,
moved to California, and played in the high school band. When I was a senior, I really got good at
the
blues."
And he's been "good at the blues" ever since. As Danny Kortchmar
remarks, "Kim is one of the great, great blues artists -- and singers --
ever produced in this country. He is part of a great tradition, and he is one
of the strongest, most talented forces to keep blues and R&B alive. He's a vessel of the word."
"It's
up to you how you want to live
Go out and
have your fun
You don't
want to be a fugitive
From the
things you've never done
Ain't
nobody gonna throw you a bone
To keep
your hopes alive
You got to
walk like a Big Dog
Only the
fit survive
Just roll
with the dice"
(from
"Roll of the Dice," written by Kim Wilson and Danny Kortchmar)
But, The
Fabulous Thunderbirds' founder isn't just singing. For the first time in the
band's storied history, Kim Wilson is allowing his virtuosic harmonica-playing
to occupy its position in the spotlight.
"I figured why not let people know I play the thing," says
Wilson, whose swooping, full-throated harp technique echoes the influence of a
lifetime studying the works of Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson, and
being a protege of blues master Muddy Waters.
"People have never heard me play harmonica with The Fabulous
Thunderbirds on radio, except as an ensemble part. This, though, is wide open. It just rocks. I didn't expect to play that much harp, but
Danny insisted. "Special
production consultant Steve Jordan (who contributes drums/percussion on three
tracks) agreed: "Kim's harmonica
playing just kills me."
"And,
there is another dimension to the evolution of this recording," Kim
continues. "I always had a sound
in mind for this band ... in-your-face hard guitar parts ... the kind of riff
that you sing in your sleep. And that's
what Kid Ramos did the first time I heard him." Ramos, a whiz-kid guitarist who can play fluid Clapton-style
leads, soul rhythms and noisy "hard" blues parts with equal
efficiency, provides Wilson with the solo-in" foil that has been missing
since the departure of original T-Birds guitarist Jimmie Vaughan. "He's a genius; he can do it all,"
Kim says of the Kid. "He's gonna
turn some heads and rock this band."
"Roll
of The Dice" sure enough puts the T-Birds back in the fast lane. The album is packed with brilliantly-crafted
songs played with flat-out abandon and supreme taste.
"Takin'
It Too Easy" was co-written by Wilson and Nashville collaborator Rick
Giles. "It's kind of like Bo
Diddley meets Willie Dixon meets Muddy
Waters -- they have a baby, and call it ... Bootsy Collins!" Kim exclaims,
almost startling himself. "It's a
combination of a lot of music. Kid
Ramos did a lot of cool stuff on this one.
It's about things you take for granted
... the simplest things, which are the best things in life, of
course."
"'Roll
of the Dice' isn't a typical one," Kim says, of the title track.
"I've had the song for a long time.
I brought it to Danny, because I needed somebody to help me buff it
out. I felt very strongly about going
out in life and really taking a chance and not sitting on mediocrity. There's really nothing to be afraid of -- I guess that's the message -- because
life can go bad when you're playing it safe, too."
"It
was Danny's idea to do (Van Morrison's) 'Here Comes the Night,"' Kim
recalls. "The band really loved
the song, and wanted to cover it right."
The other
cover tune is a surprising choice, the Disney chestnut, "Zip A Dee Do
Dah," righteously funked up on this album. "It was only the second time we'd played it, but it came out
killer," says Wilson, who also reports that the song was the idea of Maggie Kortchmar (Danny's wife). "It was a little difficult to deal
with, because it was all on one track, but the vocals came out good: after all,
I knew the words by heart. It was just
one of those moments; you capture it."
"The same thing happened with 'I Can't Win,' (written by
Wilson/Kortchmar/Jordan and the only song co-produced by Kortchmar/Jordan).
Very rarely does a demo become a record, but we did it."
The
tough and raunchy "Too Many Irons in the Fire," is a Slim Harpo take-off,
written (not without humor) by Danny Kortchmar and (Heartbreaker) Stan Lynch, featuring tasty
drums and percussion by Steve Jordan:
"On
our anniversary just the other day
I couldn't
find a parking place in my own driveway
But I
overlooked it baby
Cause
you're so fine...
Too many
irons in the fire
Too many
hands in the glove
Too
many fingers on the trigger
And that
ain't what I call love."
Kortchmar/Lynch
also wrote "How Do I Get You Back," -"another one of those
tracks that Kid Ramos really burned," says Kim. Kortchmar
notes that "Do As I Say," is a "traditional T-Birds kind of
tune." Indeed, the song is driven
by the powerful T-Birds rhythm section, led by Fran Christina (with Harvey
Brooks on bass), while Taylor's keyboards and Wilson's harmonica give it a
subtle New Orleans flavor.
"I
wrote 'Lookin' Forward to Lookin' Back,' with Rick Giles and Chuck Jones in
Nashville," says Kim. ''I get with
them every chance I get. The lyrics are
pretty self-explanatory -- looking forward to the memory of that special person
in your life!!" Wilson also wrote
the similarly-themed and ironically beautiful: ballad, "Memory From
Hell," with Giles and Jones.
Wilson
explains that his low-down "Mean Love" is "a tongue-in-cheek
thing. It's the kind of subject you can write verse after verse about. It's bad; it's mean. Danny and Steve Jordan
are all over this track. It's one of my
favorites." "I Don't Want to
Be the One" is a charming production, penned by Wilson and Jerry Williams,
featuring sweet melody, harp and harmonies by Kim, with background singer Babi
Floyd.
The roots
of The Fabulous Thunderbirds began to take hold when Kim Wilson was still a
teenager, in the height of the sixties, "listening to Jimmy Reed and Eddie
Taylor. I would try to play with
anybody who came through town. I used to ask Albert Collins to let me play with
him all the time. He was good to
me. So was Pee Wee Crayton, Lowell
Fulsom, Luther Tucker, guys who are dead now; it's terrible. I can hardly talk about it. It kind of raised my status early, being
able to play with George Smith, Eddie Taylor and John Lee Hooker. I just nudged my way in there. A lot of
times I'm not sure they knew what they were getting into."
Kortchmar takes that thought to the next
phase: "All those guys that Kim
knew, like Muddy Waters, actually said that Kim's the harbinger ... the guy who
is gonna take their music to the next place."
Kim Wilson
traveled to Austin, Texas in the seventies where he met guitarist Jimmie
Vaughan during a 1975 jam session at the legendary "Antone's Blues
Club" The two formed "The
Fabulous Thunderbirds," and became the house band at Antone's, where they
continued to back up a who's who of visiting blues stars. During this time, Wilson came under the wing
of one of the greatest bluesmen in history, Muddy Waters.
"He
was like my pop," said Wilson.
"I still get a little weird when I think that he's gone now. He made my reputation. If you have his seal of approval, you're
golden. I was sitting there one night
watching Muddy; he was playing 'Everything's Gonna Be All Right' by Little
Walter, and at the end he says, 'speaking of Little Walter, there's a young man
in the house who reminds me of Little Walter more than anyone else.' I was floored, when I realized he was talking
about me."
The
Thunderbirds became a staple on the blues circuit, and, in 1979, they released
an eponymous debut on Takoma Records.
"What's the Word," was released on Chrysalis Records in '80,
followed by "Butt Rockin" in '81.
The critically-acclaimed "T-Bird Rhythm," produced by Nick
Lowe, was part of an '82 campaign that saw the band open for The Rolling Stones
Tour and back Carlos Santana on much of his "Havana Moon" album.
In 1986,
the Dave Edmunds-produced "Tuff Enuff" album was released on CBS
Affiliates, and became a hit. The Thunderbirds saw themselves not only
spearheading a blues revival, but also crossing over into pop hit status.
Television appearances, model-packed videos (notably "Wrap It Up" and
the title track) and headlining tours ensued.
The T-Birds
were riding high in the late eighties, following up "Tuff Enuff" with
two more albums in a similar vein, "Hot Number," and "Powerful
Stuff." In 1987, the band
headlined the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival with a
once-in-a-lifetime concert on the Riverboat President backed by a series of
special guests including Dr. John, Bonnie Raitt, John Lee Hooker, Rockin'
Sidney, Lazy Lester, Katie Webster and the Roomful of Blues horns. "That was a really fun time," says
Wilson, about this career highlight.
"I'd give anything for a tape of that. The organizers of the festival came to us and said, 'name the
people you want to play with, and we'll get them for you.' So we put together
our ideal kind of line-up."
In 1990,
the T-Birds went through a major change
when Vaughan left to follow his dream of forming a band with his younger
brother, Stevie Ray Vaughan. Stevie Ray was tragically killed in a helicopter
accident just before the first Vaughan Brothers album, "Family
Style," was released. Jimmie went
on to a solo career.
The T-Birds
recorded another album in 1991, "Walk That Walk, Talk That Talk."
Steve Jordan came in to produce a new line-up, featuring guitarists Duke
Robillard; and Kid Bangham, and formed a lasting friendship with Wilson. But,
rather than continue to wrestle with the T-Birds image, Wilson decided to give
it a break and redefine his whole approach.
"There
was a time with the T-Birds when we were on the edge of compromising
ourselves," says Wilson.
"After 'Tuff Enuff,' we got some conflicting advice and faced a few
obstacles. But, again, we were
determined to make good music, no matter what was going on."
Using some
of the once and future T-Birds, as well as outside musicians, Wilson recorded
his first solo album, "Tiger Man," on the Antone's label, in
1993. The critically-praised album
stoked Wilson's hottest musical fires and allowed him to regain his position as
one of the world's preeminent harmonica players. "I found a way to satisfy myself because I went off and did
my own thing," he says. "I
know I'll have my chops up for everything I do now. I did the solo project, because I needed something I could really
sink my teeth into."
After
recording a second solo album with Antone's, "That's Life," (1994),
Wilson put together a new T-Birds line-up, anchored by charter member Fran
Christina and San Francisco bay area bassist Mark Carrino. Gene Taylor, the earthy keyboardist on both
of Wilson's solo albums, also joined the new T-Birds. When Wilson heard guitarist Kid Ramos, gigging on the Southern
California blues circuit, everything clicked.
"Kid was about to break out, man, and I just wanted to grab him in
time."
Kim Wilson
has more energy than ever and looks forward to life on the road. "I'm just
groovin' -- it's like the early days again," he says, and he looks like
he's relieved. "I don't even need
a house. I'll be livin' on the road. I
wanna get out and show my stuff, 'cause I'm hot to play."
- John
Swenson with Karen Johnson
May 1995
Update: Since the writing of the above release, Mark
Carrino left the TBirds, and their new bassist is Willy J. Campbell. "ROLL OF THE DICE," sales are
stronger than ever, and The Fabulous Thunderbirds continue to take the country
by storm!