John Wilson (born 3 December 1947 in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

) is a Northern Irish musician. He has had a prolific career, playing drums with bands such as

Them Them or THEM, a third-person plural accusative personal pronoun, may refer to: Books * ''Them'' (novel), 3rd volume (1969) in American Joyce Carol Oates' ''Wonderland Quartet'' * '' Them: Adventures with Extremists'', 2003 non-fiction by Welsh ...

Taste The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste (flavor). Taste is the perception produced or stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor ...

and

Stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay bar ...

. Previously with 'The Misfits', Wilson became a member of one of the numerous line-ups of Them from September 1965 to March 1966. Alongside

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

, Alan Henderson, Jim Armstrong and Ray Elliott, Wilson played on recording sessions for Them's second album ''

Them Again ''Them Again'' is the second album by the Northern Irish band, Them, whose lead singer and songwriter was Van Morrison. The album was released by Decca Records in the UK on 21 January 1966 but it failed to chart. In the U.S. it was released i ...

'' (released January 1966). Visa restrictions meant that he had to be substituted by stand-in drummers for initial live dates abroad, due to his youth. He was replaced by Dave Harvey upon leaving Them, and went on to work with Belfast groups Derek & The Sounds and Cheese. In January 1968, Wilson, along with Richard McCracken, had left the band and soon afterwards joined The Interns where they played along with Roy Abbott and Nicko Hallewell. In May 1968, he and bass player Richard McCracken joined guitarist

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer. Due to his virtuosic playing, but relative lack of fame compared to some others, he has been referred to as "the greatest ...

in Taste, after the band's previous line-up had disintegrated. The new Taste moved permanently to London where they signed with the

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

Polydor Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

. In November 1968, the band, along with Yes, opened for

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

at Cream's farewell concerts, and subsequently toured the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

with the

supergroup Supergroup or super group may refer to: * Supergroup (music), a music group formed by artists who are already notable or respected in their fields * Supergroup (physics), a generalization of groups, used in the study of supersymmetry * Supergroup ...

Blind Faith Blind Faith were an English supergroup featuring Steve Winwood, Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, and Ric Grech. They were eagerly anticipated by the music press following on the success of each of the member's former bands, including Clapton a ...

. In April 1969, Taste released the first of their two studio albums, the self-titled ''

'', with ''

On the Boards On the Boards (OtB) is a non-profit contemporary performing arts organization in Seattle, Washington, founded in 1978. Originally located at Washington Hall in the Central District, the organization moved in 1998 to their current location in Up ...

'' following in early 1970, the latter showing the band's

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

influences. In 1970 they performed as part of the

Isle of Wight Festival The Isle of Wight Festival is a British music festival which takes place annually in Newport on the Isle of Wight, England. It was originally a counterculture event held from 1968 to 1970. The 1970 event was by far the largest of these early ...

, alongside

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

and

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

. Later the same year Taste toured Europe but were disbanded by Gallagher, who decided to pursue a solo career, performing their last show on New Year's Eve in

. Wilson and McCracken immediately formed '

' in early 1971, with

Jim Cregan James Cregan (born 9 March 1946) is an English rock guitarist and bassist, best known for his associations with Family, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel and Rod Stewart. Cregan is a former husband of the singer Linda Lewis and worked with her as a r ...

and

John Weider John Weider (born 21 April 1947) is an English rock musician who plays guitar, bass, and violin. He is best known as the guitarist for the Animals from 1966 to 1968. He was also the bass player for Family from 1969 to 1971. Biography Early c ...

, both past and current members of

Family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

respectively. They released the ''Stud'' album in 1971 and ''September'' in 1972, continuing the jazz-rock influence of ''On the Boards'' but failing to make a commercial impact. They split in 1972, though a live-in-the-studio album was released posthumously - ''Goodbye: Live at Command'' (1973). Wilson and McCracken had also contributed to Anno Domini's ''On This New Day'' album, recorded in 1970. John Wilson then joined

Brush Shiels Brendan Francis "Brush" Shiels (born 24 October 1945, Phibsboro, Dublin, Ireland) is an Irish musician from County Dublin, best known for being the frontman of Gary Moore's first band, Skid Row. Brush Shiels had a TV show on RTÉ called ''Off y ...

in various incarnations of

Skid Row A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...

, and planned a Them reunion in 1979 with ex-members Eric Wrixon and Billy Harrison, but dropped out before the ''Shut Your Mouth'' album was recorded. In 1993, Wrixon formed 'Them - The Belfast Blues Band' (often billed as 'Them') which included at various times John Wilson, Sam Davidson and Jim Armstrong. From February 2000, John Wilson led a reformed 'Taste', including Sam Davidson (guitar, vocals) and Albert Mills on bass. In 2010 they released the album ''Wall to Wall'' to critical acclaim. "Album of the year if not the decade" ('' Blues Matters!'' magazine). After battling

throat cancer Head and neck cancer develops from tissues in the lip and oral cavity (mouth), larynx (throat), salivary glands, nose, sinuses or the skin of the face. The most common types of head and neck cancers occur in the lip, mouth, and larynx. Symptoms ...

for five years, Wilson left for

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

. Following the death of

, he reformed Taste, hiring bassist Alan Niblock and guitarist Sam Davidson. On 24 November 2017, Wilson and Taste played at the

Everyman Palace Theatre The Everyman Theatre is a 650-seat Victorian theatre on MacCurtain Street in Cork, Ireland. It opened in 1897, and is the oldest purpose-built theatre building in Cork. The Everyman has undergone a number of changes in name and use, through its d ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, John 1947 births Living people Drummers from Northern Ireland Musicians from Belfast Rock musicians from Northern Ireland Them (band) members