The Fabulous Thunderbirds | Artist

The Fabulous Thunderbirds are an American blues-rock band formed 1974 in Austin, Texas, by Kim Wilson (vocals, harmonica, guitar), Jimmie Vaughan (guitar), Keith Ferguson (bass) and Mike Buck (drums). Jimmie Vaughan, the brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan, left the band in 1990 to play in The Vaughan Brothers duo, then pursued a solo career after Stevie Ray's death in 1990. The Thunderbirds' blues style mixes Texas blues with the harmonica-laced swamp-blues sounds of Slim Harpo and Lazy Lester. Their first three albums, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Butt Rockin' and T-Bird Rhythm were hailed by critics but remained commercially unsuccessful. Dropped by their record company, the band went for four years without a contract, despite being picked up by both Eric Clapton and the Rolling Stones as support act for their US tours. To-date the band has released 15 studio albums, standouts include The Fabulous Thunderbirds, What's the Word, Walk That Walk Talk That Talk, Painted On, and the excellent 1996 archival release Different Tacos. As a matter of interest, the group appeared in the Tom Hanks comedy film "The Money Pit", as a cross-dressing rock band called Cheap Girls. In the film, Kim Wilson appears in a woman's dress arguing with Hanks about changing the band's name to Meryl Streep or Debbie Reynolds.

Artist Website: fabulousthunderbirds.com

Featured Albums: The Fabulous Thunderbirds

Related Artists: The Leroi Brothers, Duke Robillard, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimmie Vaughan