Webb Wilder is just different…different in a great way. He looks like he dropped out of a 50’s black and white detective show. The song peaked at #16 in the Mainstream Rock Songs in 1992.
His real name is John “Webb” McMurry and according to wiki “The Webb Wilder character was created in 1984 for a short comedy film created by friend called “Webb Wilder Private Eye.” The character was a backwoods private detective who fell out of the 1950s and happened to also be a musician. The short appeared on the television variety show “Night Flight.”[Whatever it is it works.
Webb Wilder’s quote when asked what kind of music he plays.
“I came to Nashville as kind of a hunch, an educated guess that it would be a good place for me. Rock ‘n’ roll and country have more in common than not. We don’t have the typical Nashville country sound, but we thought we could use that to our advantage. It’s sorta like we’re a roots band for rock ‘n’ roll fans and a rock band for roots fans” he also adds these phrases…“Swampadelic”, “Service-station attendant music”, “Uneasy listening”, “Psychobilly”
Psychobilly….Now that is a cool description.
By 1991 I was walking through a street fair in Nashville and there he was playing with his band. He had just put out an album called Doodad that got some local and national airplay. His music is a mixture of rock/country/rockabilly/punk and anything else he can throw in. The man has the gift of gab also.
I’ve seen him a couple of times in the 90s and he can bring the house down. He did get some MTV and VHI play nationally in 1991-92. His other known songs are my favorite “Meet Your New Landlord,” Poolside, and “Human Cannonball”. He has had some great backing bands. He also did a great cover of Steve Earle’s The Devil’s Right Hand….
I’m including my favorite song by him called Meet Your New Landlord and of course Tough it Out.
Tough It Out
Momma used to say “Now, baby
Don’t ya cry cry cry”
She turned on the radio
And fed me rock and roll
Lullaby-by-by
Well it got under my skin
And man it pulled me in
’cause it was strong strong strong
I hit the ground runnin’
And let me tell ya somethin’
I was gone gone gone
Get offa my line
’cause I’m comin’ through
I’m aimin’ high
And I’m willin’ to shoot
I won’t bow, I won’t bend
I won’t break, I’ll tough it out
I won’t budge, I won’t deal
I won’t change, I’ll tough it out
(Tough it out) Keep rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’
‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out
(Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead
No compromise, I’ll tough it out
Now I’ve got somethin’
For ever man woman
And child child child
We don’t leave the hall
’til they’re bouncin’ off the walls
Goin’ wild wild wild
It might happen any day
Might be light years away
I don’t mind mind mind
We got our head down, ears back
Headed for the barn
Feelin’ fine fine fine
Get offa my line
’cause I’m comin’ through
I’m aimin’ high
And I’m willin’ to shoot
I won’t bow, I won’t bend
I won’t break, I’ll tough it out
I won’t budge, I won’t deal
I won’t change, I’ll tough it out
(Tough it out) Keep rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’
‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out
(Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead
No compromise, I’ll tough it out(Tough it out) (tough it out)
You might catch me down
But I won’t stay caught
Now I might not sell
But I can’t be bought
I won’t bow, I won’t bend
I won’t break, I’ll tough it out
I won’t budge, I won’t deal
I won’t change, I’ll tough it out
(Tough it out) Keep Rockin’ (tough it out) No stoppin’
‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out
(Tough it out) Straight ahead (tough it out) knock ’em dead
No compromise, I’ll tough it out
I won’t bow, I won’t bend
I won’t break, I’ll tough it out
I won’t budge, I won’t deal
I won’t change, I’ll tough it out
Tough it out
‘Til I win the prize, I’ll tough it out
Tough it out
No compromise, I’ll tough it out
…
Nice music and Swamp Psychobilly always works for me.
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I love the accordian flourishes in the first song.
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Yes I like that also…he is a different kind of performer…he is big around Nashville…he straddles that line of rock/country/punk, and cow punk.
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I’ve heard the second song. Quite a lot harder rockin’. Good stuff!
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I love Webb Wilder. I don’t have any of his records but my husband and I used to see him around town when we first moved to Nashville in ’87 and ’88. Let’s see, there was him and Jason and the Scorchers and Jimmy Hall and Lucinda Williams…they were the Alternative Nashville artists of the time, except Jimmy Hall; he was just good. They all were…Oh yeah, Steve Earl. He was another one.
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I always thought Jason and the Scorchers might make it but it just didn’t happen. I was hoping you would read this today…I wanted to know if you remembered him.
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Ha! He was big around this region back in the day. I thought Jason and the Scorchers were too. I mean, I consider them successful. They got a lot of rotation on MTV with Golden Ball and Chain and it got played a lot on the AOR stations in Texas. They did a really fantastic version Take Me Home Country Roads.
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Oh I have to check that out! I liked their version of 19th nervous breakdown.
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I’ve never heard of him! Psychobilly kind of applies to The Gun Club too.
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He is interesting and a very good entertainer…. I agree…I just listened to some of the Gun Club and it has the same feel.
Another band that kinda goes into some of this is Green On Red.
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I don’t recall having heard of Webb Wilder before – “dropped out of a 50’s black and white detective show” sounds like a good description based on the cover photo. The music sounds like fun as well!
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He is a rocker with that southern gab to him…a fun guy.
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Rockabilly! Love it. I’ve never heard of him but, I like him. And, he reminds me of someone else…maybe the singing style reminds me of Wall of Voodoo (Mexican Radio).
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He is really cool…just a cool 50’s type guy.
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A passing acquaintance with Webb but any self respecting rocker like CB has got to like him.
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If you ever get a chance…don’t know if he tours outside of the south much now…but he is worth seeing.
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I’m sure he is. I eat up all that rockabilly tinged music.
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