Kelly Joe Phelps
Encyclopedia
Kelly Joe Phelps is an American
musician
and songwriter
. His music has been characterized as a mixture of delta blues
and jazz
.
and folk songs, as well as drum
s and piano
, from his father. He began playing guitar at 12.
Phelps concentrated on free jazz
and took his cues from musician
s like Ornette Coleman
, Miles Davis
, and John Coltrane
. He spent 10 years playing jazz, mostly as a bass player. He refers to his "conversion" to a blues
musician when he began listening to acoustic blues masters like Fred McDowell
and Robert Pete Williams
.
Initially gaining notice for his solo lapstyle slide guitar playing, which he played by laying the instrument flat and fretting it with a heavy steel bar, he has incorporated more ensemble work in his later albums. Inspired by the birth of his daughter Rachel in 1990, Phelps began writing songs. He began singing and released his critically praised debut, Lead Me On
, in 1995. This album
showcased Phelps' craft, and as well as his own songs, he tackled traditional numbers such as "Motherless Children" and "Fare Thee Well
."
He released his second album, the gospel influenced Roll Away the Stone
(1997) and followed it up with 1999's, Shine Eyed Mister Zen
.
His fourth record, Sky Like a Broken Clock
, appeared in 2001. This time he was joined by a bassist and a drummer - its companion piece, Beggar's Oil
EP, was a critic's favourite in 2002. In order to achieve a richer, orchestrated sound on Slingshot Professionals
, released in 2003, he collected a wider collection of musicians to play guitar, bass, drums, mandolin, violin, and accordion.
In 2005, Phelps released a live album
, Tap the Red Cane Whirlwind
, which was followed a year later by the studio album Tunesmith Retrofit
. His latest album was entitled Western Bell
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
. His music has been characterized as a mixture of delta blues
Delta blues
The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, Helena, Arkansas in the west to the Yazoo River on the east. The...
and jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
.
Career
Kelly Joe Phelps grew up in Sumner, Washington, a blue-collar and farming town. He learned countryCountry music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and folk songs, as well as drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s and piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, from his father. He began playing guitar at 12.
Phelps concentrated on free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
and took his cues from musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
s like Ornette Coleman
Ornette Coleman
Ornette Coleman is an American saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter and composer. He was one of the major innovators of the free jazz movement of the 1960s....
, Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
, and John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
. He spent 10 years playing jazz, mostly as a bass player. He refers to his "conversion" to a blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musician when he began listening to acoustic blues masters like Fred McDowell
Fred McDowell
Fred McDowell known by his stage name; Mississippi Fred McDowell, was an American Hill country blues singer and guitar player.-Career:...
and Robert Pete Williams
Robert Pete Williams
Robert Pete Williams was an American Louisiana blues musician. His music characteristically employed unconventional blues tunings and structures, and his songs are often about the time he served in prison...
.
Initially gaining notice for his solo lapstyle slide guitar playing, which he played by laying the instrument flat and fretting it with a heavy steel bar, he has incorporated more ensemble work in his later albums. Inspired by the birth of his daughter Rachel in 1990, Phelps began writing songs. He began singing and released his critically praised debut, Lead Me On
Lead Me On (Kelly Joe Phelps album)
Lead Me On is the debut album of American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps. It is his first release on the Burnside label before moving to Rykodisc Records.-Reception:...
, in 1995. This album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
showcased Phelps' craft, and as well as his own songs, he tackled traditional numbers such as "Motherless Children" and "Fare Thee Well
Fare Thee Well (song)
Fare Thee Well is an 18th century English folk ballad, in which a lover bids farewell before setting off on a journey. The lyrics include a dialogue between the lovers. The first published version of the song appeared in Roxburghe Ballads dated 1710; the lyrics were there given the title "The...
."
He released his second album, the gospel influenced Roll Away the Stone
Roll Away the Stone (Kelly Joe Phelps album)
Roll Away the Stone is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 1997. It was his first release on the Rykodisc label and reached #10 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums charts....
(1997) and followed it up with 1999's, Shine Eyed Mister Zen
Shine Eyed Mister Zen
Shine Eyed Mister Zen is the third album by American blues artist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 1999.Shine Eyed Mister Zen was recorded at Phelps' home with all the tracks recorded in single takes...
.
His fourth record, Sky Like a Broken Clock
Sky Like a Broken Clock
Sky Like a Broken Clock is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2001. It reached #8 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums charts.-History:...
, appeared in 2001. This time he was joined by a bassist and a drummer - its companion piece, Beggar's Oil
Beggar's Oil
Beggar's Oil is an EP by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2002.-History:Beggar's Oil was recorded at Long View Farms from Feb 6 - Feb 13, 2001 during the same sessions that produced Sky Like a Broken Clock. Phelps' first releases were essentially his voice and the...
EP, was a critic's favourite in 2002. In order to achieve a richer, orchestrated sound on Slingshot Professionals
Slingshot Professionals
Slingshot Professionals is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2003.-History:Slingshot Professionals was Phelps' first album with producer Lee Townsend...
, released in 2003, he collected a wider collection of musicians to play guitar, bass, drums, mandolin, violin, and accordion.
In 2005, Phelps released a live album
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
, Tap the Red Cane Whirlwind
Tap the Red Cane Whirlwind
Tap the Red Cane Whirlwind is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps. It reached number 11 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums.-History:...
, which was followed a year later by the studio album Tunesmith Retrofit
Tunesmith Retrofit
Tunesmith Retrofit is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2006. It was his first recording on the Rounder label after five releases with Rykodisc. It reached #5 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums charts.-Reception:...
. His latest album was entitled Western Bell
Western Bell
Western Bell is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released 2009. Unlike his previous albums, Western Bell is entirely instrumental...
.
Discography
- Lead Me OnLead Me On (Kelly Joe Phelps album)Lead Me On is the debut album of American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps. It is his first release on the Burnside label before moving to Rykodisc Records.-Reception:...
, 1994 (Burnside Records) - Roll Away the StoneRoll Away the Stone (Kelly Joe Phelps album)Roll Away the Stone is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 1997. It was his first release on the Rykodisc label and reached #10 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums charts....
, 1997 (Rykodisc Records) - Shine Eyed Mister ZenShine Eyed Mister ZenShine Eyed Mister Zen is the third album by American blues artist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 1999.Shine Eyed Mister Zen was recorded at Phelps' home with all the tracks recorded in single takes...
, 1999 (Rykodisc Records) - Sky Like a Broken ClockSky Like a Broken ClockSky Like a Broken Clock is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2001. It reached #8 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums charts.-History:...
, 2001 (Rykodisc Records) - Beggar's OilBeggar's OilBeggar's Oil is an EP by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2002.-History:Beggar's Oil was recorded at Long View Farms from Feb 6 - Feb 13, 2001 during the same sessions that produced Sky Like a Broken Clock. Phelps' first releases were essentially his voice and the...
(EP), 2002 (Rykodisc Records) - Slingshot ProfessionalsSlingshot ProfessionalsSlingshot Professionals is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2003.-History:Slingshot Professionals was Phelps' first album with producer Lee Townsend...
, 2003 (Rykodisc Records) - Tap the Red Cane WhirlwindTap the Red Cane WhirlwindTap the Red Cane Whirlwind is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps. It reached number 11 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums.-History:...
, 2005 (Rykodisc / True North Records) - Tunesmith RetrofitTunesmith RetrofitTunesmith Retrofit is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released in 2006. It was his first recording on the Rounder label after five releases with Rykodisc. It reached #5 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums charts.-Reception:...
, 2006 (Rounder) - Western BellWestern BellWestern Bell is an album by American blues singer and guitarist Kelly Joe Phelps, released 2009. Unlike his previous albums, Western Bell is entirely instrumental...
, 2009 (Black Hen Music) - Magnetic Skyline (EP with Corinne WestCorinne WestCorinne West is an American singer-songwriter, born and raised in California, who started singing and writing songs at five years of age. She dropped out of high school and joined a group of artists touring the United States in a bus and began her music busking career...
), 2010 (Make Records)
With other artists
- Paul CurreriPaul CurreriPaul Curreri, an American musician and songwriter who performs mainly in the folk and blues music styles, was born in Seattle, WA in 1976 and raised in Richmond, Virginia. His brother Matt Curreri is also a performing musician. Paul married songwriter/guitarist Devon Sproule in May 2005 and...
: Songs for Devon Sproule (City Salvage Records) – producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, slide guitarSlide guitarSlide guitar or bottleneck guitar is a particular method or technique for playing the guitar. The term slide refers to the motion of the slide against the strings, while bottleneck refers to the original material of choice for such slides: the necks of glass bottles...
on "Crozet Trestle Bridge" - Zubot and DawsonZubot and DawsonZubot and Dawson are a "Strang" music group from Vancouver, BC. Canada. The group is composed of Jesse Zubot on fiddle and Steve Dawson on guitar who play "Strang", which is in short a blend of folk and jazz music.- History :...
: Chicken Scratch (True North RecordsTrue North RecordsTrue North Records is a Canadian independent record label. It was founded in Mississauga, Ontario in 1969 by Bernie Finkelstein. On December 17, 2007, True North was acquired by an investment group led by Linus Entertainment...
) – vocals, acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
on "Hellhound on My TrailHellhound on My Trail"Hellhound on My Trail" is a blues song recorded by Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson in 1937. It was the first song recorded during Johnson's last recording session in Dallas, Texas on Sunday, June 20, 1937 and the first single released from that session...
" and "May You Never" - Jay FarrarJay FarrarJay Farrar is an American songwriter and musician currently based in St. Louis, Missouri. A veteran of two critically acclaimed music groups, Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt, he began his solo music career in 2001...
: Sebastopol (Artemis Records) – slide guitar on "Outside The Door" - Rory BlockRory Block-Festival appearances:*Long Beach Blues Festival - 1993*San Francisco Blues Festival - 1999*Notodden Blues Festival - 2006-See also:*List of blues musicians*List of contemporary blues musicians*List of Austin City Limits performers-External links:****...
: I'm Every Woman (Rounder RecordsRounder RecordsRounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students...
) – slide guitar and lead vocals on "Pretty Polly" - Linda Tillery and The Cultural Heritage Choir: Say Yo' Business (a live recording) (Earthbeat Records R2 76762) – slide guitar on "Spirituals Medley" and slide guitar, lead vocals on "Ain't No Mo' Cane On Dis Brazos"
- Tim O'BrienTim O'Brien (musician)Tim O'Brien is an American country and bluegrass musician. In addition to singing, he plays guitar, fiddle, mandolin, banjo, bouzouki and mandocello...
: The Crossing (Alula Records ALU-1014) – lap slide guitarLap slide guitarA lap slide guitar is a general term often used to describe any guitar played on the lap with a slide or steel.Lap slide guitars are generally one of three types:* Acoustic resonator guitars* Electric lap steels...
on "John Riley" - Greg Brown: Slant 6 Mind (Red House RecordsRed House RecordsRed House Records is an American independent record label specializing in folk music and is based in St. Paul, Minnesota.The label was originally created in 1981 by Greg Brown as a method to distribute his own music, and is named for a farmhouse in Iowa where he was living...
RHR CD 98) – lap steel guitarLap steel guitarThe lap steel guitar is a type of steel guitar, an instrument derived from and similar to the guitar. The player changes pitch by pressing a metal or glass bar against the strings instead of by pressing strings against the fingerboard....
on "Speaking in Tongues", lap slide on "Vivid" - Greg Brown: Further In (Red House Records RHR CD 88) – lap slide guitar on "Small Dark Movie", "Think About You", "China" and "Someday When We're Both Alone"
- Tony FurtadoTony FurtadoTony Furtado is an American banjo player and slide guitar, and singer/songwriter.player of Portuguese and Italian heritage who was born in Oakland, California...
: Roll My Blues Away (Rounder Records CD 0343) – lead vocals and lap slide guitar on "Willow Tree" and "Boat's up the River", lap slide guitar on "The Stark Raven" and "Bolinas" - Tony Furtado Band (Cojema Music CM-CD2001) – vocals to "False Hearted Lover", "Raleigh and Spencer" and "Mollie and Tenbrooks"
- Martin SimpsonMartin SimpsonMartin Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.-Biography:...
: Cool & Unusual (Red House Records RHR CD110) - Louise TaylorLouise TaylorLouise Taylor is an American folk singer-songwriter from Brattleboro, Vermont. An older brother gave her a guitar when she was twelve and at age 15 she left home, hitchhiking and busking her way around the United States...
: Ride (Signature Sounds SIG 1241) – lap slide guitar on "Roll Away Car" and "Islamorada" - Bo Ramsey: In the Weeds (Trailer Records trailer 10) – lap steel guitar on "Precious" and "King of Clubs"
- Townes Van ZandtTownes Van ZandtJohn Townes Van Zandt , best known as Townes Van Zandt, was an American Texas Country-folk music singer-songwriter, performer, and poet...
: The Highway Kind (Normal Records (FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) 201 CDCompact DiscThe Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
) – dobroDobroDobro is a registered trademark, now owned by Gibson Guitar Corporation and used for a particular design of resonator guitar.The name has a long and involved history, interwoven with that of the resonator guitar...
on "Banks of the Ohio" and "Ira Hayes"
See also
External links
- Official website
- [ Phelps biography] at Allmusic website