Will Kimbrough

Will Kimbrough earned his primary recognition through appearances in the CD credits of prominent country and rock acts spanning the 1990s and 2000s. Both his independent recordings and group projects earned praise from reviewers on either side of the Atlantic.

Industry insiders first noticed him as the lead vocalist of Will & the Bushmen, a college rock outfit assembled in the unexpected setting of Mobile, AL. The band cultivated a following across the Southeastern frat-party circuit and issued the self-produced Gawk in 1985.

SBK Records signed the group after witnessing their strong live performances, resulting in the self-titled Will & the Bushmen album of 1989. The musicians relocated to Nashville to cut their third release, Blunderbuss, which appeared in 1991 and produced a minor hit single before the band dissolved following SBK’s bankruptcy.

Kimbrough next assembled the Bis-Quits alongside Tommy Womack of Government Cheese and Mike Grimes of Bare Jr.; the trio delivered a self-titled set of sharp roots rock on John Prine’s independent Oh Boy Records in 1993. His widely admired guitar abilities soon led to steady session and touring work alongside Kim Richey, Todd Snider, Rodney Crowell, Steve Forbert, and Amy Rigby.

Kimbrough completed his debut solo effort, the shimmering pop-flavored rock collection titled This, on his own Waxy Silver Records in 2000. Later the same year he made the Bushmen’s Gawk available on CD for the first time. Amid continued session and road commitments, he finished his second album, Home Away, issued on Waxy Silver in 2002.

Thereafter he maintained a steady output that included Americanitis in 2006 and EP in 2007. A skilled songwriter and musician shaped by the legacies of John Lennon and Alex Chilton, Kimbrough remains an asset to any project.