Bill Kirchen is a founding father of Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen, proto-Americana band 1967-76. His diesel-fueled lick drove Hot Rod Lincoln into the Top 10. Grammy nominated in 2001 for Country Instrumental Of The Year with his chicken-pickin’ composition Poultry In Motion, beat out by the great Earl Scruggs. In a 50+ year career Bill has released well over 2 dozen albums, from the Commander Cody catalogue on through his 16 solo releases on Black Top, HighTone, Proper and currently the Last Music Company labels. He lives in Austin, Texas, and appears at the festival this year with Rick Richards drums (Joe Walsh, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Gurf Morlix) Jack Saunders bass (Shake Russell, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Sisters Morales, Tom Russell) and Nina Gerber guitar (Kate Wolf, Greg Brown, Karla Bonoff, Dave Alvin, Laurie Lewis)
Bill has played guitar for in performance or on recordings with Gene Vincent, Link Wray, Hot Tuna, New Riders, Ralph Stanley, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, Austin De Lone, Sarah Elizabeth Campbell, Nina Gerber, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Emmy Lou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Susan Cowsill, Boz Scaggs, Huey Lewis, Hoyt Axton, Doug Sahm, Flaco Jiminez, Maria Muldaur, Phil Lesh, Doug Kershaw, Dan Hicks, Hazel Dickens, Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, The Flatlanders, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Sammy Hagar, Warren Haynes, Dave Alvin, Nicolette Larsen, Robbie Fulks, Chuck Prophet, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Buddy Miller, Ryan Bingham, Marcia Ball, Rosie Flores, and more.
PHOTO CREDIT: Bob Minkin
