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The Music of Bill Wanner
 
                         I grew up listening to all kinds of music in a little town in southwestern Kansas. There was a lot of Hank Williams on the radio, and I used to tune into the "Big" radio station, KOMA in Oklahoma City, at night and listened to artists like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Del Shannon, Dion, and of course, Elvis. Elvis was everywhere!  I saved the money I made from peeling potatoes and washing dishes at my parent's bakery and finally had enough to buy my first guitar - An electric Sears Silvertone, with an amp built right into the case. It was cool, because I could set the case up in no time. My friend would come over with his Montgomery Ward "Airline" guitar, and we started learning songs by The Ventures. I think "Pipeline" was the first song I ever learned to play, all the way through.
 
                         Then a few years later, along came the Beatles, and of course we all know what an impact they had on the world of music. I read somewhere that John Lennon really liked the music of Bob Dylan. I'd never heard of Dylan, so I found one of his records and learned to fingerpick from listening to him over and over again. From there, I discovered artists like Dave Van Ronk, Mississippi John Hurt, Phil Ochs, Fred Neil, Jerry Jeff Walker, and others.
 
                       I guess I would describe my tastes in music as eclectic, being heavily influenced by musicians from Woody Guthrie to Jimi Hendrix. I played electric music for years, mostly hard rock covers and blues/rock. We played Stevie Ray Vaughan, Clapton, Santana, Hendrix, Robin Trower,and ZZ Top covers for years. It was a lot of fun, and I learned a lot.
In my spare time I was  also learning Robert Johnson and Gary Davis licks on my acoustic guitar, and playing  solo acoustic sets whenever I found an opportunity .
                            
                        Moving to Texas in the mid seventies turned me on to artists like Townes Van Zandt, Willis Alan Ramsey, and other singer-songwriters who are now referred to as "Americana" artists. In the seventies, they were known as "Progressive Country" guys. That's probably because they liked to hang out with Willie Nelson and let their hair grow long.
 As opposed to "Conservative Country", I suppose, where flat top haircuts used to rule..
                            
                         Now, I'm a little older and I've come to appreciate the subtleties of the acoustic music I "put on the shelf" for so many years. Posting videos on You Tube made me think,"Why shouldn't I just record a "one man band" CD and see what happens? Thanks to You Tunes records, I now have that CD. There's a little something here for almost everytaste, from folk to blues, to a little jazz. I hope you'll check it out.
                        I played all instruments on these tracks, using overdubs. The entire recording was basically done using six and twelve string acoustic guitars, electric bass, and drum machine. There was an electric guitar solo at the end of "Mississippi Blues", which was done with a Strat."Lungs" was done "live", with one guitar. I want to thank the guys at Youtune for their help in making this project of mine a reality. I'd like to dedicate this recording to my wife Nancy, to my daughters Lisa and Sara, my granddaughters  Burgundy and Anna, and to my friends and fellow musicians  Bob McClain, Larry Garrett, and Val Silvas.
 
   

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  • Click on Bill's Album cover to purchase his album  'Southbound

    •               Road' for $14.70, which includes shipping worldwide.

     

     
     
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