One of the few known cases of the blues contracted in Santa Barbara County has had a happy — if not downright fabulous — outcome. Back in those silly '60s, one Goleta youngster, Kim Wilson, caught the blues and started his own band.

In a cool place at the right time, he befriended and played with many of his idols, such as B.B. King and Muddy Waters. We are currently running desperately short of old blues guys, but this was not so in the '60s.

About 30 years ago in Austin, Texas, Wilson and guitar monster Jimmie Vaughan started the Fabulous Thunderbirds, a rockin' blues band that still rocks.

Vaughan went solo and was replaced by Duke Robillard, then Kid Bangham and Kid Ramos, followed by a string of many other musicians. As the only original T-Bird still standing, Wilson will front his current lineup during a Friday night gig at The Canyon in Agoura Hills.

The T-Birds had their brush with fame in the mid-'80s when "Tuff Enuff" became a Top 10 hit after being featured in the film "Tough Guys." But like most blues musicians, the T-Birds don't make dough selling albums: They live long and prosper by playing live. That's something this band has been doing for three decades. The likelihood of their playing at the Christmas party for an oil-drilling company seems beyond remote, however.

Just back from Europe, Wilson discussed the state of his favorite band from his Laguna Hills pad.

So things are still moderately fabulous after all these years?

Yeah, man, Ventura — my old stomping grounds. I'm making more money now than I ever made, so things are better than ever. It's always a big hustle, and I'm responsible for a lot of people, but the people I have are fantastic. That makes all the difference in the world and makes me feel like it's worth it to make sacrifices to do what I do.

You've been doing this for more than 30 years, and now you've become one of those old blues dudes that inspired you as a kid.

It's closer to 40 (years) for me and something like 34 for the Thunderbirds.

How did a young fellow contract the blues in a place like Goleta?

I was out there playing, and there were a lot of blues musicians in Goleta at the time. I saw Freddie (King) and B.B. King play together in Robertson Gym (at UC Santa Barbara), and I used to go to a place called the Headband where you could see Big Joe Turner and Pee Wee Crayton.

Not long after I started listening to this stuff, I was playing with these guys. I was sitting at this little club in Goleta, Fergie's, twiddling my thumbs, and said, "Just bring those guys up here, and we'll back 'em up. We can do it. I'm not scared."

That's how I made all my friends back then. I was just a kid and I was stupid, but I had a lot of enthusiasm. Those guys ended up liking me and were friends for the rest of my life — or the rest of their lives, anyway.

You have to realize that things were wide open back then. You could do anything you wanted. Money didn't mean as much, of course, and that made a difference, along with being a kid. You didn't have any responsibility, and chances didn't mean anything, even though I never took many chances. I brought it all to me, and it worked out.

How do you think the band has changed over the years, other than the obvious fact that you're the only original member still standing?

I would have to say it's very versatile — we can do everything we did back then, blueswise, and more. This new band, in spirit, is very much the way I was when I was a kid. They're younger guys — 32 to 37 — sort of my vehicle to get nostalgic, but in a modern way.

I want the vibe of all the fun I had back then. Everything is so spontaneous with this band. They're not afraid to do things, not afraid to take musical chances, and they're more versatile than any bunch I've ever had.

I've pumped bands up in the past that looked good on paper but didn't work out. This bunch is different. It's funny, but at this stage of my life, I've never been happier with a band.

This is supposed to be fun, right?

Yeah, but once you get locked into responsibility and start turning it into a business, things can change and it can be not so much fun. Of course, you're always living for the music anyway, but these guys are really pleasant to be around when the music's not playing. There's something to be said for that.

Has the price of gas affected your operation?

It sure has — big-time — because I fly a lot. But that's going to change. We have our backs to the wall, and we're finally going to do something about it. We've been talking about it since I was a kid in Goleta in the '60s, but no one listened.

Are you talking about offshore drilling?

I'm not for offshore drilling. I'm not for drilling at all, but rather alternative energy — something we should've been doing the whole time, if not for economics, then for pollution's sake. If you've got kids, you better start thinking about the kind of world they're going to be living in. We can do it if we're interested in more than the mighty dollar, and if we elect politicians we can trust, which might be next to impossible.

Do I detect a future blues song?

I don't think politics is worth a blues song. People have got to believe we run this country, not those in the top 1 percent. The sooner we stop wearing a cowbell and following these people off a cliff like a bunch of lemmings, the sooner we're going to be great.

For one thing, let's try getting rid of the two-party system and let other people in. Obviously, I lean a little bit toward the liberal end of things, but it's not about liberal and conservative. It's about common sense and the harmony we could have on this planet if it wasn't for a few stray, mangy dogs that run it. It's all going to change — there's going to be a renaissance.

Can you describe that special, transcendent power of music?

Well, music is a drug. Music is a feeling, and if you convey that feeling so people can soak it up, it's like the essence of life. At the time you're doing it, there's nothing else. It really is an escape, and that's why music transcends bad economies and bad politicians. That's why you can go overseas as a musician during the regime we have now, and you're exempt from hate. They love you because you give them a thing that transcends all that.

What's the best thing about your night job?

You get to hang out with the greatest people and work with them. Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, B.B. King, James Cotton, Jimmie Reed — those are my friends. And at the end of the day, as far is music is concerned, it pays off for you.

The worst part is, you have to wait a long, long time to put down roots and think about having a family and kids.