U.P. Wilson

Fasten your seatbelts, WE gonna take you for a ride baby!

Tone Sommer's TEXAS BLUES NEWS

This year I will be doing a series of interviews with various Texas blues musicians and blues types. Beginning this issue with my very good friend and mentor, U.P. Wilson.

I recently had the honour of working with U.P. on several studio projects, playing a couple of guitar duets with U.P. on his forthcoming JSP release and producing him on "Texas Blues Guitar Summit", another JSP CD soon to be released featuring U.P., Andrew Jr. Boy Jones, Henry Qualls, Bobby Gilmore, & JB Wynne. I have also done numerous European tours with U.P., as well as performing with the band that backed him at the '97 Chicago Blues Festival.

U.P. Wilson, who is one of the best guitar players in the world, is also the most humble and modest person you could ever hope to meet. He is also a great story teller and an absolute blast to go on the road with. So as U.P. says, fasten your seatbelts, WE gonna take you for a ride baby

How many years have you been playing the guitar?

Lets see, I'd have to say about 25 or 30 years

Who were some of your earliest influences on guitar?

Frankie Lee Sims, Mercy Baby. 'course he's not a guitar player, but he was in the group, and a guy they called Hub Cap on guitar.

What was the blues scene like back then?

It was more less the same as today, definitely no money in it.

Do you remember what year you began with Robert Ealey in the Boogie Chilluns, and what it was like?

Robert Ealey and I, we played some great gigs, big gigs, say like we had to tell a lie sometime. We would say to the club owners, "I don't know where the rest of the band is, why don't we two get started until the rest of the band can make it". We knew all along that weren't nobody else comin', cuz there's just the two of us, see. But when we start to playin', they just loved us anyway, didn't ask no more about the rest of the band. We both had them fancy sparklin' suits on too you know. It was a lot of fun!

You have been all over the world, where is your favourite place to go play the blues?

Amsterdam, definitely Holland (laughter) I don't know why, I just like it.

Where are the best blues audiences in the world?

Germany. Man they really dig the blues

John Stedman of JSP brought in Big Joe Turner to play bass and add some B-3 to your "Whirlwind" CD. What was it like working with Big Joe Turner?

Big Joe you understand, he's outta sight I think after he came in, there wasn't no problems, things just fell together real good like.

How did you come up with the one handed guitar thing?

When I was comin' up, there was a bunch of bands around, these guys ya understand would holler about "Lets go down and cut these cats' throat", cuttin' heads you know. At that time you know, I was tryin' to develop somthin' to keep 'em off of me! You know, get me a weapon going. After that happened I didn't have no more problems. I had to work on it a while though.

Any new weapons in the works?

Yes I got a few up my sleeve. Guitar in the left hand and Bass in the right. At the same time. Have you seen me do that? I might do it tonight.

Are you ever gonna do an entire "Boogie Chilluns" CD with Robert Ealey?

Yes I would like to do that with Robert. Robert and I are plannin' on doin' somethin' like that, pretty soon!

A lot of people think that guys like you and Robert Ealey are long over due the kind of recognition that say a Buddy Guy or John Lee Hooker has received. How do you feel about that?

Well a lot of it is being in the right place at the right time. But really, we should have been there a long time ago.

Tell me about Cornell Dupree.

Cornell Dupree, we started out he was a good friend of mine and also a hell of a musician, one of the top guitars I know.

How about Ray Sharpe?

I remember when Ray Sharpe couldn't play a note, I was livin' in Dallas at the time, we used to come to Ft. Worth and play a little bit. Ray would come in every Sunday and play with us, he picked it up from there.

Did you enjoy working on the Texas Blues Guitar Summit CD with Bobby Gilmore?

Bobby's a great cat, really plays that guitar.

Are you and Steve Meek (UP's long time drummer/mgr.) planning a European tour this summer?

Right, lookin' forward to it. We goin' all over, Greece too I think.

Do you like Greece?

Yes indeedy, I LOVE Greece. Gimmee more Greece!

Where do you see U.P.Wilson 5 years from now?

Well I'd like to be on top! I'm close to the top now (Laughter)

U.P., thank you very much for your time, we must say goodbye now, Is there anything you want to tell the blues lovers out there before we go?

Keep on workin' on what your workin' on baby. Hang loose and stay close, that's about the best that I can put it, so you'll have to go from there.

Well that's all for this time. Keep those cards and letters comin'. I enjoy y'all's feedback. Keep them blues alive!

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