Painted on

Fabulous Thunderbirds | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 14, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Tone Cool
• ASIN: B0009H97DA
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #243,284 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars New band, new sound - rockin comeback!, June 23, 2005

By 

Bergman Jonas (Sweden) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Painted on (Audio CD)

A new release by the founder of the T-Birds, Kim Wilson, is always a treat. The last album was the Live album that just nearly made it, but where it was apparent that the band needed to be updated. If nothing else, it could perhaps be seen as a greatest hits collection as a conglomerate between Kim Wilson's blues band and the Birds. So, since that time, Kid Ramos' guitar has been replaced by the great team of Kirk Fletcher and Nick Curran, both recording solo artists. The meeting between Nick and Kim was something I really looked forward to as they both have very strong vocals. Kirk also doubles as the guitar player in Kim's blues revue band. So, how does it sound? Well, the sound has been updated to a modern platform but with plenty of the grit we have come to expect from the Birds. It starts off with two hard rockin numbers and then shifts into Swamp rock and a soul number. In short, the album is eclectic, which is fine, but it really only comes close to the best of the Birds by the end. This is when they return to the blues foundation they do so well. Nick gets to do one vocal on one of them letting Kim rip it away on the electrified harmonica. This last point is as ever a slight critizism, the harp is way back in the background most of the time. When it kicks in, the effect is stunning. Apart from this point, excellent playing all around, tightly produced by Steve Berlin, and probably very tight sounding in the studio. This is a working band and it shows. These are probably the best in the blues today and here they extend their talents to include an electic set of gritty rock, soul and blues. Not a bad deal at all, perfect for the summer party or stepping on it on any road anywhere! The rating should be a 4,5 as it just misses to be a T-Bird classic. Buy with confidence.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The T-Birds still have it goin' on., August 26, 2005

By 

H. S. Doc Holliday "Doc the Bluesman" (Lake St. Louis, MO United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Painted on (Audio CD)

Kim Wilson, once again, rolls a new model of T-Bird off the assembly line. Where does he find these guys? Of course, piano pounder Gene Taylor is the most recognizable of this new line-up of Birds, having achieved his own notiriety in the '80s with California's roots-rock heroes The Blasters. But every other player in this new line-up are as adept as Taylor in delivering the raw blues-rock punch that we have grown to expect from one of America's greatest bands of the past 25 years. Top it all off with Wilson's soulful vocals and incendiary harp and you have one great CD. The T-Birds style may not be part of America's mainstream music scene anymore, but their significance in the musical history of this country is reaffirmed and enhanced with Painted On. I am especially fond of the retro "Only Daddy That'll Walk The Line". "Rock Candy" rocks in the same vein as "Rock This Place" and "Two Time Fool" is a hip shaker in the spirit of "I Believe I'm In Love". "Postman" delivers the solid blues groove that long ago established Kim Wilson as one of America's premier blues bosses. "Wild Cherry" features harp playing that would impress even the likes of James Cotton and Junior Wells. The only thing this CD lacks is a T-Birds classic like "Tuff Enough" or "Look At That Look At That". But if you love rock, blues, and soul, Painted On brings home the bacon in a way that few other bands can.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars their best album in years, August 14, 2005

By 

T. Biesenbender (Auckland, New Zealand) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Painted on (Audio CD)

The Fabulous Thunderbirds are back in a major way. This is by far their best album since their earlier recordings. Kim Wilson is in excellent form.
I fully recommend this album to any fan of their earlier work.
Awesome!!!