"The blues expresses the whole range of human emotions and has always been rooted in personal struggles and societal challenges, so it will always be relevant. I think as a blues artist it’s important to embrace the heritage of the genre, but also to find your own voice within it and bring something new to the table."

Will Wilde: The Blues Is Still Alive

Will Wilde is a force to be reckoned with - a phenomenal harmonica player with a voice to match. Will's intense harmonica style steals the spotlight from the traditional blues rock guitar, with a sound that owes as much to Gary Moore as it does to Sonny Boy Williamson. "I’m always looking to make new sounds with the harmonica, pushing its boundaries, trying to change people’s perception of it.”  In fact Will has gone one step further and created his own signature "Wilde Tuned" harmonicas so he can play licks that weren’t possible before. “They enable me to hold my own with any blues rock guitarist”. Will comes from a musical family.  “Music was always around me" he says. “Blues, soul and classic rock were the soundtrack to my childhood.” His father is an avid music fan, his grandfather was a wartime jazz & blues pianist and his sister, Dani Wilde, is an acclaimed blues singer and guitarist in her own right.    

(Will Wilde / Photo by Rob Blackham)

Will gained popularity on Youtube with his mind blowing harmonica covers of classic rock guitar solos, such as Lynyrd Skynyrd's Free Bird, which racked up over 3.5 million views, and helped him gain his 94K+ subscribers. These videos brought him to the attention of blues rock guitar legend Walter Trout, who invited him to play on his album 'Broken', which went to number one on the Billboard Blues Album Chart. To return the favour, Walter played guitar on the title track and first single from Will's upcoming album 'The Blues Is Still Alive', set for release on February 28, 2025, via VizzTone Records.

Interview by Michael Limnios                      Archive: Will Wilde, 2012 Interview

How has the Blues and Rock music influenced your views of the world? What moment changed your life the most?

My earliest memory of the blues is hearing a Chess Records compilation that my Dad used to play when I was a little kid. It had songs by Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Chuck Berry etc. The stand out track for me was Sonny Boy Williamson’s “Help Me”. Something about that song always resonated with me, and that’s what inspired me to pick up the harmonica.

How do you describe your sound, music philosophy and songbook? What's the balance in music between technique (skills) and soul/emotions?

Someone once described my harmonica playing as Sonny Boy Williamson meets Gary Moore. I think that’s a pretty good description. The songs are all rooted in the blues; most of the tracks on the new album are 12 bars, but I play with more of a rock intensity than most other harmonica players. My approach with this album is similar to how someone like Gary Moore, Walter Trout or Jeff Healey would approach a blues album. People often mistake my harmonica for a lead guitar. Vocally my biggest influence is Paul Rodgers (Free/Bad Company). 

For me soul and emotion always comes first before technique. With the blues especially, you have to ‘mean it’ otherwise it just doesn’t say anything. Of course, I have worked on my technique and speed etc., but when I’m recording or performing I’m not thinking about that, I just try to channel my emotions in to the music.

"I hope that more organic forms of music such as rock and blues will have a resurgence in the mainstream, you don’t really hear bands in the charts any more, I think there will be a backlash and it will come back around again eventually though." (Will Wilde and Walter Trout as they remind us that the blues is not just a genre, but a living, breathing force that continues to inspire and connect us all / Photo by Photo by John Bull - Rockrpix)

Currently you’ve one release with Walter Trout. How did that relationship come about? Do you have any interesting stories about the making of the new album Blues Is Still Alive?

Walter is amazing. I’ve been familiar with his music since I was about 10 years old and had a CD called “The Ultimate Blues Collection” with his song “Sweet as a Flower” on it. I first got to meet him a few years ago when I opened for him in Worthing. He heard me playing from backstage and invited me to play to sit in on his set. I sat in with him a couple more times after that when he was touring the UK, once at the Islington Assembly Hall in London, and once at The 1865 in Southampton. After the Southampton show he asked if I’d like to play on his new record, so I put some harp on his song “Bleed” from his latest album “Broken”.  I told him that I was about to make a new album myself and he offered to play on it, so I wrote the song “Blues Is Still Alive” for him to play on. This ended up being the title track of the new album.  It’s about how the blues is just as relevant today as it’s ever been. 

Why do you think that the UK Blues music continues to generate such a devoted following, since 1960?

It's part of our history, so I think there will always be a following here as long as there are artists playing it. 

What do you miss most nowadays from the music of the past? What are your hopes and fears for the future of?

I think a lot of music today, pop music especially, lacks the soul and the dynamics of the past. I think this is just because everything is auto-tuned and quantized now. The drums are usually programmed, and a lot of the sounds are synthesized or sampled, so you loose the human element, I think that’s why most of it doesn’t move me in the same way. Even the best pop singers are auto-tuned nowadays just because that’s the sound people are used to hearing, everything has to be ‘perfect’. 

I hope that more organic forms of music such as rock and blues will have a resurgence in the mainstream, you don’t really hear bands in the charts any more, I think there will be a backlash and it will come back around again eventually though.

"For me soul and emotion always comes first before technique. With the blues especially, you have to ‘mean it’ otherwise it just doesn’t say anything. Of course, I have worked on my technique and speed etc., but when I’m recording or performing I’m not thinking about that, I just try to channel my emotions in to the music." (Will Wilde, phenomenal harmonicist with voice to match / Photo by Edoardo Tomasi)

What are some of the most important lessons you have learned from your experience in the music paths?

I think it’s important to stay true to yourself and not try to please everybody. You can’t please everybody! So just make the music that you enjoy and that feels authentic to you and hopefully other people will like it too. I think it’s important as an artist to keep your creative control and not rush in to signing any record or management deals, I’ve been tied in to a contract in the past that really restricted me and it was soul destroying.

Why is it important to preserve and spread the blues? What is the role of blues music in today’s society?

The blues expresses the whole range of human emotions and has always been rooted in personal struggles and societal challenges, so it will always be relevant. I think as a blues artist it’s important to embrace the heritage of the genre, but also to find your own voice within it and bring something new to the table. 

Life is more than just music, is there any other field that has influence on your life and music?

I like to travel and explore different countries and cultures. I just got back from visiting India which was amazing. My other hobbies are lifting weights and riding motorcycles (although I don’t do this much anymore after breaking my neck and back in a crash in 2019) I’m a bit of a vinyl junkie, I’ve got loads of old records and vintage hi-fi. Aside from playing with my band I teach harmonica via my online courses, run a YouTube channel and sell Wilde-Tuned harmonicas, so it doesn’t leave time for much else.

Will Wilde - Home

(Will Wilde / Photo by Philip James)