My Tears - Big Walter Price & Albert Collins

Big Walter Price (2 August 1914 − 7 March 2012) was an American blues singer, songwriter and pianist. He moved to San Antonio where he released his first song called "Calling Margie" in 1955. In 1955 he moved to Houston, where he lived until his death. In 1960s he singned with Peacock Records and released several of his singles. His song "Pack Fair and Square" was covered by the J. Geils Band on the J. Geils Band album.  












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Houston Blues Legend Big Walter "The Thunderbird" Dies At 97

​ Big Walter "The Thunderbird" Price, the elder statesman of Houston blues who continued performing well into his nineties, died overnight, according to a Facebook post by local blues musician Steve Krase of Steve Krase & the In Crowd.

Price was 97 and had been in a nursing home in north Houston. As recently as August 2009, he wowed the crowd with a version of Fats Domino's "My Girl Josephine" at his 95th birthday party at the Big Easy, as well as his own "Pack Fair and Square."

The dapper Price, whose driving boogie-woogie piano sound was an important influence on early rock and roll, was born in Gonzales in 1914 and moved to San Antonio around age 11, according to Dutch Web site www.rockabilly.nl. He recorded three singles for San Antonio's TNT label in 1955, and began calling his band "Big Walter and the Thunderbirds."

In 1955, Price moved to Houston, where he cut several singles for Don Robey's Peacock label, including "Pack Fair and Square," which he recorded with several members of Little Richard's band including current Big Easy regular Grady Gaines. Besides R&B, Price also recorded several swamp pop songs around this time, including "Shirley Jean" for Peacock and "Oh Ramona" for Lake Charles' Goldband Records.

Photo by Reg Burns

Big Walter the Thunderbird at his 95th birthday party at the Big Easy, 2009

​ Price recorded for several other labels in the 1960s, but often felt cheated by the music business. He also owned a record store, worked in a strip club, was a disc jockey for Houston's KCOH, and owned his own publishing company, Dinosaur. But he never stopped performing.

After years of seeing his records get released without his consent, in 2004 the Sons of Sunshine label released four CDs, with 46 songs in all: Tell Me, Pain In My Heart, Six Weeks of Misery and Cool Breeze. His last appearance for a U.S. label appears to be on the 2006 CD Texas Southside Kings on Austin's Dialtone Records.

Price never had a hit record, but most rock and roll and R&B musicians in the '60s and '70s knew the Thunderbird. The J. Geils Band covered "Pack Fair and Square" in the 1970s. (Chris Gray)

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Big Walter Price w/ Steve Krase & The In Crowd

For 50 years, Big Walter, known as The Thunderbird, has been making records. Born in Gonzales, Texas in 1914, he started he music career in 1954, he has recorded for T-N-T Records, Peacock, Goldband and other record labels with many hits along the way. Shirley Jean, Git to Gettin, If The Blues Was Money, Pack Fair and Square, are just a few. Big Walter is a true living legend of the music industry. His boogie-woogie piano style set the tempo of early Rock and Roll. Now, know mainly as a Blues artists, Elvis Presley and Little Richard were Big Walter's early contemporaries. In mid-career, his insistence of being treated fairly angered record companies, booking agencies and venue operators. He found himself being passed over while other people profited for his music. Years of legal actions stopped many, but the lawyers were the only winners. In fact, almost all of the Big Walter recording on the market today is not properly licensed. Still robust at the age of 93, Big Walter is releasing his music to the world. His 4 CD's "Tell Me", "Pain In My Heart", "Six Weeks Of Misery", and "Cool Breeze" has a total of 46 great tracks!

Steve was born in Brooklyn NY and has spent time in Ohio, California and Louisiana. Now almost 20 years in Houston, Steve has blended his high energy style with the soulful vibe that runs through the great city of Houston. Steve spent 10 years as the harp man for the legendary Houston band Jerry Lightfoot and The Essentials. After the Essentials broke up Steve spent a few years as a sideman with Matt Leddy & The Meatcutters before forming Steve Krase & The In Crowd. Steve Krase & The In Crowd were winners of the 2004 and 2005 International Blues Challenge moving on to the finals in Memphis both years. The band released their first CD "Easy Livin in 2005. The Band features Steve Krase on Harp and Vocals the mighty James Henry on Guitar, Spare Time" Murray Bass and features the great Pee Wee Stephens ..boards. Drumming was split between Joe Griffin and Brian "The Cannon" Kinnear.