Cindy Wilson

Cindy Wilson
At the "LoveBox" festival in London, July 22, 2007
Background information
Birth name	Cynthia Leigh Wilson
Born	February 28, 1957 (1957-02-28) (age 54) Athens, Georgia, United States
Genres	New Wave, alternative rock
Occupations	singer, actor
Instruments	Vocals, tambourine, bongos, guitar
Years active	1970s–present
Labels	Warner Bros., Reprise, Astralwerks
Associated acts	The B-52s

Cynthia Leigh Wilson (born February 28, 1957 in Athens, Georgia) is a vocalist and a founding member of new wave rock band The B-52s.

Career

Wilson began her career as a luncheonette waitress in her home state of Georgia. Her brother, Ricky Wilson, was also a founding member of The B-52s; Ricky died in 1985. Cindy took a sabbatical from the band in 1990 to concentrate on raising a family, during which time The B-52s recorded and released the album Good Stuff as a trio of Kate Pierson, Keith Strickland and Fred Schneider. During the live tour to promote the Good Stuff album in 1992 and 1993, Julee Cruise sang as a replacement for Wilson. Wilson rejoined The B-52s in 1994. In 1998 she took part in recordings from which two new songs were selected to be included along with the band's hit singles on the album Time Capsule: Songs for a Future Generation. Wilson then took maternity leave in 1999, later rejoining the band in 2001 for regular touring of their greatest hits.

The B-52s completed the album Funplex in 2007 and it was released in March 2008. Wilson co-wrote every song on the album with the three other band members. In all, she has co-written much of the band's back catalogue, including "Dance This Mess Around", "Private Idaho" and all of the Cosmic Thing album including hit singles "Love Shack" and "Roam".

Wilson's vocal efforts include the typical B-52s "call-and-response" vocals with Schneider and/or Pierson, as well as her harmonies with Pierson on the band's all-female songs such as "Roam", "52 Girls", "Cake", "Legal Tender", "Summer of Love" and "Juliet of the Spirits". She also sang all vocals on "Hero Worship", "Loveland", "Nip It in the Bud", "Girl From Ipanema Goes to Greenland", "Ain't It a Shame" and the live favorite "Give Me Back My Man".

Wilson is the band's bongocera, playing the bongos in regular live favorites "Planet Claire", "Mesopotamia", "Pump" and "Party Out of Bounds" as well as other songs such as "6060-842" and "Big Bird". Less remarked is her guitar work; she played acoustic guitar in The Cindy Wilson Band, and made a one-time contribution of electric guitar (alongside her brother Ricky) in the song "There's a Moon in the Sky (Called the Moon)" from The B-52s first album. She also played an electronic drumkit on a commercial for the WE tv network.

Solo work

• In 2003, Wilson performed original songs with her group, The Cindy Wilson Band, including the oddly-titled "Bee Bee Bee Bow Bee Bee Bee Bee Bom".

Collaborations

• The Ramones, in the early 1980s on the song "Chop Suey", with Kate Pierson and Debbie Harry; the title is available as a bonus track on the Ramones' 2002 expanded edition CD re-release of Pleasant Dreams.
• Wilson, Pierson and Keith Strickland were part of the group Melon and recorded two songs ("I Will Call You" and "Honeydew") for a Japanese TV show titled "Snakeman Show". The soundtrack LP from 1980 and CD from 1988 was only released in Japan.
• Martini Ranch, actor Bill Paxton's short-lived band, on several songs ("New Deal", World Without Walls", "Hot Dog") off the 1988 album Holy Cow.
• 1988 was also the year BadBob released his album Now Is Reaction. On several tracks "Bobbie Bennett" was adding her background vocals. Cindy Wilson used that name on this record as a pseudonym.
• With Dreams So Real on the song "Appalachee Shoals" which is only available on the fan club-only released CD Nocturnal Omissions, and on the track "Stand Tall" from their official 1990 album Gloryline.
• Kristen Hall on her 1992 album Fact & Fiction has Wilson singing vocals on the track "Too Long Running".
• The soundtrack for The Rugrats Movie, released in 1998, contains the track "The World Is Something New To Me" and features Pierson, Schneider and Wilson along with other artists.
• The Family Fantastic, a side project by Yazoo (Yaz)/Erasure mastermind Vince Clarke; a short sample of Wilson saying "Uh, gosh, I'm ready to dance" on the track "Doin' This Thing" from the 2000 album ...Nice!.
• With Kate Pierson on their common cover of the McFadden & Whitehead's song "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now", recorded for the soundtrack to the movie The Associate in 1996.
• In 1998, Wilson was involved in recording a children's music album entitled Not Dogs ... Too Simple (A Tale of Two Kitties), which was adapted from a children's book by Mark and Clay Harper.
• Wilson appears with Pierson on the Junior Senior song "Take My Time" (2005) on their album Hey Hey My My Yo Yo.

Filmography

• The Rugrats Movie (1998, voice only)
• Athens, GA: Inside Out (1987)
• One Trick Pony (1980)

External links

• The B-52s official site
• Cindy Wilson at the Internet Movie Database

Persondata
Name	Wilson, Cindy
Alternative names
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Date of birth	February 28, 1957
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Date of death
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