Carolyn Wonderland was born in Houston, Texas in 1972, growing up in a house full of musical instruments. She first started making music at age six, and by eight had decided, in her own mind, that she was a musician. After she scratched her mother’s vintage Martin guitar by imitating Pete Townsend’s famous windmill move, she was forbidden from using a pick. Because of that, she developed her aggressive, distinctive fingerpicking guitar attack. By age 15, she was performing at Houston’s famed Fitzgerald’s club, playing solo or with friends. As a 16-year-old, she swapped songs with Townes Van Zandt. She formed her first band when she was 17, and began proving herself on the tough, competitive Houston club scene. A year later, she joined forces with famed Houston musician Little Screamin’ Kenny and formed The Imperial Monkeys. Before long, Carolyn Wonderland And The Imperial Monkeys were touring as far as Utah, New York and South Dakota, and winning every music award Houston had to offer. A booking at Austin’s famous Antone’s club left a strong mark on Wonderland, who moved to Austin in 1999 at the urging of her friend Doug Sahm. “Come to Austin,” he said. “It’s the land of free guitar lessons.” ...
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Carolyn Wonderland was born in Houston, Texas in 1972, growing up in a house full of musical instruments. She first started making music at age six, and by eight had decided, in her own mind, that she was a musician. After she scratched her mother’s vintage Martin guitar by imitating Pete Townsend’s famous windmill move, she was forbidden from using a pick. Because of that, she developed her aggressive, distinctive fingerpicking guitar attack. By age 15, she was performing at Houston’s famed Fitzgerald’s club, playing solo or with friends. As a 16-year-old, she swapped songs with Townes Van Zandt. She formed her first band when she was 17, and began proving herself on the tough, competitive Houston club scene. A year later, she joined forces with famed Houston musician Little Screamin’ Kenny and formed The Imperial Monkeys. Before long, Carolyn Wonderland And The Imperial Monkeys were touring as far as Utah, New York and South Dakota, and winning every music award Houston had to offer. A booking at Austin’s famous Antone’s club left a strong mark on Wonderland, who moved to Austin in 1999 at the urging of her friend Doug Sahm. “Come to Austin,” he said. “It’s the land of free guitar lessons.”
After two self-released recordings, Wonderland recorded four albums produced by her friend, famed musician Ray Benson, founder of the multiple Grammy-winning band Asleep At The Wheel. According to Benson, “Carolyn’s got that unbelievable, incredible voice, one of the great voices of our times. She’s also an incredible guitar player and a great person. The combination is disarming and totally real. That’s magic.” Carolyn first met Ray when Bob Dylan asked him how to get in touch with her in 2004, as he was a fan. Ray didn’t know Carolyn but tracked her down and the two Texans became quick friends. Then, according to Wonderland, “Bob asked me to write answer verses for his song Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat and he asked me to meet him at soundchecks on his tour.”
The popular and critical response to Wonderland and her music has led to appearances on Austin City Limits, NPR’s Weekend Edition and NPR Music’s Mountain Stage. Features and reviews have run in publications from The Los Angeles Times to The Boston Herald. She’s jammed with countless musicians including Johnny Winter, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, James Cotton, Los Lobos and Levon Helm.
In 2018, legendary musician and bandleader John Mayall chose Wonderland to be lead guitarist in his band, The Blues Breakers. She became the first woman to ever hold that position, with the previous members comprising an all-star list of iconic guitarists including Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor, Peter Green, Coco Montoya, Walter Trout and Buddy Wittington. She toured the world with Mayall and played on his last two albums, including the GRAMMY-nominated The Sun Is Shining Down. She’s performed with her own band all over the U.S. and in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Panama, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Italy, Austria, Slovenia, Canary Islands, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Japan.
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