A Texas whirlwind blew in to the Tawe Delta Blues Club last night, in the form of Lightnin' Willie and the Poorboys, playing a high-spirited show after the club's August break.

Willie's wild stage get-up, complete with US Cavalry hat and billowing, scarlet neckerchief, gives him the look of an extra from a John Wayne film, who completes his eccentric wardrobe with oddments of battlefield trophies from fallen combatants.

And it's not just the togs.

Willie has an arresting mix of musical styles too.

He is a bluesman who worships at a broad church, so the spirit of Elvis Presley, Eddie Cochran, Bob Wills and Duane Eddy put in an appearance at this starry tent-show-seance, lead by some wily work on his Fender Strat.

Hailing from Arlington, Texas and now based in California, Willie's guitar-playing has the kind of swing and bounce that seems to grow wild in those sunshine states and that thrives contentedly despite the long-running fashion for million-notes-a-minute playing.

His voice echoes like a mountain valley and the Poorboys lay down a raucous foundation, with some lovely harmonica playing from Giles King.

Willie's coaxing tones were heard to full effect when he wandered among the audience while singing and playing on a couple of numbers, but he can belt with the best of them, on songs like his own 'Don't Bite The Hand'.

Tuesday's show was a reunion of old friends, with Llanelli-based performer Terry Clarke stepping up to join the band on a couple of numbers.

Terry plugged in a glam 12-string electric Gretch and added some thundering twang and some mighty crooning and wailing on the Elvis number That's All Right Mama, with which the band marks the 30th anniversary of Presley's death.

Along with Willie, Terry also revisited the Cash classic, I still Miss Someone, which he rearranged and cut in Austin ten years ago on his own Texas lament, the album Lucky.

The show came to a close with an encore of Muddy's Can't Be Satisfied, which Willie attacked with vigour on a custom-made National Resophonic, which flashed like a 50's jukebox under the stage lights.

Kathryn Lay (courtesy of The South Wales Evening Post)

It can be difficult to summon the energy to drag yourself out to a gig on a miserable Monday night that has no right to call itself the height of summer.

But an injection of blues magic from Texas legend Lightnin' Willie and the Poor Boys is just the ticket to bring a shaft of sunshine to a rainy day. Lightnin' Willie and his boys are at the more well-groomed end of country and blues - those cowboy boots and Cuban heels are polished within an inch of their lives, stylish black suits pressed perfectly, red neckerchief tied neatly in place with a traditional Texas star, and, of course, an enormous ten gallon hat.

But it's not the sartorial skills of the band the mixed crowd of Oxford's swingingest set are out to sample as they pack out the Bullingdon Arms for the Famous Monday Blues.

From the moment Lightnin' Willie takes to the mic he infuses the room with buckets of Texas charm. While it's hard to get the audience doing much more than swaying and nodding appreciatively to Willie's soulful crooning to begin with, he really knows how to work the crowd, abandoning the mic and walking into the crowd and singing Where Does Love Go? to an attractive woman watching in awe.

He's not even put off when someone shout's the answer to his question ("Witney!") and carries on weaving a web of sound. But soon it's goodbye to tender love songs and Willie gets the whole room singing along to Don't Bite the Hand and Satisfied, with hip-swaying giving way to a full-on hoe-down.

Then he brings the room back down to earth with soul-searching political ballad Whole Lot of Trouble. Giles King rocks out on the smallest of all instruments, the harmonica, while thumping drums from Tony Burke drive the pace of the whole, two and-a-half hour set, and bassist Fergie Fulton is simply too cool for school in his sharp black suit and shades.

But it doesn't stop the whole lot of them picking up their kit and wandering into the crowd to get up close and personal with the fans. As well as Willie's own bluesy rockabilly stylings, he sprinkles the set with a couple of classics from the old masters, Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash.

Lightnin' Willie is a proper gent who even asks the punters to raise a glass to his wife, but the lightning tag is no joke when he works the crowd up to a frenzied pitch with an awe-inspiring guitar riff. A touch of dark, a touch of light and a whole lot of blues perfection.

Fran Bardsley - Oxford Mail August 2007

To the uninitiated, Lightnin' Willie, in his cowboy boots, hand stitched suit and wide brimmed hat looks every inch the Texan country gentleman. But when the man announces himself with a piercing rebel yell before his first number and totes a Strat that looks more battered than an interviewed police suspect in TV's Live on Mars, you soon begin to realise that his reputation for whooping things up sure isn't unfounded.

Backed by the Poorboys - drummer Tony Burt, bass man Fergie Fulton of Groove Doctors fame and, maintaining the East Anglian connection, Ipswich harmonica wizard Giles King, Willie tore through his first two numbers like one of his home state tornadoes before slowing down a fraction for the western swing of "Walkin", in which Giles broke out into the first of many sustained solos.

The chemistry between harp and guitar was never more potent than on the rumba influenced "Crazy I Don't Mean Maybe", the sound of both instruments winding sinuously around each other. After a nip of Jack Daniel's, Willie took his first stroll into the audience on the aptly named "Come on Little Baby Take a Little Walk With Me". By this stage the place was rocking and Willie had no trouble coaxing the excited audience into full-throated choruses on "Don't Bite the Hand that Feeds You" that followed.

The moody "Whole Lot of Trouble" featured outstanding gutbucket harp from Giles, before two shortish country numbers took us to the grandstand finale. No Lightnin' Willie performance would be complete without some white hot slide guitar, and "Look What Love Can Do" saw the man switch to National Steel to provide just that. Spinning like a top, the dervish from Dallas plunged once more into the crowd, closely followed by Giles blowing at top note, laying down a groove that defied you to remain seated; it must have worked on Tony, snatching up a spare snare on a stand he and Fergie joined their companions in mayhem to finish the number encamped round the sound desk at the opposite end of the room. One of those magic moments.

There are probably better singers and guitarists than Willie in the blues world, and some of his material has a Grand Old Opry feel. So what? I call it blues with a twang. But the dry humoured Texan sure takes some beating when it comes to audience communication and showmanship. As for the Poorboys, Tony and Fergie were in step every inch of the way and, on this performance, Giles King's harmonica is right up there with the best.

Martin Byrom, Blues in Britain Magazine, July 2007

YOU know when you've been struck by lightning and the audience at The Maltings Arts Theatre in St Albans certainly felt it on Saturday night.

Lightnin' Willie and The Poorboys zigzagged their way on and off the stage to create a perfect coup de foudre.

The LA-based blues band, led by a swaggering stetson-wearing Texan - Lightnin' Willie Hermes - delivered a set full of energy and passion, with a driving beat and virtuoso performances on lead guitar from Willie himself and on harmonica from Ipswich boy Giles King.

His self-penned songs ranged form the wistful Where Does the Love Go? to the dark, brooding atmosphere of A Whole Lotta Trouble which made me wonder whether might have been his personal response to a post 9/11 world.

A legendary performer, winsome Willie takes no prisoners and he and his band are so tight you couldn't squeeze a cigarette paper between them. I would imagine it's easy to get jaded playing together night after night but this band like each other, love the music and appreciate an audience.

So much so that they dispense with the "us-and-them" nature of performance and actually mingle with the audience. Willie and his band ventured into the crowd in mid song, moving tables and chairs to get among us, jumping into vacant seats and keeping right on playing. At one point they even fell foul of the fire marshal who didn't like their rearrangement of the furniture but Willie took it all in his stride and continued to dazzle the spectators with an up close and personal style of guitar playing.

When the drummer finally got so lonely he took a piece of his kit to join them in the audience we finally had the spectacle of the entire band playing from our midst. The delighted crowd could say afterwards that they truly felt like part of the gig.

And as we left the auditorium, who was waiting for us outside in the foyer to see us off but.....yep it was Willie, the people's friend who, by the way, looks a whole lot better without his hat on. And I take my hat off to you Willie - and promoter Bob Ayre who is bringing these bi-monthly injections of blues music into the live music scene.

Mary Brosnan from Herts 24, May 2007

Lightnin' Willie and the Poorboys always give a good value but this gig was something else. They played a long first set, with the whole band going flat out - drummer Tony Burt (his dad plays for Chas and Dave) hitting a huge groove, spy pulling all the stops out on bass and Giles King excelling on harp (fusing big and Little Walter with Sonny Boy Williamson in a style all his own - willie calls him a world class player and he should know and the man himself Lightnin' Willie entertaining us from the tips of his fingers to the top of his hat.

Half time came and with a horrible 'pop' the electrics went down - the whole block was in darkness - but nothing daunted them - the whole band treated us to a wholly acoustic 2nd set of 45 minutes or so, not an easy thing to do but they did it with flair and considerable charm. Those present will not forget such big-hearted professionalism in a hurry.

Under the rather trying circumstances, this has to be gig of the year so far! How many performers could or would turn things around so triumphantly? Thanks to Willie and the boys in the band for a superb evening against all odds!

Dave Kingsbury

Lightnin' Willie and the Poorboys are a four-piece tonight, led by Texan Willie, vocal and guitar, complete with Stetson. They kicked off at a phenomenal pace and an excellent harp solo from Giles King enhanced this and several other numbers. The programme consisted mostly of originals: "The Train don't stop here Snymore", "Tears, Tears, Ttears", "Who's been Talkin' ", "Where does Love go", "Take a little Walk". At this point Willie picked up his national steel for a heartfelt story song "25 Dollars", which got a great reception, as did "Don't Bite the Hand that Feeds you". Lookin' out my Widow", "See the Sun Goin' Down" and "Couldn't do Nothing", a rockabilly blues, which rounded out a well received set.

Bob Groom Blues in Britain - October 2005

Lightnin' Willie and his stellar British band - Sam Kelly (drums), Giles King (harmonica) and Spy (bass) - were almost at the end of a mammoth UK tour starting in the middle of June and playing nearly 40 venues, including several major festivals. Tonight this penultimate gig was being recorded but any fears that Willie and the boys would play it safe proved unfounded. There was an air of celebration, with everyone on top form, and it is hard to imagine a more entertaining evening than this dramatic and enchanting blend of fabulous musicianship and sly comedy. Willie is a natural showman, from the tips of his stylish boots to his black Hopalong Cassidy hat and its tiny Jimi Hendrix badge. He played fiendishly well from the start, his affable Snooks Eaglin type voice and guitar - masterly rhythm work and ringing solos - drawing a powerful response from the band. "Three Cool Cats" towards the end of a marvellous first half somehow said it all, with classy three-way vocals and soft percussion like a velvet whisper. They looked justifiably pleased and saucers of creamy milk would have been fitting reward.

A relaxed shuffle "Don't Bite the Hand That Feeds You" opened the second half, followed by an inspired piece of clowning. Willie played chords of "Eyes in the Back of My Head" before answering a ringing phone and conducting a conversation with an imaginary Sean Connery (we'd had a perfect impersonation earlier) apparently calling to ask how the gig was going? After a hilarious update the number resumed, with a big funky groove and Giles showing complete tonal control amid all manner of whoops and hollers. Willie met the challenge in an electrifying whammy-bar driven solo, summoning the ghosts of Jimi and Stevie Ray with hints of James Burton and even Eddie Van Halen. Amongst other great numbers "Woke up this Morning (Found myself in Love)" was a tour-de-force of uncluttered space-creating ensemble playing, its relaxed good-time feel enhanced by a popping bass solo. A slow blues showcased Giles King's awesome Sonny Boy style acoustic harp before the fast shuffle "Couldn't Do Nothing" took us to Gene Vincent rockabilly heaven, with exotic Hawaiian touches on guitar and the rhythm section playing like a runaway train. With encores inevitable, Willie switched to National Steel on a tasty little solo country blues before the band returned for a barnstorming version of Muddy's "Can't be Satisfied", featuring a three man audience walkabout and Sam's expressive drum solo with Willie adding percussion on his metal guitar.

Dave Kingsbury (Blues in Britain Autumn 05)

Quite by chance, and courtesy of a freebie Council newsletter passed on to me by my father-in-law, I came to know of a Blues Festival being held in Queens Gardens, Hull. No details were given, except that it lasted 4 hours beginning at noon, and it was free! And so Joan and I repaired to our beloved home city, and under threatening skies gathered with a few hundred others on hastily strewn seats in the historic gardens long since burying the once bustling Queens Dock of this great port's former fishing industry. Mid-afternoon the headliners Lightnin' Willie & The Poorboys were warmly welcomed to the Mick Ronson stage; a small canvas covered brick platform erected in honour of that famed son of Hull and one time guitarist/Spider from Mars. Mick would have been proud of what followed as Texan Willie Hermes and his fine band rocked the city. Immediately the skies turned blue and the sun beat down on a happy crowd. Willie complemented the organisers for setting up the even, took credit for the abrupt weather change and judged that the "price" was indeed right. This is a great live act, showcasing the talents of a band whose blues based good-time music was admirably suited to the outdoor min-festival atmosphere. Songs were drawn from all of their three studio albums, and really came alive on stage. As a guitarist Lightnin' Willie exudes a Texan swagger and moves, once perfected by Stevie Ray Vaughan. His chosen instuments were a Telecaster, Gibson and National Steel: all played with a consummate relaxed style. The tunes included "I can't be Satisfied", "Baby Please don't Go" as well as originals like "Eyes in the Back of my Head". The band all left the stage during an extended improvised segment, wandering amongst the audience and soloing on National Steel, harp, and a rhythm section comprising bass, snare and the back of Lightnin' Willie's guitar. Fans gathered for photos and enthused in the humour and friendly vibe pervading the sun-drenched crowd. Drunks, kids and blues aficionados mixed happily. Afterwards the band signed shirts and CD's before dashing of to another gig in the elsewhere in the evening as part of their nationwide tour. I bought CD's, and chatted briefly to the bandleader, who said that a new CD is being worked up for distribution next year. The studio CD's don't entirely do justice to this fine live band who you should go and see whenever you get the chance.

Noggin in BluesMatters! Magazine

What this guy doesn't know about how to give a good show isn't worth knowing! His engaging voice has an honesty that recalls Snooks Eaglin and, like Snooks, LW employs a wide range of musical styles. Covers included SRV's "Pride and Joy", the Stones' "Not Fade Away", the Grateful Dead's "Lovelight" (cor, 2nd version in a week!) and Peter Green's sublime "Loved Another Woman". None of these were mere copies, however, as LW always does it his way while keeping much of an original number's feel and atmosphere. And what an atmosphere he created! He's a fabulous guitarist, never hurrying and yet hitting a ferocious swing that propels his band into the stratosphere. Oh yeah, the band ... basically, the cream of Britain's players ... Giles King blowing awesome harp, Spy hitting a wonderful groove on bass and Franck Rouleau never missing a trick on drums. A particular highlight was "Don't Let Go", an insanely catchy piece of stop-go jive that just got better and better, nobody wanted it to stop. Another special moment was his walkabout with a softly-played National Steel guitar - you could have heard a pin drop when he sang and Giles played (both unamplified) from the back of the room ... and they stepped away from the mikes at the end of the song to repeat the trick. An already warm feeling was enhanced by affable humour from LW, who at one point noticed le patron's resemblance to a pirate king! A definite contender for Gig of 2004, methinks

Dave Kingsbury

WHEN Lightnin' Willie Hermes casually announced from the stage at Barrels, that 'this is a band that plays American music', he missed one important point. He forgot to say that they pretty much cover ALL the bases. Summing up a night spent in the company of Willie, Giles King, Spy, and Franck Rouleau is like trying to explain what it's like to be caught up in a hurricane. After the maelstrom has passed, you have to ask yourself did that really?

The night got off to a truly rock n roll beginning with the band stuck in traffic. But where justice delayed is justice denied this delay only served to heighten the expectations of an audience that travelled from north, south and even offshore.

Willie and the boys take the stage in much the same way as a marauding army takes a city. A 'how ya doin', an uneccessary apology for the lateness and then the stun grenade of Rhythm Oil was lobbed into the mix. Resistance was useless, surrender unconditional when faced with the guitar of Lightnin Willie, the harp of Suffolk-born Giles King whose 'other band' Hucklebuck are already casusing waves of their own - little wonder when amongst their number is a harp player who seems to draw on the devil himself for inspiration- French drummer Franck Rouleau who never missed a beat (or a trick) all night and the bass of Spy, who confirmed the impression made on the band's previous visit that genius may be an overworked word but it may just apply in his case.

"Eyes In The Back Of My Head" was the song of a band who only knows one way to go, straight ahead, full speed. It's rock n roll took us back to the 50s', to the kind of 'joint' your 'mama' warned you about. Whether they played blues, country or rock n roll, the need to play live was all-consuming. The night was a three-hour love affair with tracks like Stevie Ray Vaughan's "I'm Crying" and Peter Green's "Loved Another One" acting as Cupid's arrows. With songs like "Don't Let Her Go", the four showed that they are all natural showman, they love being up there. It would be a bad day for fish stocks if any of the four took up angling, they played the audience with skill and artistry. During "20 Flight Rock" the urge to jive became almost irresistible. The first half drew to a close with Dylan's "Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum". As the song built layer on layer it showed a collective strength, any weak link would have been cruelly exposed, there wasn't one. This is a rock solid band. The break was ushered in by some sweet Texas swing, all that was missing from Thinking Of You was a campfire and about 10,000 acres of prairie.

Refreshed after a break (the audience as much as the band) it was now time to get down to some 'serious boogie'. If the first set was white-hot, the second threatened to take the paint off the walls. The floor shook, the walls rattled and the band rolled on. After an opening 'sandwich' of "Leaning Out My Window" and "What I Say" (a sincere tribute to Ray Charles) things began to ratchet up. The bluesy "I Woke Up This Morning And I Found Myself In Love", was as long as its title suggests but the roars that greeted it, suggested that it was over too quickly, no-one was going anywhere.

The 'moment of truth' however came in an unexpected way. The band left the stage and, little did we know but Lightnin Willie went with them and we were privileged to hear Willie Hermes, true blues man. "Cryin" came straight from his heart and soul. He stood in front of us and just picked his way through a song which grew and grew until it filled the room. You could see reflected in his eyes the spirit of Muddy Waters and Johnny Cash, with them Willie Hermes is a fellow traveller. But the band weren't finished, it wasn't that they were reluctant to leave the stage, they just flat refused to, not that anyone was asking them to. In an encore which was longer than many performances, Rouleau, like some latter-day musical Lazarus picked up his drum and walked - right through the crowd. A conglomerate of Muddy Waters' Satisified, Couldn't Do Nothing and finally "Bye, Bye" brought to an end a night that redefined live music. These boys make Springsteen look like a shirker.

You can bring together talented musicians but you can't make them a band. These four may only meet up sporadically but musically they've known each other all their lives. The great news is that by his promised return Lightnin' Willie will have recorded a new album, The End Of The Street, which will feature the talents of Giles King. My advice is that they start reinforcing the studio now Lightnin's about to strike.

Reveiw (with thanks to Michael Mee) Blues Matters 2004

I CAME expecting a blues band – I have to admit I knew nothing about either Lightnin' Willie or the Poor Boys prior to the gig - but left having taken part in an experience that I will probably never forget, neither will the other lucky souls who were there.

It was as if the James gang had rode into town, shot it up a bit and then rode of again leaving shell-shocked townspeople not quite sure of what they had witnessed, who were those masked men? All that was missing was a barroom brawl where the old cowpoke, the one with no teeth, gets thrown through the window closely followed by a chair (which was lucky as there aren't any windows) and somebody rushing in and shouting 'Gold'. To say it was a toe-tapping evening would be to miss the other parts of the body that shook, almost uncontrollably, at times.

Sadly Johnny Cash - to whom Lightnin Willie paid fitting tribute with a moving rendition of Fulsom Prison Blues is in poor health but if the 'Man In Black' torch has to be passed on, then Lightnin' Willie (I didn't discover his real name it seemed irrelevant, Lightnin' Willie fitted perfectly) is a worthy successor.

His hard riding, hard drinking style of country/rock blues is the soundtrack to the opening of a moonshine still, it's uncompromising, unyielding and almost primal. If you weren't an outlaw before then a night in his company could make the prospect appealing. With the lead work shared, perhaps not equally, between the guitar of Willie and the harmonica of Giles King, a warm Barrels quickly became a furnace. As Willie and the UK branch of the Poor Boys launched into (as in rocket) Couldn't Do Nothing and Eyes In The Back Of My Head there was no preamble just a Texan drawled 'howdy' and off we went. I realized quickly why they were called the Poor Boys, they had to keep up with Willie all night.

In fact this is the perfect time to mention the Poor Boys, all have been with Willie for some time and all are extremely talented musicians in their own right. Anchoring proceedings was drummer Franck Rouleau and this must be one of those rare occasions when if the drummer had been any less talented then he would have been invisible. Bass player Spy (the only name I could get from him) was, by common consent, quite possibly the best bass player to grace Barrels, as well as providing the foundation to the night he supplied shade, texture and colour. Almost imperceptably his contribution became more and more noticeable. His finest moments came not during his 'solo' on the 'meet the band' Can't Be Satisified. by then we already knew how good he was. His moment came on I'm Crying and Don't Cry Mama, he played beautifully while mayhem was being wreaked around him by Willie and Giles King.

But this was night of rock n roll, from the return to the 50s with Take A Little Walk, the funky, bluesy, Whole World of Trouble and a quite staggering Muddy Waters segue of Sail On/Can't Get No Grinding. At this point the night's efforts reached a description-defying crescendo.

But you tend to find that the best musicians always have another facet to them, the ferocity is underpinned by a gentler side and while Whole Lot Of Trouble was more laid back it was dark and slightly menacing, a Micky Spillane story told in song.

But how good a guitarist was Lightnin' Willie? The answer is very good, there will be a million ways to play the intro to Sail On, this one stopped and very nearly dropped the audience where they stood.

Throughout the night screaming guitar followed screaming guitar, Willie played as he performed and by the end there was nothing left in the locker. As with Spy, Lightnin Willie's crowning achievement was not the loudest song and probably not the most difficult it arrived when he wandered around the audience with his steel guitar improvising a bluegrass tune, even stopping to pour a beer. It was not that he did it well – the playing that is - his musical talent was never in doubt. it was the amount of pure love he poured into it. However this was not an unrequited love, his guitar responded as a willing partner.

This was never going to be case of leaving the best to last but the encore of Pride and Joy and Bye Bye left the audience happy and slightly deafened, the perfect way to take the memory of Lightnin' Willie and the Poor Boys home. Let's hope that Lightnin' strikes twice.

Michael Mee (with thanks to).

Back on the main stage things were livening up with some fiery Texas blues' n boogie from Lightnin' Willie and the Poorboys. Willie was backed by the musicians from the "Luck as the Devil" recording sessions: the excellent Giles King on harp, live wire Spy on bass and Franck Rouleau on drums. This meant that they had the songs from the album off pat, and they worked together very well on the other stuff too. Willie certainly knows how to work an audience, and had the dance floor packed. At one point, there were even more band members in the audience than there were on stage, since they were using radio pick-ups. This did not always help the sound, however, but overall it was a highly entertaining show and a very hard act to follow.

Mike Mager (Blues in Britain)

A charismatic character, resplendent in full western with one of the largest Stetsons I've ever seen, Willie demonstrated his virtuosity by playing a National Steel, Dobro, and a more conventional axe throughout the three spot four hour long set. Long standing number two in the band, "Hurricane Jake" Fitzgerald was a hard blowing harp master in the style of James Harmon, Rod Piazza etc. with obvious influences of George Smith and Little Walter phrasing. He also complimented Willie's soulful lead vocal with his own brand of tough blues-shouting. The band is rounded out by Thom Mooney on drums and Charlie Diaz on bass -- both of whom added excellent and essential ingredients to the band. Willie's choice of material is sometimes surprising, besides versions of such Rock &Roll classics as Cochran's "Twenty Flight Rock," Holly's "Not Fade Away," and Presley's "Little Sister," he gave us a superb version of Roy Hamilton's "Don't Let Go" (how many blues bands do you know that do Roy Hamilton numbers?). Excellent versions of Muddy's "Can't Get No Grindin' and "Long Distance Call" were complimented by lesser known numbers such as "Cryin' Won't Help You," and "Its A Man Down There," a tribute to Bob Wills, the self penned "I'm Walkin," whilst the ballad "Thinking Of You" got the smoochers on the floor. As Willie announced -- "this is American music."

Another point in the band's favor is that numbers were rarely more than 3-4 minutes long (are you listening all you guitar thrashers out there? 3-4 minutes is all it takes!.) With a couple of albums and several Euro tours under his belt, Lightnin' Willie and the Poor Boys are not new to the scene, but are well overdue for greater recognition. Willie told me they love playing the U.K. and at present are looking for a new record deal. So c'mon all you promoters and label owners, what are you waiting for!

Tony Watson