Bill Durst


Bill Durst is an award-winning Canadian blues artist, who is also one of the founding members of the band Thundermug.

History

Bill Durst, based on London, Ontario, Canada, co-founded the band Thundermug in 1970. The band existed from 1970 to 1976 and from 1991 to 2001, releasing five albums and two Top 40 Canadian singles. Thundermug went on hiatus in 1976, after releasing three albums. During this hiatus period, Durst joined a ZZ Top tribute band called Tres Hombres, and later was a member of The Brains, a band that released one album in 1980, on Falcon Records. In 1983, Durst released a solo album, Call Billy, on Passport Records His second solo album, Father Earth, in cassette-only format, was released in 1989, on the independent Cottage Records.
Thundermug reunited in 1991 and continued until 2001. The Thundermug name was formally retired in 2000, and the band continued for a period thereafter as Big on Venus. During the 1991–2001 period, two further albums were released by the band, featuring Durst, which resulted in three charting singles. Both during this period of band reformation and following the final breakup of the band, Durst continued his solo career. In 2005, he released The Wharncliffe Sessions. This record and subsequent recordings were released independently, on Durst's Durstwerks label. In 2006, as a member of Thundermug, Durst was inducted into the London Music Hall of Fame. In 2009, Durst released The Great Willy Mammoth and, in 2012, Bill Durst Live. In 2012, Durst won the London Music Award for most popular blues/R&B artist. In 2013, Durst was a featured performer at the Montreal International Jazz Festival. In 2014, Durst received the Jack Richardson Music Award for best blues/R&B performer.

Discography

Solo