He's Got Rhythm: Bill Wyman's Post-Rolling Stones Career Gets Boxed

When Bill Wyman took the stage on August 25, 1990 at London’s Wembley Stadium alongside his fellow Rolling Stones, few in the audience could have predicted that the evening would turn out to be Wyman’s final stand with the group he joined in 1962. That final night found Wyman truly going out on top; the Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle tour marked a return to touring for the group after a seven-year hiatus, and was among the most commercially successful concert tours ever. Word on Wyman’s decision to leave the band wasn’t confirmed by frontman Mick Jagger for over two years. When Jagger let the word out in December 1992, it was only after he and Charlie Watts had met with Wyman privately to determine whether he’d reconsider. But Wyman’s departure from the biggest rock and roll band on Earth didn’t mean that the bassist, songwriter and vocalist intended to abandon music. In addition to a sporadic solo career, Wyman founded Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings with musical partner Terry Taylor, and the blues/rock band released its first album, Struttin’ Our Stuff, in October 1997. Now, that album and its first three studio follow-ups are getting the box set treatment from Proper American Records, the domestic offshoot of the U.K.’s Proper Records, on October 25.

The five-disc Collectors’ Edition Box Set brings together the four studio albums from Struttin’ Our Stuff through 2001’s Double Bill, one of which is a double-disc set. (One more studio effort, Just for a Thrill, arrived in 2004, and falls out of the purview of the new collection.) When Wyman departed the Stones, he made it clear that he would be playing music on his own terms and with company of his own choosing. So the Rhythm Kings recordings play host to a great number of rock’s finest musicians. Among the guests are Eric Clapton, Gary Brooker of Procol Harum, Mark Knopfler, Peter Frampton, Paul Carrack, Chris Rea, Ray Cooper, and Nicky Hopkins. Another former Stone, Mick Taylor, also got in on the act, and there’s even a special appearance from George Harrison on (what else?) slide guitar.

These special guests joined the core members of the Rhythm Kings: Wyman, frequent Roger Waters collaborator/drummer Graham Broad, singer/guitarist Andy Fairweather-Low (who had joined Wyman in a previous “side project,” Willie and the Poor Boys), guitarist Albert Lee, vocalist Beverley Skeete, horn players Frank Mead and Nick Payn, pianist Geraint Watkins and guitarist Terry Taylor, who collaborated on much of the albums’ original material with Wyman. The final member of the Rhythm Kings is a bona fide British legend, Georgie Fame. Organist Fame rose to prominence with the Blue Flames, inspired in equal parts by blues, jazz and ska. He may be best remembered for his pop singles “Yeh Yeh” (1965) and 1967’s “The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde,” but his recordings encompass a wide variety of styles and genres. This musical flexibility made him a perfect match for the Rhythm Kings; in recent years, he also has played often with Van Morrison.

The press release for The Collectors’ Edition Box Set details Wyman’s decision to retire from The Rolling Stones and form The Rhythm Kings. Hit the jump to continue with that story, as well as the track listing and discographical information!

As he looks back on the last 20 years of his life and career, the affable, perennially youthful Wyman peppers his conversation with wry laughter as understated as his playing style, onstage demeanor and personality. “In ’91, the Stones had a big business meeting,” he begins. “They were about to sign the contract with Virgin, and I said, ‘I won’t be doing that, ’cause I’m leaving.’ ‘No you’re not,’ they said. ‘You can’t leave.’ ‘Well, I am.’ Bless them, they didn’t believe me for two years; they left the door open until they were ready to go out on the ’94 tour. And in late ’93, Charlie and Mick came ’round and said, ‘Is it definite? Have you left?’ I said, ‘I left two years ago.’”

“So then I thought, maybe I should do some music on the side, but not heavy; I don’t want to have to worry about charts, image and all that crap. It’s not gonna be a career move — I’m just gonna do it for the fun. I got together with my mate and right-hand man Terry Taylor, and I said, ‘Let’s do something.’ We were gonna just do a blues duo and call ourselves the Dirt Boys, and we started to rough up ideas. And then, when we decided to go into the studio just for a couple of days, we thought it might be nice to have a drummer, and, of course, a piano player would be good. So I just phoned up a few mates.”

His first calls were to Fairweather-Low (who’d been part of Wyman’s ’80s group, Willie & the Poor Boys, the stylistic forerunner of Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings), Graham Broad and pianist Dave Hartley, who went on to work with Sting. “We went into the studio, and I said, ‘We’ll cut anything that meets my fancy,’” he continues. “I dug out a list of early music that I liked and thought might be good to do. It ranged from Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Fats Waller, Ray Charles, into the early rock ’n’ roll, like Louie Jordan and Cab Calloway — all the way back to the ’30s and upwards. So we went in for three days and cut eight tracks.”

The rest is Rhythm Kings history. The albums reflect the band’s cross-section of material in varying styles. Both originals and cover versions touch on elements of blues, reggae, soul, gospel, early rock and roll, and even the sound of seventies rock. “Whether it’s been the right direction or not, I don’t know,” Wyman has commented. “But I’ve enjoyed it.”

Whether you’re a fan of roots music or The Rolling Stones, there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy it, too. Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings: Collectors’ Edition Box Set hits stores on October 25 from Proper American Records. (Fitting label name for such a release, no?) The complete track listing of the original albums follows along with a pre-order link! There is no word yet on any bonus material included.

Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings, Collectors’ Edition Box Set (Proper American, 2011)

CD 1: Struttin’ Our Stuff (originally released as Velvel 79708, 1998 (U.S.))