The original line-up was Pete Brazil (lead vocals, lead guitar and accordion), Tom Brazil (violin), Keith Buck (pedal steel guitar) and Damian Cullen (drums). The later line-up was Pete Brazil (lead vocals, lead guitar and accordion), Tom Brazil (violin), John Mcintaggart (keys), Keith Slater (drums and violin) and Karl Brazil (drums). Karl was Pete’s 11 year old son. Most weekends and school holidays Karl would play drums while the band’s regular drummer, Keith Slater, played violin. There was one final change to the line-up in 1991 when Tony Kelsey on bass and mandolin replaced Tommy. The Brazil Band released three cassette albums. Their first cassette was Introducing the Brazil’s by Brazil Brothers, the second cassette was Brazil Band Live and the third cassette was Pressed For Time. They very quickly made a name for themselves with their superb instrumentation winning BCMA Band of the Year after which they promptly split up in 1991.After the demise of the Brazil Band, Pete then worked abroad for a few years including working in the Canary Islands. He was in a duo with Jack Robinson called Double Vision. Jack was a Roy Orbison impersonator. Following throat surgery Pete didn’t sing so the duo was initially a Roy Orbison tribute but as he got his voice back a lot more Country was added.
On his return to the UK, Pete put the Bob Brolly Band together. The band included his son Karl on drums. Bob came from Derry in Northern Ireland and began singing as a boy in the Waterside Chapel Choir. He moved with his family to England when he was 15. He became a radio presenter in the West Midlands in the mid-90s when he first presented his Irish music show on Sunday afternoons. In 1998 Pete joined Charlie Landsborough’s Band and was soon touring worldwide with the band. He stayed with Charlie until 2010. While still a member of Charlie’s band Pete did some duo work with his uncle Jimmy Blake whenever Charlie didn’t need him. Pete was also in the Pete Brazil Band trio with Tony and Pete Ariss while still touring with Charlie. Jimmy Blake had been in Spotlights Trio with Pete’s mother Sheila and his brother Steve and later Jimmy and Sheila were in a duo. When Sheila passed away Pete had recently left Charlie Landsborough’s band so he and Jimmy teamed up again as Blake and Brazil duo. The Pete Brazil Band folded at this time.
Blake & Brazil soon became very popular on the Country and Irish scene working in clubs, festivals, holiday camps in the UK and in Spain. Blake & Brazil were due to retire from playing at the end of 2018 but very sadly Jim Blake passed away after an accident at home in 2017. Although devastated by the passing of his longterm partner and uncle, Pete agreed to honour the duo’s bookings as a soloist and eventually decided to carry on as a soloist but with a reduced number of bookings. He had intended to retire at the end of 2020 but then came covid. Pete has now decided to continue playing but gradually reducing the number of gigs.
A clearly very proud dad told me that Karl is now the drummer in both Robbie Williams’ and James Blunt’s bands. Pete played in Robbie’s band on his Christmas Present album released in November 2019. He was on one track, Fairytales, which was a duet with Rod Stewart. Pete’s 11 year old grandson Finlay also sang on the album. Graham Norton asked Robbie Williams to sing Fairytales on his tv show on 20th December 2019 and Pete played with the band on this as well. Robbie Williams also invited Pete to play at two concerts at the Wembley Arena in December 2019. Pete told me that his wife Jane has been behind him since he was with Vengeance and has supported him through everything he has done and now she doesn’t miss a gig. He added, he probably wouldn’t still be playing if she wasn’t around.
Research by Nick Catford.
Pete Brazil moved to England from County Clare in Ireland in 1962. Initially he lived with his father Tom, at his sister’s pub, The Cornish Arms in Woolwich, south east London. Tom Brazil was a musician and played accordion and he and Pete put a band together with two friends from Dartford and they played in the pub and in a hall in Dartford every weekend. Pete would have been nine or 10 at the time.
Pete had been playing chromatic accordion from a young age and he became All English Junior Champion at the age of 10 and for three years in succession in 1964, 1965 and 1966. Pete learnt to play guitar when he was 14.
Pete moved to Birmingham in 1966 where he lived with his mother, Sheila who was a singer. Pete’s mother and father were separated at this time.
They formed an Irish music band called Eileen & The Irish Rovers and they opened at the Birmingham Centre in 1966. They carried on for 10 years but Pete left to join Vengeace who were later renamed The Midnight Showband, a five–piece showband which also included his brother Tommy and his uncle Jimmy Blake. He stayed with the Midnight Showband until 1975 when he joined Patsy Powell & The Goodtimers for 18 months. Patsy Powell was a popular Coventry based Country singer who launched her first Country band, The Playboys in the late 1960s and appeared on New Faces with her band in 1973.
Pete’s next band was a Country rock band called Reno who were signed to MCA records. They had one single released in 1980 called Who’s Gonna Love You which was written by Pete. For contractual reasons the single was credited to Brazil rather than Reno. The ‘B’ side, Head On, was co-written by Pete.
In 1988 Pete joined the popular West Midlands Country band, Cotton Gin. He stayed with them for 18 months before forming his own Brazil Band (initially called the Brazil Brothers). In its short existence the Brazil Band had two line-ups.