Info
Artist Profile
Music Genre
Blues
Profile Info
Name
Brilleaux
City
Waipukurau
Bio
B
rilleaux are an original, 4 piece, British-style rhythm and blues band formed in Tauranga, New Zealand in 1999 and in 2016 still have the same original band members.
Graham Clark:
Lead vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Harmonica
Bruce Rolands:
Lead Guitar
Brian Franks:
Bass Guitar
Ian (Beano) Gilpin:
Drums, BV’s
Brilleaux were formed specifically to play a variation of up-tempo British Rhythm & Blues not common on the music scene in the southern hemisphere, most blues bands opting to play the more classic Texas or Chicago style blues. The name Brilleaux was chosen as a tribute to the late Dr Feelgood vocalist Lee Brilleaux.
What is British Rhythm and Blues?
British Rhythm and Blues began to evolve back in the early 1960’s, when British kids started hearing American blues for the first time, and played their own interpretation of the genre. American Blues master Junior Wells is famous for saying :
“These British kids want to play the blues so bad . . . and they do!”
What Junior didn’t realise was that in playing the American blues “so bad”, they actually created a new music genre that spawned the famous British Beat invasion of America with bands such as “the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Dave Clark Five, The Yardbirds, Johnny Kid and the Pirates, Manfred Man, The Pretty Things - to name a few!”
Brilleaux play hard, driving, fast and tough R&B. Imagine Green Day playing Rolling Stones, or Nirvana playing Muddy Waters songs!
No slow renditions of old blues classics here - just energetic, sweaty rock n roll with screaming harmonica.