Atlanta, Georgia is a musical melting pot. Home to styles ranging from searing Blues to sweet Soul, jumping Rock n Roll to sophisticated Jazz, back porch Country to roof-rattling Gospel... that's where I was born. My father, a gifted musician in his own right and my mother exposed me to a wide range of music, spanning the delta from Duke Ellington to Elvis Presley, with generous helpings of Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and Dave Brubeck, sprinkled to taste ... all of which would serve me well throughout my days in ways which would take years... no, decades to fully appreciate.
I'm one of those individuals blessed (or cursed, depending upon one's perspective) with the gift of having opened my mouth one day and discovering the ability to sing... this revelation coincided nicely with that momentous night in 1964 when The Beatles sprung into our collective consciousness, sparking literally millions of young, fertile Rock n Roll dreams, one of which was mine... add The Rolling Stones' subsequent appearances and stir... I was hooked... and have remained hooked ever since... as the years passed and the music evolved, Robert Plant, Steve Mariott and Rod Stewart stepped to the forefront of my influences, raising the bar (and the keys) ever higher... I would follow along, at times out of sheer will to emulate their upper register stylings, forcing my range ever higher. Along the way, however, Gregg Allman's evocative voice, smooth delivery and hell raising growl cast a spell and eventually, somewhere deep in that musical geography between Robert Plant's banshee wails and Gregg Allman's soulful moans I found myself. Then came Al Green and Marvin Gaye. Otis Redding and Van Morrison. Always with the foundation laid by Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Billy Eckstein and Mel Torme subtly, at times subliminally guiding my way.
The education continued...
My family's move to Sarasota, Florida in my late teens would evenually lead me to a close friendship, songwriting and singing with one of the very avatars who first drew me in. Gregg Allman. This culminated in writing, recording and subsequent touring with later versions of the Allman Brothers Band as a background singer, occasionally stepping out front stage center to sing lead on those nights when head colds or throat infections rendered the lead singers in the band unable to answer the bell. For such brilliant artists as Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts to trust me with their songs in front of thousands of people was truly an honor and a thrill which I'll never forget... I went from playing to 20 or 30 people in a nightclub to a football stadium full of people (literally) overnight... and back again almost as quickly... such is life...
California beckoned (Marin County and L.A.) and further influenced my singing and writing. The vast musical landscapes of L.A. and the Bay Area added their own special colors to my ever-growing palette of musical textures and styles.
The journey continued...
In the Bay Area, I was fortunate (and delighted) to work with members of the Tubes, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Greg Kihn Band and an enjoyable (albeit ill-fated) stint with Ronnie Montrose as the umpteenth singer to follow Sammy Hagar in Montrose.
In Los Angeles, I moved to the entertainment capitol of the world and proceeded to... well, quit... that'll show 'em... like many who've given up music out of disappointment or petulance, I quickly came to realize that I missed it tremendously more than it missed me...
A "real job" stint at 20th Century Fox seemed the perfect pad from which to re-launch my music career... at least in my mind it did... and after years of (no doubt) annoying the hell out of several of the creative VP's of the Feature Film Music Department, I was brought in to sing on the soundtrack of the Baz Luhrmann film "Moulin Rouge" ... and just like that... I was "back"... well, sort of... in the sense that my "real job" at 20th Century Fox evaporated, and I was "back" to being a full-time musician, like it or not... I liked it...
Of course, in music, as in life, there's no going back... there's only moving forward... but in moving forward, oddly enough, I've glanced back. Back to my earliest influences, performing, recording and writing in a motif that quite literally encompassed the first musical sounds to ever kiss my ears, touch my heart and tickle me below the belt... having spent the better part of my life singing Rock n Roll with a tip of the hat and heart to Jazz, I now find myself looking through the other end of the telescope... or is it a microscope? We'll see...
The education continues... may it never cease... here's where I am now...
Standards, New & Used...
I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4
Dug, dug, dug your show at Vicky's in Indian Wells. Man, talk about working without a net. Not like having a guitar player jammin' a G chord down your throat.
It's one thing to hear the new CD and quite another to see you work the room. The Full Monty, so to speak. You did a great job.
Just wanted to see you swing that mic' around one time and give those folks a scare.
Hello Keith from rainy Ireland! We're still waiting for our summer over here,if you have any spare sun rays ship them over! Hope the music is going great,takecare Onya :)
Hello Keith, Thank you very much for adding me to your list of friends and devoted fans here on MySpace. Thoroughly enjoyed your wonderful music and look forward to more. Wishing you and your family every possible happiness and success. Peace & Love,
