I still remember the first time I met Bill McNamara. His voice- so strong and jubilant- made me think, "This guy should be on radio, or an emcee or an actor or something." Well, it turns out I wasn't too far off. Bill is the host of Thundering Word, Vancouver's popular Sunday open mic nights, held at Cafe Montmartre. He also is an artist, a writer, and an actor. It was through Bill that I got introduced to Wanda Nowicki, the co-host of Thundering Word. It was her voice that first captured my attention as well- smooth, jazzy vocals so soothing and mesmerizing. Like Bill, Wanda is a multi-talented artist. She is a singer and performer, and has worked in theater and modeling for a number of years.
What has impressed me the most however, is not just the voices behind these two individuals, but the words and thoughts they impart with those voices. Through their time and efforts at Thundering Word, Bill and Wanda have shown tremendous support for the arts and artists around them. They provide artists with a place to practise, develop, and share their art with a larger community. And I can say from personal experience that Thundering Word serves as a huge inspiration for artists of all kinds. It reminds us of the importance of art in shaping our lives, and gives value to all our voices.
How did Thundering Word get started and could you say a little bit about T-Paul, the founder of it?
Bill- T-Paul Ste. Marie was a poet, an actor, a writer, and artist- just a jack of all trades in the whole entertainment scene. He saw a need for an open mic that would be open to everybody, rather than so many open mics that are SPECIFIC to one type of art. Some open mics might be for blues music, or for comedy. But if you show up at a comedy open mic with a guitar, and tell them you want to sing a folk song, they’ll tell you to get out. T-Paul thought he would go the whole variety show route. He started it up and it took off right away. Plus, he was a very dynamic host. He was a guy with a BIG personality. And there are all kinds of T-Paul legendary stories around.
How long did he run Thundering Word?
Bill- He kept it going for six years. And then one night, my wife Diana and I were at the Cafe. And he was complaining of a headache all weekend. And then halfway through the show he said, “Bill, you gotta drive me home. I gotta lie down.”
We called an ambulance, got him into the hospital, and it turned out he had a brain aneurism. He had an operation and he was out of the hospital about three weeks later.
He started up Thundering Word again. And then it was exactly one year and one day later that he had another aneurism. It killed him in his home. He was forty one years old. It was a big loss to the community. It was also the best wake I have ever been to, anywhere, anytime. It was held in this beautiful loft. And there were people from every walk of life there – there were film directors, there were writers, there were actors, there were performers, singers, band members, all kinds. Everybody was there- poets and spoken word artists. It was just the most exhilarating wake. It spoke well to T-Paul. So Thundering Word sat dormant for a few months. People were constantly saying how much they missed it. But nobody was stepping forward to take up the reigns.
How did you and Wanda end up taking over?
At first, it didn’t seem like such a big deal to me. I thought, “This can’t be very hard.” And I’m not a real music expert, but Wanda is. So I talked to Wanda and said, “We should do this.” And I asked around the community and everybody said, “Yeah yeah. You SHOULD do this. YOU should do this… yeah.” And I found out later that I SHOULD do it because it’s a lot of work! (laughs)
Wanda- (laughs)
Bill- it was WAY more work than I anticipated.
But Wanda and I have been carrying it on pretty well for the last two years. So that’s eight years that Thundering Word has been going now- six under T-Paul, two under us. And it seems to get better all the time. I keep thinking that maybe I’m too close to judge that. But then people outside of it have come to us many times and said that it’s actually getting better and better every time. And they really like our audience. They really like our venue and the ambiance that’s created there. It’s a very welcoming atmosphere because we ARE open to everybody.
Did you both start out as audience members first, or did you know T-Paul personally before you found out about Thundering Word?
Wanda- I had only been there once, as an audience member, because Bill and Diana had brought me. When T-Paul was still alive, I only saw ONE Thundering Word show.
Bill- I had gone there quite a bit.
Wanda- You would perform, right (to Bill)? You used to be one of the “open-mic-ers”.
Bill- I was doing spoken word and poetry. And both of those things took place on nights OTHER than T-Paul’s Sundays. And so it was really great, especially with the poetry. I could go to Thundering Word on a Sunday night, practise a new poem, and get up and see if it worked. I could see what kind of reaction I would get from the audience. It also helps you in identifying weak areas. It’s a good place to tune up any of your new material, or if you wanted to revisit something you hadn’t done for a long time. For musicians it’s the same. Musicians like to come there and revisit some of their early work, their older songs. And they also like to try out new stuff there. It’s the perfect venue for that.
You have had some great features at Thundering Word, since I’ve been going there. Artists like Jack McCarthy and Barbara Adler. How do you go about finding the features? Do they approach you, or do you go and seek out particular artists?
Bill- We have pursued a few. But actually, about seventy percent come to us. For example, before Christmas, we wanted to sign up a couple of acts for 2009. We thought, it’s going to be our new year. We can figure out our spring lineup later. But right now, we should just get some people for late January, maybe February.
But Wanda and I have been carrying it on pretty well for the last two years. So that’s eight years that Thundering Word has been going now- six under T-Paul, two under us. And it seems to get better all the time. I keep thinking that maybe I’m too close to judge that. But then people outside of it have come to us many times and said that it’s actually getting better and better every time. And they really like our audience. They really like our venue and the ambiance that’s created there. It’s a very welcoming atmosphere because we ARE open to everybody.
Did you both start out as audience members first, or did you know T-Paul personally before you found out about Thundering Word?
Wanda- I had only been there once, as an audience member, because Bill and Diana had brought me. When T-Paul was still alive, I only saw ONE Thundering Word show.
Bill- I had gone there quite a bit.
Wanda- You would perform, right (to Bill)? You used to be one of the “open-mic-ers”.
Bill- I was doing spoken word and poetry. And both of those things took place on nights OTHER than T-Paul’s Sundays. And so it was really great, especially with the poetry. I could go to Thundering Word on a Sunday night, practise a new poem, and get up and see if it worked. I could see what kind of reaction I would get from the audience. It also helps you in identifying weak areas. It’s a good place to tune up any of your new material, or if you wanted to revisit something you hadn’t done for a long time. For musicians it’s the same. Musicians like to come there and revisit some of their early work, their older songs. And they also like to try out new stuff there. It’s the perfect venue for that.
You have had some great features at Thundering Word, since I’ve been going there. Artists like Jack McCarthy and Barbara Adler. How do you go about finding the features? Do they approach you, or do you go and seek out particular artists?
Bill- We have pursued a few. But actually, about seventy percent come to us. For example, before Christmas, we wanted to sign up a couple of acts for 2009. We thought, it’s going to be our new year. We can figure out our spring lineup later. But right now, we should just get some people for late January, maybe February.
And we signed up Dave Paterson for the first week of January. And it worked out, and the next thing we know, we were booked until May 31st! We didn’t even ANNOUNCE that we were signing people up. But people WANT to come to Thundering Word. They want to be featured there. And we’ve had people from England, from all over the US and different parts of Canada.
Wanda- Lots of artists will be coming through Vancouver on a tour anyways. So our city will host them somewhere, and they will contact Bill and let them know that this particular performer is coming to town. They will ask, “Can you also accommodate him at Thundering Word?” So that’s how we get a certain percentage of our acts. I don’t know the exact number- twenty percent, maybe?
But then some of o
ur music acts we get from just being out. Bill and Diana will just be out somewhere or I’ll be out somewhere, and sometimes we’re out TOGETHER. And we’ll see somebody, an act we like. I went to the Cottage Bistro for a birthday party for the owner. And there was a musician there- he played the guitar and was quite the entertainer. And I booked him! So sometimes, it’ll be random. But then, the biggest compliment is when people find us. For example, these two kids .. (laughs) –“Kids”- I call them kids, but they’re in their twenties…
Tasleem- (laughs)
Wanda- But they got up to do their ten minutes and they said that they had heard about us in San Francisco. And they had gone to the website and so when they came into Vancouver, to hang out, they specifically planned to make it out to Thundering Word.
So they showed up and they did a great job. And they wrote Bill and said “We’d like to feature.” They asked, and they were good, so I said to Bill, “Yeah, let’s do it!”
We want to get more people from out of town anyway. PLUS, most people who do feature will say “yes” again. Whether they come to us, or whether Bill and I say, “You know, so and so was great, so let’s have him back,” they usually say yes right away, which is very flattering (smiles). It is VERY flattering.
And it’s really nice to have the opportunity to be able to ask someone to perform. Normally, you go out, and you see someone, and you think, “Man, that person’s good.” You go to many of their shows and you’ve made some friends. But we are in the position to be able to go up and say, “You know what? I HAVE a show. Would you like to perform there?” It’s great, you know.
And a lot of musicians make fifty dollars at other places and usually have to play three sets. So fifty dollars for playing at Thundering Word for a half an hour with a built in audience… that’s a good deal. And Bill does AMAZING work with posters. I just wanted to say that (to Bill), because you have put a lot of effort into promoting the shows. You did posters for every feature, and you’ve kept the website up to date. And I think that has helped a lot.
Bill- Well, it’s not just me. I think you’re (to Wanda) sixty percent of why people come there. And the Montmartre holds between 65 and 70 people. And quite often, we pack it. We’ve actually had nights where we’ve turned people away because of fire regulations.
Wanda- but Bill advertises a lot.
Bill – Every now and again we’ll go out and give out fliers. Actually, we got a crowd in from Chilliwack last time because of it (laughs).
Wanda- Yeah (laughs).
Bill- I was out at Chilliwack the other night, and I handed out a bunch of fliers. Then I followed that by going to a party out in Fort Langley and handed out a bunch of fliers there. And I kept thinking, “Well, this just let’s these people know what we’re doing. I DOUBT they’re going to show up.” But they ALL showed up!
Tasleem- (laughs)
Bill (laughs)- Our audience is pretty unpredictable.
Wanda- Yeah, and it’s wonderful when new people come in because it keeps it interesting. It’s a change from the regulars for both the audience members and performers. It keeps it diverse and that’s kind of nice.
Ali, from the Café, has asked us to do the open mic EVERY Sunday. But we’d rather have a really GREAT night every other week, than a half audience every week.
Going back to what you were saying about Bill doing posters, I know that both of you have your own artistic talents, besides running and hosting Thundering Word. Bill, I know you have a background in animation, and you write, and do some acting. And Wanda, I know you sing. I’m sorry I missed your show the other night, but I checked out your website and your voice is amazing.
Bill- Isn’t it?
Yes, she’s great. And that song “I Live Alone, But I Like It”. Wow! I really like that one.
Wanda- Yeah. I sing and I have a jazz group. And I’ve been with them for about four or five years, ever since I got back to Vancouver. I lived in Los Angeles for a few years. But then I came back to Vancouver and worked with these two guys as a trio.
Do you have regular shows?
Right now, we play about once a month. I play at the Heritage Grill in New Westminster. And then usually I’ll do an event or party. We’ll play at that. And then there’s the jazz festival. This will be our fourth year playing at the festival. Our date is June 30th. And the festival runs from about the last week of June until about Canada Day.
And you both do some acting as well?
Bill- Just little parts. But yeah, as I’ve gotten older, now that my hair is grey and I have my white beard, I have a tendency to get asked to do some small roles.
I think it’s your voice too. You have such a distinct voice.
Wanda- Yeah, a distinct voice and he does a good double take (laughs)
Bill- (laughs)
In the two years that you’ve been running Thundering Word, is there a particular act or performance that stood out to you for whatever reason?
Wanda- There are so many. I would hate to miss any.
Bill –Well, there was this one girl, Hannah Georgas. One of our artist friends Chelsea brought her. She seemed kind of shy, but a very striking kind of girl. And she had a beautiful voice. She sang this song and every second word started with F. And it’s the last thing you’d expect out of her. She just had the audience in stitches (laughs). And I thought, “This girl’s going to go somewhere!” Well, she just finished playing Juno Fest. She’s been at the Railway Club as a feature many times. She’s got a couple of CD’s out. And she’s been on CBC…
Wanda- We had never seen her before. And she started singing, and maybe halfway through the second song, Bill’s says, “She is pretty good, isn’t she?” Then I said, “Yeah, we could feature her.”
What about young artists? I was impressed to see a couple of really young poets and musicians on your stage.
Wanda- Yes. Well, there is Eric, who is one of our youngest.
Bill- Yeah, he’s this little kid, fourteen years old. Eric Cambell. He was at the Cottage. And he just stepped in with a Blues band up there. The audience thought, "Holy Cow!" See, when Eric was fourteen, he looked like he was twelve, or maybe ten. He’s got this real baby face, big dimples, you know?
And so I gave him my card. He came out to Thundering Word on our opening night. And he got a monstrous standing ovation. So a couple of month’s later, we featured him. And he got ANOTHER standing O. I guess he’s sixteen now.
And there was a very talented poet- a young girl who I heard not too long ago.
Bill- That's Paige Wilson. She’s absolutely fearless. Smart as a whip too. And she was eleven when she first went up. She’s twelve now.
Do you have any advice for someone who has never gone up at the Café but would like to? I’m sure it can be intimidating, especially the first time.
Wanda- The advice that I would give is just go up there and try to relax, and have fun. We are really with you. You can hit a honking flat note, you could read a mediocre poem, you could bump your teeth or head on the mic out of nervousness…Nobody cares.
We WANT you to be good. THEY want you to be good. And it’s okay if you ma
ke a mistake because poets have forgotten words before, singers have gotten halfway through the song and gone, “Whoah, uhhh..I can’t remember the verse.” So just as much as possible, don’t care. The audience will love it. I still get nervous, especially now that I’m a host. I have to take a few breaths at first.
Wanda- Lots of artists will be coming through Vancouver on a tour anyways. So our city will host them somewhere, and they will contact Bill and let them know that this particular performer is coming to town. They will ask, “Can you also accommodate him at Thundering Word?” So that’s how we get a certain percentage of our acts. I don’t know the exact number- twenty percent, maybe?
But then some of o
ur music acts we get from just being out. Bill and Diana will just be out somewhere or I’ll be out somewhere, and sometimes we’re out TOGETHER. And we’ll see somebody, an act we like. I went to the Cottage Bistro for a birthday party for the owner. And there was a musician there- he played the guitar and was quite the entertainer. And I booked him! So sometimes, it’ll be random. But then, the biggest compliment is when people find us. For example, these two kids .. (laughs) –“Kids”- I call them kids, but they’re in their twenties…Tasleem- (laughs)
Wanda- But they got up to do their ten minutes and they said that they had heard about us in San Francisco. And they had gone to the website and so when they came into Vancouver, to hang out, they specifically planned to make it out to Thundering Word.
So they showed up and they did a great job. And they wrote Bill and said “We’d like to feature.” They asked, and they were good, so I said to Bill, “Yeah, let’s do it!”
We want to get more people from out of town anyway. PLUS, most people who do feature will say “yes” again. Whether they come to us, or whether Bill and I say, “You know, so and so was great, so let’s have him back,” they usually say yes right away, which is very flattering (smiles). It is VERY flattering.
And it’s really nice to have the opportunity to be able to ask someone to perform. Normally, you go out, and you see someone, and you think, “Man, that person’s good.” You go to many of their shows and you’ve made some friends. But we are in the position to be able to go up and say, “You know what? I HAVE a show. Would you like to perform there?” It’s great, you know.
And a lot of musicians make fifty dollars at other places and usually have to play three sets. So fifty dollars for playing at Thundering Word for a half an hour with a built in audience… that’s a good deal. And Bill does AMAZING work with posters. I just wanted to say that (to Bill), because you have put a lot of effort into promoting the shows. You did posters for every feature, and you’ve kept the website up to date. And I think that has helped a lot.
Bill- Well, it’s not just me. I think you’re (to Wanda) sixty percent of why people come there. And the Montmartre holds between 65 and 70 people. And quite often, we pack it. We’ve actually had nights where we’ve turned people away because of fire regulations.
Wanda- but Bill advertises a lot.
Bill – Every now and again we’ll go out and give out fliers. Actually, we got a crowd in from Chilliwack last time because of it (laughs).
Wanda- Yeah (laughs).
Bill- I was out at Chilliwack the other night, and I handed out a bunch of fliers. Then I followed that by going to a party out in Fort Langley and handed out a bunch of fliers there. And I kept thinking, “Well, this just let’s these people know what we’re doing. I DOUBT they’re going to show up.” But they ALL showed up!
Tasleem- (laughs)
Bill (laughs)- Our audience is pretty unpredictable.
Wanda- Yeah, and it’s wonderful when new people come in because it keeps it interesting. It’s a change from the regulars for both the audience members and performers. It keeps it diverse and that’s kind of nice.
Ali, from the Café, has asked us to do the open mic EVERY Sunday. But we’d rather have a really GREAT night every other week, than a half audience every week.
Going back to what you were saying about Bill doing posters, I know that both of you have your own artistic talents, besides running and hosting Thundering Word. Bill, I know you have a background in animation, and you write, and do some acting. And Wanda, I know you sing. I’m sorry I missed your show the other night, but I checked out your website and your voice is amazing.
Bill- Isn’t it?
Yes, she’s great. And that song “I Live Alone, But I Like It”. Wow! I really like that one.Wanda- Yeah. I sing and I have a jazz group. And I’ve been with them for about four or five years, ever since I got back to Vancouver. I lived in Los Angeles for a few years. But then I came back to Vancouver and worked with these two guys as a trio.
Do you have regular shows?
Right now, we play about once a month. I play at the Heritage Grill in New Westminster. And then usually I’ll do an event or party. We’ll play at that. And then there’s the jazz festival. This will be our fourth year playing at the festival. Our date is June 30th. And the festival runs from about the last week of June until about Canada Day.
And you both do some acting as well?
Bill- Just little parts. But yeah, as I’ve gotten older, now that my hair is grey and I have my white beard, I have a tendency to get asked to do some small roles.
I think it’s your voice too. You have such a distinct voice.
Wanda- Yeah, a distinct voice and he does a good double take (laughs)
Bill- (laughs)
In the two years that you’ve been running Thundering Word, is there a particular act or performance that stood out to you for whatever reason?
Wanda- There are so many. I would hate to miss any.
Bill –Well, there was this one girl, Hannah Georgas. One of our artist friends Chelsea brought her. She seemed kind of shy, but a very striking kind of girl. And she had a beautiful voice. She sang this song and every second word started with F. And it’s the last thing you’d expect out of her. She just had the audience in stitches (laughs). And I thought, “This girl’s going to go somewhere!” Well, she just finished playing Juno Fest. She’s been at the Railway Club as a feature many times. She’s got a couple of CD’s out. And she’s been on CBC…
Wanda- We had never seen her before. And she started singing, and maybe halfway through the second song, Bill’s says, “She is pretty good, isn’t she?” Then I said, “Yeah, we could feature her.”
What about young artists? I was impressed to see a couple of really young poets and musicians on your stage.
Wanda- Yes. Well, there is Eric, who is one of our youngest.
Bill- Yeah, he’s this little kid, fourteen years old. Eric Cambell. He was at the Cottage. And he just stepped in with a Blues band up there. The audience thought, "Holy Cow!" See, when Eric was fourteen, he looked like he was twelve, or maybe ten. He’s got this real baby face, big dimples, you know?
And so I gave him my card. He came out to Thundering Word on our opening night. And he got a monstrous standing ovation. So a couple of month’s later, we featured him. And he got ANOTHER standing O. I guess he’s sixteen now.
And there was a very talented poet- a young girl who I heard not too long ago.
Bill- That's Paige Wilson. She’s absolutely fearless. Smart as a whip too. And she was eleven when she first went up. She’s twelve now.
Do you have any advice for someone who has never gone up at the Café but would like to? I’m sure it can be intimidating, especially the first time.
Wanda- The advice that I would give is just go up there and try to relax, and have fun. We are really with you. You can hit a honking flat note, you could read a mediocre poem, you could bump your teeth or head on the mic out of nervousness…Nobody cares.
We WANT you to be good. THEY want you to be good. And it’s okay if you ma
ke a mistake because poets have forgotten words before, singers have gotten halfway through the song and gone, “Whoah, uhhh..I can’t remember the verse.” So just as much as possible, don’t care. The audience will love it. I still get nervous, especially now that I’m a host. I have to take a few breaths at first. Bill- Also, because of the shape of Montmartre, the audience is sort of the wider part of the stage. And it isn’t very wide. There might be sixty people there. But when you’re on stage, you see about ten of them because of the shape and the lights. And I just imagine that the back, because it's so dark and far, looks like a bunch of chairs stacked on top of one another. So then it's as if you're only talking to a small group of people, rather than a big audience.
Also, what Wanda said is VERY true. Our audience is different. If we go out and check out other open mics, on other nights, like a Friday, for example, that audience is full of people who worked all week. They want to get drunk. They want to talk while the act is going on. They want to meet women, and the women want to meet men.
But our audience is there on a Sunday night. They know they’re going to have to go to work or school the next day. They’re not there to get drunk. They’re not there to meet other people. They just want some entertainment. They listen. So they’re quiet and respectful. And again, no matter what you do, you always get a round of applause.
What does Art mean to you? What is your motivation for putting so much time and energy into promoting the arts and all these artists at the Café?
Wanda- I know that I’ve done a lot of work in the arts. I’ve done theater and I’ve done singing. I’ve done voiceover work. But I had never been a host, ever. So Bill presented that opportunity to me. So it can be a challenge sometimes. It can be tricky. But I like that.
And I myself had to do a bunch of open mics. I sang. So it’s nice for me NOW to be in a position where I am able to help keep an open mic going and give other people an opportunity. I think that’s important. They have to have somewhere to go. And then they’ll get better and better and better. And so it was nice to be a part of something like this. I had gotten lots of help from people at their open mics for many years. And now I can be on the other side, GIVING help. And it’s especially great that we have the opportunity to book features.
And how about you Bill?
Bill- Art is something that creates a pressure inside of the people it inhabits. I speak from personal experience. For example, as a kid I always had the urge to draw. I had no idea what I was doing, but I never stopped.
Also, with acting, one night an old biker friend and I were talking about movies and we decided that being in a movie was like being immortal. The old actors, like Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Lana turner, Jane Russel and James Cagney may be dead, but they are still on film and people remember them....
I kept that in my mind for a long time. Then, years later, the lovely Wanda talked me into going to Story Slam and that was that. I went there and I won this thing. And then I won the next one, and the next one. And then I became the Vancouver Story Slam Champ in 2005. I can honestly say that Wanda gave me a whole new life. And so much has happened since then.
So, "Art"... It's a thing that eats at you, boils inside you, is raging to be released and so frustrating when it isn't. Some people don't have that. There are times when I envy those people. But when the rare occasion happens when it does get released and it works well, you know it's all been worth it. Wanda gave me the opportunity to try a new way of drawing... with words! She encouraged me to try poetry and other things too.
Then two small acting jobs came my way and now there’s Thundering Word. It's like a great chance to give back and make it easier for other artists of every stripe to release that pressure out of their systems on stage. It lets people have a voice and a place to use it. We are both very happy to be able to provide that. It seems like the right thing to do and is extremely satisfying.
What does Art mean to you? What is your motivation for putting so much time and energy into promoting the arts and all these artists at the Café?
Wanda- I know that I’ve done a lot of work in the arts. I’ve done theater and I’ve done singing. I’ve done voiceover work. But I had never been a host, ever. So Bill presented that opportunity to me. So it can be a challenge sometimes. It can be tricky. But I like that.
And I myself had to do a bunch of open mics. I sang. So it’s nice for me NOW to be in a position where I am able to help keep an open mic going and give other people an opportunity. I think that’s important. They have to have somewhere to go. And then they’ll get better and better and better. And so it was nice to be a part of something like this. I had gotten lots of help from people at their open mics for many years. And now I can be on the other side, GIVING help. And it’s especially great that we have the opportunity to book features.
And how about you Bill?
Bill- Art is something that creates a pressure inside of the people it inhabits. I speak from personal experience. For example, as a kid I always had the urge to draw. I had no idea what I was doing, but I never stopped.
Also, with acting, one night an old biker friend and I were talking about movies and we decided that being in a movie was like being immortal. The old actors, like Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Lana turner, Jane Russel and James Cagney may be dead, but they are still on film and people remember them....
I kept that in my mind for a long time. Then, years later, the lovely Wanda talked me into going to Story Slam and that was that. I went there and I won this thing. And then I won the next one, and the next one. And then I became the Vancouver Story Slam Champ in 2005. I can honestly say that Wanda gave me a whole new life. And so much has happened since then.
So, "Art"... It's a thing that eats at you, boils inside you, is raging to be released and so frustrating when it isn't. Some people don't have that. There are times when I envy those people. But when the rare occasion happens when it does get released and it works well, you know it's all been worth it. Wanda gave me the opportunity to try a new way of drawing... with words! She encouraged me to try poetry and other things too.
Then two small acting jobs came my way and now there’s Thundering Word. It's like a great chance to give back and make it easier for other artists of every stripe to release that pressure out of their systems on stage. It lets people have a voice and a place to use it. We are both very happy to be able to provide that. It seems like the right thing to do and is extremely satisfying.
To find out more about Thundering Word, or hear some of Wanda's tracks, go to http://www.myspace.com/thunderingword
