Living blues rock history
Bilbao Blues Festival will be an extraordinary opportunity for fans of The Fabulous Thunderbirds, as the festival will be the only stage they will be performing on in Spain this year. They will be led by their charismatic frontman, vocalist and harmonica player Kim Wilson, who will receive the txapela that will accredit him as the prize of the third edition. To learn about the origins of one of the most influential American blues rock bands in history, we have to go back to 1974, when Wilson joined forces with talented local guitarist Jimmy Vaughan in Texas to shape the project. The Fabulous Thunderbirds gained increasing fame in the US state for their live performances and in 1979 released their first self-produced album. Wilson and Vaughan settled in Los Angeles, where they consolidated the style of their approach: a rhythm and blues anchored in Texas blues and the country style of the Californian coast. In their subsequent works, they gradually made room for other styles such as rock’n roll, soul and Cajun. In 1986, they reached the peak of their commercial success with the album “Tuff Enuff”. Jimmy Vaughan left the band in 1989 to record the album “Family Style” with his brother Stevie Ray, but Kim Wilson continued the group by incorporating new sounds and giving it a more contemporary feel. “The T-Birds can play both blues festivals and rock venues. We’re a diversified band now and everyone is on the same page,” said Wilson. The Fabulous Thunderbirds perform regularly in the US and Europe and have toured with the Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton. The current line-up is completed by Johnny Moeller (guitar), Bob Welsh (piano/guitar), Rudy Albin (drums) and Steve Kirsty (bass).
Kim Wilson, legendary frontman
The immense Kim Wilson (Detroit, 1951), the only original member of the group, will receive the III Bilbao Blues Festival Award for his career. Singer and harmonica virtuoso, he began playing the instrument at the age of 17, influenced by masters such as Little Walter, George “Harmonica” Smith, Lazy Lester and James Cotton. A true vocalist and tireless frontman, Wilson has led The Fabulous Thunderbirds through the years, remaining faithful to the sounds of blues, rhythm and blues and rock and roll and knowing how to evolve over the years. Such luminaries of the genre as Muddy Waters have recognised his enormous talent, referring to him as “the greatest harmonica player since Little Walker”. In 2016 he was honoured with an award at the prestigious Blues Music Awards in the “Instrumentalist-Harmonica” category. He has also been nominated five times for Grammy Awards. The Detroit native continues to play nearly 300 concerts a year, both at festivals and blues clubs around the world, both as the leader of the Fabolous Thunderbids and with the Blues Allstars.
