When going into my chat with Kevin Bloody Wilson I didn’t know what to expect. It was full of laughs, profanities and a bit of reminiscing about what turned him into an “old fart” as he likes to say.
Somehow, after all of that, I’m now his apprentice in drinking and a part of his new social movement.
“I’m going to start a movement called DIY Me Too, after years and years of self inflicted sexual abuse. Not only am I the victim, but I’m the perpetrator too,” said Wilson.
“It challenges the Me Too movement to think about it in another way.”
Wilson will be rolling out his new song DIY Me Too as he throws political correctness to the wind.
Hence, his show is titled the F.U.P.C Tour, and will see Wilson dive into his extensive arsenal of songs at Windsor RSL on Friday, March 1.
Audiences can expect to hear classics like DILLIGAF, Living Next Door to Alan and I Knew the Bride (When She Used to be a Mole).
I was interested to see what Wilson thought of the modern comedy climate.
“Gee whiz, some of its not very funny to be honest with ya,” he said. “But I also take the stance that comedy is very subjective, so what I might like you might not like.”
“I like Billy Connolly. Some people say that ‘I don’t understand him’. My two favourites of all time are Billy Connolly and Robin Williams. I just reckon those guys are sensational.”
Wilson realises that his style of comedy is just not suitable for TV. He writes for himself and his mates: “I don’t go out of my way to be controversial, I just write it so it makes me giggle, it makes me laugh. And my mates are the litmus test.”
“I don’t get any radio coverage and I’m happy about that. My stuff gets around by word of mouth, it’s mates telling mates, ‘come out to the carpark and have a listen to this thing I’ve got in the car. This is funny stuff’.”
Word of mouth has gotten Wilson all over the world.
“My stuff started out ... in the footy clubs and cricket clubs around my hometown of Kalgoorlie. Two years later I was standing on stage at the London Palladium thinking, ‘how the hell did that happen?’.”
Wilson has been singing bawdy ballads since the 1970’s and has released 21 albums throughout his career, but his ability isn’t limited by his comedy.
“You know I’ve written bush ballads and stuff for Charlie Pride but at the same time I’ve written for the Soweto Choir in South Africa,” he said.
“So, the bawdy ballads is what I do for me. I love the bawdy ballads and they probably comprise of about 90 per cent of the songs that I write … but occasionally you’ll sit down with an idea and say, ‘yeah okay, that’s a nice country song so I’ll pass it on to whoever’.”
Wilson’s world has changed a lot since he first started. “Just prior to Christmas I recorded a song with the Western Australian Police pipe band.”
“Which is interesting, given when I first started doing this stuff commercially I was getting arrested … now I’m actually working in cahoots with the police.”
Amazingly, Wilson’s audience isn’t dominated by any one demographic. When starting out an advertising mob completed a demographic report on his audiences.
It turned out there wasn't one, outside of his self imposed over 18’s, which didn’t stop people like myself growing up with songs like Dick’taphone.
Wilson has noticed that a grandfather, father and son will all attend his shows, and they may be a builder, a doctor and a uni student.
Similarly, he will see a grandma, mum and daughter in his audience, meaning it is for anyone and everyone.
Wilson’s loves his work, which is a family affair.
His wife, Betty, travels with him, his daughter, Jenny Talia, is his opening act and he records almost all of his music with his son, Travis. Not only that but Wilson has twin grandsons who he says are “right into it [his music].”
“It’s very much encapsulated there so how could I not be happy doing what I do. I love what I do.”
2019 is set to be a massive year for Wilson as he hopes to have an album out and two comedy specials with a streaming service that rhymes with Weet-Bix.
Wilson says he is excited to return to Windsor: “it's just a lovely part of the world.”
He will be at Windsor RSL on March 1.
Visit: windsorrsl.com.au