Kenny Brown
Encyclopedia
Kenny Brown is an American
blues
slide guitar
ist from Nesbit
, Mississippi
, United States
. Skilled in the North Mississippi Hill Country blues style popularized by his mentor R. L. Burnside
, Brown began his career by apprenticing with Mississippi Joe Callicott
, Johnny Woods
, and Mississippi Fred McDowell
. He has also cited Muddy Waters
, George "Mojo" Buford, Jessie Mae Hemphill
, Junior Kimbrough
, Johnny Winter
, and Johnny Shines
as influences. He has recorded one album for the Fat Possum Records
label (Stingray), and his most recent double album
, Can't Stay Long, was released in June 2011 on Devil Down Records.
In 1971, Brown began performing with R. L. Burnside, who claimed Brown as his "adopted son." and affectionately called him "white boy on guitar" and "my white son." Both Brown and Burnside have noted the singularity of Brown's being a white
musician playing in the previously predominantly African American
genre of North Mississippi Hill Country blues.
Brown's guitar work was featured in the 2006 film Black Snake Moan, where he provided backing for star Samuel L. Jackson
's vocals. He can also be seen in the film's climax as a guitarist in a blues band, playing alongside Burnside's grandson Cedric.
He has also performed with rock bands Widespread Panic
and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
.
Brown currently lives in Potts Camp, Mississippi
, in the North Mississippi Hill Country.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
slide guitar
Slide guitar
Slide 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...
ist from Nesbit
Nesbit, Mississippi
Nesbit is an unincorporated community in DeSoto County, Mississippi, United States. Nesbit is approximately south of Horn Lake, approximately south of Southaven and approximately north of Hernando near U.S...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Skilled in the North Mississippi Hill Country blues style popularized by his mentor R. L. Burnside
R. L. Burnside
Not to be confused with R. H. Burnside, stage director.R. L. Burnside , born Robert Lee Burnside, was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist who lived much of his life in and around Holly Springs, Mississippi. He played music for much of his life, but did not receive much attention...
, Brown began his career by apprenticing with Mississippi Joe Callicott
Mississippi Joe Callicott
Mississippi' Joe Callicott , was a United States Delta blues singer and guitarist....
, Johnny Woods
Johnny Woods
Johnny Woods was an American blues singer and harmonica player in the North Mississippi style.Woods was born in a small Mississippi town called Looxahoma, just west of Mississippi Highway 35. His harmonica playing first gained notoriety in the 1960s as a duet partner with fellow blues revival...
, and Mississippi Fred McDowell
Mississippi Fred McDowell
Fred McDowell known by his stage name; Mississippi Fred McDowell, was an American Hill country blues singer and guitar player.-Career:...
. He has also cited Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
, George "Mojo" Buford, Jessie Mae Hemphill
Jessie Mae Hemphill
Jessie Mae Hemphill was an American award-winning electric guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist specializing in the primal, northern Mississippi country blues traditions of her family and regional heritage....
, Junior Kimbrough
Junior Kimbrough
David "Junior" Kimbrough was an American blues musician. His best known work included "Keep Your Hands Off Her" and "All Night Long". Music journalist Tony Russell stated "his raw, repetitive style suggests an archaic forebear of John Lee Hooker, a character his music shares with that of fellow...
, Johnny Winter
Johnny Winter
John Dawson "Johnny" Winter III is an American blues guitarist, singer, and producer. Best known for his late 1960s and 1970s high-energy blues-rock albums and live performances, Winter also produced three Grammy Award-winning albums for blues legend Muddy Waters...
, and Johnny Shines
Johnny Shines
Johnny Shines was an American blues singer and guitarist. According to the music journalist Tony Russell, "Shines was that rare being, a blues artist who overcame age and rustiness to make music that stood up beside the work of his youth...
as influences. He has recorded one album for the Fat Possum Records
Fat Possum Records
Fat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording hitherto unknown Mississippi blues artists . Recently, Fat Possum has signed younger rock acts to its roster...
label (Stingray), and his most recent double album
Double album
A double album is an audio album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically records and compact discs....
, Can't Stay Long, was released in June 2011 on Devil Down Records.
In 1971, Brown began performing with R. L. Burnside, who claimed Brown as his "adopted son." and affectionately called him "white boy on guitar" and "my white son." Both Brown and Burnside have noted the singularity of Brown's being a white
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
musician playing in the previously predominantly African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
genre of North Mississippi Hill Country blues.
Brown's guitar work was featured in the 2006 film Black Snake Moan, where he provided backing for star Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
's vocals. He can also be seen in the film's climax as a guitarist in a blues band, playing alongside Burnside's grandson Cedric.
He has also performed with rock bands Widespread Panic
Widespread Panic
Widespread Panic is an American rock band from Athens, Georgia. The current lineup includes guitarist/singer John Bell, bassist Dave Schools, drummer Todd Nance, percussionist Domingo "Sunny" Ortiz, keyboardist John "JoJo" Hermann, and guitarist Jimmy Herring...
and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion are an American alternative rock trio, formed in 1991 and based out of New York City, New York. The band consists of Judah Bauer on guitar, backing vocals, harmonica and occasional lead vocals, Russell Simins on drums and Jon Spencer on vocals, guitar and theremin...
.
Brown currently lives in Potts Camp, Mississippi
Potts Camp, Mississippi
Potts Camp is a town in Marshall County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 494 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Potts Camp is located at ....
, in the North Mississippi Hill Country.
Films
- You See Me Laughin': The Last of the Hill Country Bluesmen (2003; released by Fat Possum Records in 2005). Produced and directed by Mandy Stein. Oxford, Mississippi: Plain Jane Productions, Inc; Fat Possum RecordsFat Possum RecordsFat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording hitherto unknown Mississippi blues artists . Recently, Fat Possum has signed younger rock acts to its roster...
.
External links
- Kenny Brown page from Fat Possum Records site
- Kenny Brown on Myspace Music
- Kenny Brown interview