Powerhouse
blues vocalist Finis Tasby
was born in Dallas, Texas in 1940,and
grew up immersed in the vital Texas
blues tradition. As a teenager, Finis
got his first professional music experience
as drummer with the swinging local
combo The Blues Blasters.
By the early 1960s he'd switched instruments,
and was playing bass and singing backup
with local legends The Thunderbirds,
working regularly with Z.Z.
Hill, and also backing Clarence
Carter, Lowell Fulson,
and Freddie King
on regional tours.
By the mid '60s Finis had stepped out in
front of the band, and began establishing
his reputation as one of the most soulful
blues singers on the circuit. In the early
70's Finis moved to Los Angeles, and picked
up where he'd left off in Texas. As a bass
player, he worked with many of the greats,
including B.B. King,Percy
Mayfield and Big Mama Thornton.
But it is as a vocalist that Finis really
comes into his own, and in the '70s he made
his first recordings as a front man. It
was during this period that he also formed
a lifelong friendship with blues great John
Lee Hooker, with whom he often
performed locally. Finis' reputation as
a strong and soulful singer reached new
heights with the releases of several CDs,
including "People Don't Care"
on Shanachie, from which three songs were
used in the film "The Babysitter".
In the late 1990s Finis began his alliance
with Rand Chortkoff, when
Rand independently produced Finis' CD "Jump
Children", which was released to wide
acclaim on the Evidence label. (Finis also
recently released the CD "Tribute To
John Lee Hooker" on the small Kon Kord
label.) Finis and Rand have worked closely
since then on several other recording projects
and numerous live performances, culminating
in the formation of The Mannish Boys.
