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The Fabulous Thunderbirds—Struck Down—Stony
Plain Records

The Fabulous Thunderbirds do not need any introduc-
tion as they have been right up there with the best
blues bands in America for decades. In that time they

have been nominated for six Grammy Awards and over
twenty Blues Music Awards. The lineup may have
changed but the ethos of the band has remained the

same thanks to Kim Wilson at the helm.

The album opens with ‘Struck Down By The Blues’ a solid blues number with some
Albert King style guitar licks in there. ‘Don’t Make No Sense’ has a great Cajun vibe,

something that the Fabulous Thunderbirds do so well, featuring Terrance Simien on
accordion. ‘Payback Time’ is a gritty blues that features Billy Gibbons no less. ‘Noth-
ing In Rambling’ is a Memphis Minnie cover that has Keb Mo, Bonnie Raitt and Taj

Mahal all having a share of the vocals on this more acoustic based blues, a real gem
of a tune.

Things slow down a little with the minor blues ‘The Hard Way’ before they crank

things up a notch with a great foot tapping twelve bar shuffle ‘Whatcha Do To Me’ that
has Elvin Bishop soloing on guitar. ‘I’ve Got Eyes’ is a riff driven blues and ‘That’s
Cold’ has that old familiar Tbirds drive that we all know so well. The album comes to
a close with the slow blues ballad ‘Sideline’.

This is a fine album, well produced and great musicianship throughout. Despite the
change of personell over the years, Kim Wilson ensures that the true identity of the

Fabulous Thunderbirds remains. You can hear this DNA in Kim’s tight and distinctive
vocals and as always leading from the front with impeccable harmonica playing that
puts him right up there with the greats.

Ok, there is nothing particularly new or revolutionary about this album just good old
blues in the style that only the Fabulous Thunderbirds can deliver, go give it a spin!

Ged Wilson
Brave Rival—Fight Or Flight—Self Release

Brave Rival are a five piece band from Portsmouth UK
and are currently right up there leading the way on the

British music scene. With numerous UK Blues Awards
nominations and prestigious clubs and festival appear-
ances under their belt, five years on sees their second

album release, “Fight Or Flight” hit the charts.
The album opens with ‘Bad Choices’, with some nice

harmony vocals over a rock based guitar riff. Another