biography
Dearl Guest - Lead Guitar
Josh Pinkham - Lead Guitar
Richard Redfearn - Bass Guitar
Bum White - Drummer, Percussion
Smokin' Joe - Vocals, Rythm guitar
"Smokin' Joe" was born in Beaumont Texas, the land of Johnny and Edgar Winters. He grew up in Lufkin and Nacogdoches, two towns in East Texas that are separated by the Angelina River, where he would go to hear Johnny play "across the river".
Anyone who knows Joe, will agree that what you see is what you get. He rarely meets a person he doesn't like and while he appreciates the many genres of music, his own music expresses the influences that the classic rock and southern blues music he listened to growing up in East Texas had on him.
To those that know him, he is bigger than life and whether he is singing, speaking or laughing, once you hear his voice, you always know it. His voice has a resonance and power that is as strong as Joe's love of life.
Joe paints a lyrical masterpiece in every song he writes and composes and arranges his own music. He is a perfectionist when it comes to his music with meticulous detail concerning every word in the lyrics, every note, every sound or effect that goes into every song he records. He will put more hours into recording one song than a lot of bands put into recording a whole cd..... it takes him many hours to get one song exactly the way he "hears" it.
Although FIRE 'N ICE and BORN IN THE COUNTRY are included for play, they have not had a final mix yet, so please keep that in mind if you give them a listen. His 10 song BANG BANG project should be completed in the fall of '07 and there are 10 more songs already written for a follow up CD some of which are as comedic as they are smokin'.
The current title cut, BANG BANG addresses Joe's particularly "southern man" view of the threat of the loss of our rights as Americans, to bear arms, fly the historical stars n' bars that many of our southern forefathers and brothers died under, and own our land.
His arrangements are geared toward showcasing the very talented guitarists that are a part of his 'no good frens'. The musicians that play Joe's music are anything BUT 'no good'.
Dearl Guest, Josh Pinkham, Richard Redfearn and Bum White are some of the hottest players in the northeast corner of Texas. We are primarily and foremost a guitar show band featuring the deadly duo, the guitar maniacs, Dearl Guest and Josh Pinkham, otherwise known as Dearl "Buzzard Fly" Guest and, Josh "Kong" Pinkham.
Josh is a true prodigy and a natural performer. Words cannot describe the power and creativity by which he plays.
Dearl Guest is a master of his craft and an accomplished guitar instructor. Having dedicated his life to guitar, he plays with great passion and fire, that can only be understood when you hear him.
Both Dearl Guest and Josh Pinkham were born to play guitar and will put on a guitar show that will rock the freckles off a red headed kid!
Bum White is an undisputed heavyweight champion on drums and percussion. The man is a clock. His roots run deep through solid rock and have grabbed metal. He is an absolute powerhouse.
Richard "Killer" Redfearn, also a fine guitarist, is a bassist personified.
How the band started: "I was asked to do my original material at a benefit for a friend of mine with only 5 weeks to prepare. So I called up all my no good friends and they all said "yep, we'll do it". They had such a blast with the material, that they took to it like a bass after a june bug. After the benefit was over, they all unanimously agreed that we should continue the project of original material I had written over the past 5 years.
They are the hottest players in the Four States area in my opinion. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect band. That's how "Smokin' Joe Thunder & his no good frens" were born.
I am in the process of recording a 10 song cd to be released in the fall of 2007 titled "Bang Bang" and have the material written for another 10 song cd to follow. The majority of the songs are more along the lines of "Born In The Country" and "Bang Bang" with lots of rowdy lyrics and smokin' guitar work.
I compose all of the songs, write the lyrics, do the arrangments, vocals and play the acoustic electric guitar and my name is Joe and I’m an East Texas Country Boy..... but you can call me Mr. Thunder."
A special thanks goes to Mark Kerr who played all of the lead guitar on Lone Star Angel, and the second lead on Bang Bang. On March 13th 2007 Blues Rocker Mark Kerr, was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. Mark is now the Ambassador to the blues for the state of Louisiana.