Matthew Kelly (musician)
Encyclopedia
Matthew Kelly, also known as Matt Kelly, is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He plays guitar
and harmonica
. Kelly is best known for being the leader of the rock band Kingfish
, and for his association with Bob Weir
and the Grateful Dead
.
artists, including Mel Brown
, Champion Jack Dupree
, Johnny Lee Hooker, and T-Bone Walker
.
During this period, Kelly was also involved in the burgeoning rock music
scene in the San Francisco Bay Area
. He played electric guitar and harmonica in several different psychedelic rock
bands, along with fellow South Bay musicians Dave Torbert
and Chris Herold.
Subsequently, Kelly lived in England for a number of months, and was a member of the rock band Gospel Oak. Upon his return to California, he renewed his association with Dave Torbert, who was then playing bass
in the New Riders of the Purple Sage
. Kelly would also sometimes hang out with a boyhood friend of his, Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead. During this period Kelly occasionally performed as a guest musician with the New Riders or the Dead. He appeared on one track of the 1973 Dead album Wake of the Flood
.
In 1973, Torbert left the New Riders of the Purple Sage, and he and Kelly formed the band Kingfish, along with Chris Herold, Robbie Hoddinott, and Mick Ward. In 1974, the Grateful Dead went on hiatus, and Weir became a full time member of Kingfish, recording and performing with the band extensively. In 1976, the Dead started touring again, and Weir left Kingfish. Kingfish continued playing many live dates, occasionally with Weir in the lineup, and released several more albums. In 1978, Kelly played on a few tracks of the Grateful Dead album Shakedown Street
. He also played on several songs at the December 31, 1978 Dead show that was later released on CD and DVD as The Closing of Winterland
.
Kingfish disbanded, for a time, in 1980. In 1981, Kelly became one of the original members of Bob Weir's band Bobby and the Midnites
, and appeared on the band's self-titled first album
, along with Brent Mydland
, Billy Cobham
, Alphonso Johnson
, and Bobby Cochran
. In 1983, Dave Torbert died. The following year, Matt Kelly reformed Kingfish. From that time on, Kelly led a gradually evolving lineup of musicians, as Kingfish intermittently toured and released live albums. In 1987, Kelly also released a solo album, A Wing and a Prayer.
In 1995, Bob Weir formed a new band, Ratdog
. Kelly was an original member of that band, along with Rob Wasserman
and Jay Lane
. Kelly played guitar and harmonica in Ratdog until 1998.
The intermittent existence of Kingfish, led by Matthew Kelly, continues to the present time. In 1999, the band released a studio album, Sundown on the Forest
. They have also released a number of live albums of older material.
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
and harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
. Kelly is best known for being the leader of the rock band Kingfish
Kingfish (band)
Kingfish is an American rock band led by Matthew Kelly, a musician, singer, and songwriter who plays guitar and harmonica. Kelly co-founded Kingfish in 1973 with New Riders of the Purple Sage bass player Dave Torbert and fellow San Francisco Bay Area musicians Robbie Hoddinott, Chris Herold, and...
, and for his association with Bob Weir
Bob Weir
Bob Weir is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist, most recognized as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. After the Grateful Dead disbanded in 1995, Weir performed with The Other Ones, later known as The Dead, together with other former members of the Grateful Dead...
and the Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long...
.
Career
Matthew Kelly began his musical career in the late 1960s, playing harmonica with some well known bluesBlues
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...
artists, including Mel Brown
Mel Brown
Mel Brown was an American-born blues guitarist.Brown was nominated for a Juno Award in both 2001 and 2002.Brown, a long-time smoker, died aged 69, on March 20, 2009, in Kitchener, Ontario, of complications from emphysema....
, Champion Jack Dupree
Champion Jack Dupree
William Thomas Dupree, best known as Champion Jack Dupree, was an American blues pianist. His birth date is disputed, given as July 4, July 10, and July 23, in the years 1908, 1909, or 1910. He died on January 21, 1992.-Biography:...
, Johnny Lee Hooker, and T-Bone Walker
T-Bone Walker
Aaron Thibeaux "T-Bone" Walker was a critically acclaimed American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, who was one of the most influential pioneers and innovators of the jump blues and electric blues sound. He is the first musician recorded playing blues with the...
.
During this period, Kelly was also involved in the burgeoning rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
scene in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
. He played electric guitar and harmonica in several different psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
bands, along with fellow South Bay musicians Dave Torbert
Dave Torbert
Dave Torbert was a Bay Area musician, best known for his associations with the Grateful Dead and the New Riders of the Purple Sage. He played bass for the latter group, replacing Phil Lesh during the sessions for their first album...
and Chris Herold.
Subsequently, Kelly lived in England for a number of months, and was a member of the rock band Gospel Oak. Upon his return to California, he renewed his association with Dave Torbert, who was then playing bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
in the New Riders of the Purple Sage
New Riders of the Purple Sage
New Riders of the Purple Sage is an American country rock band. The group emerged from the psychedelic rock scene in San Francisco, California in 1969, and its original lineup included several members of the Grateful Dead. Their best known song is "Panama Red"...
. Kelly would also sometimes hang out with a boyhood friend of his, Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead. During this period Kelly occasionally performed as a guest musician with the New Riders or the Dead. He appeared on one track of the 1973 Dead album Wake of the Flood
Wake of the Flood
Wake of the Flood is the sixth studio album by the Grateful Dead. It was recorded between August 4 and September 1, 1973 and originally released on October 15, 1973. It was the first release under the band's own label, Grateful Dead Records, after fulfilling their contract with Warner Bros. Records...
.
In 1973, Torbert left the New Riders of the Purple Sage, and he and Kelly formed the band Kingfish, along with Chris Herold, Robbie Hoddinott, and Mick Ward. In 1974, the Grateful Dead went on hiatus, and Weir became a full time member of Kingfish, recording and performing with the band extensively. In 1976, the Dead started touring again, and Weir left Kingfish. Kingfish continued playing many live dates, occasionally with Weir in the lineup, and released several more albums. In 1978, Kelly played on a few tracks of the Grateful Dead album Shakedown Street
Shakedown Street
Shakedown Street is the tenth studio album by the Grateful Dead. It was released on November 15, 1978 by Arista.The album was released for the first time on CD in 1990 by Arista Records before being re-released in 2000 by BMG International. It was then remastered, expanded, and released as part of...
. He also played on several songs at the December 31, 1978 Dead show that was later released on CD and DVD as The Closing of Winterland
The Closing of Winterland
The Closing of Winterland is a 4 CD soundtrack of the Grateful Dead's New Year's Eve show 1978. The concert was also released as a 2 disc DVD. The title derives from the fact that it was the last concert in San Francisco's Winterland Arena, which was shut down shortly thereafter...
.
Kingfish disbanded, for a time, in 1980. In 1981, Kelly became one of the original members of Bob Weir's band Bobby and the Midnites
Bobby and the Midnites
Bobby and the Midnites was a rock group led by Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead. The band was Weir's main side project during the first half of the 1980s. They released two albums, but were better known for their live concerts than for their work in the recording studio...
, and appeared on the band's self-titled first album
Bobby & the Midnites
Bobby and the Midnites is a 1981 studio album by Grateful Dead singer and guitarist Bob Weir and his then side project, Bobby and the Midnites. The band featured fellow Grateful Dead member Brent Mydland at that time, and also jazz/fusion drummer Billy Cobham. Though not a huge commercial success,...
, along with Brent Mydland
Brent Mydland
Brent Mydland was the fourth keyboardist to play for the American rock band the Grateful Dead. He was with the band for eleven years, longer than any other keyboardist.- Early life :...
, Billy Cobham
Billy Cobham
William C. Cobham is a Panamanian American jazz drummer, composer and bandleader, who has called Switzerland home since the late 1970s....
, Alphonso Johnson
Alphonso Johnson
Alphonso Johnson is an American jazz bassist who has been influential since the early 1970s.-Biography:Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Johnson started off as an upright bass player, but switched to the electric bass in his late teens. Beginning his career in the early 1970s, Johnson showed...
, and Bobby Cochran
Bobby Cochran
Bobby Cochran is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He has worked with many bands, including Steppenwolf, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Leon Russell, and Bobby and the Midnites.-External links:*, official website of Bobby Cochran...
. In 1983, Dave Torbert died. The following year, Matt Kelly reformed Kingfish. From that time on, Kelly led a gradually evolving lineup of musicians, as Kingfish intermittently toured and released live albums. In 1987, Kelly also released a solo album, A Wing and a Prayer.
In 1995, Bob Weir formed a new band, Ratdog
Ratdog
RatDog , is an American rock band. The group began as a side project for Grateful Dead rhythm guitarist Bob Weir and bassist Rob Wasserman. After the Grateful Dead disbanded in December 1995, following the death of Jerry Garcia on August 9, 1995, RatDog became Bob Weir's primary band...
. Kelly was an original member of that band, along with Rob Wasserman
Rob Wasserman
Rob Wasserman is an American bass player, who has played with a wide variety of musicians including David Grisman, Lou Reed, Bob Weir, Jerry Garcia, Bruce Cockburn, Van Morrison, Rickie Lee Jones, Brian Wilson, Elvis Costello, Mark Morris, Aaron Neville, Chris Whitley, Studs Terkel, Pete Seeger,...
and Jay Lane
Jay Lane
Jay Lane is an American drummer from the San Francisco Bay Area. He is currently a member of Primus, as well as Bob Weir's RatDog, Scaring the Children with Weir and Rob Wasserman, and the hip hop/jazz fusion group Alphabet Soup. In 2002, Lane was named "drummer of the year" by the California...
. Kelly played guitar and harmonica in Ratdog until 1998.
The intermittent existence of Kingfish, led by Matthew Kelly, continues to the present time. In 1999, the band released a studio album, Sundown on the Forest
Sundown on the Forest
Sundown on the Forest is an album by the rock group Kingfish. It was recorded over a period of several years with different combinations of musicians, and released in 1999...
. They have also released a number of live albums of older material.
Selected discography
- I'd Rather Suck My Thumb – Mel BrownMel BrownMel Brown was an American-born blues guitarist.Brown was nominated for a Juno Award in both 2001 and 2002.Brown, a long-time smoker, died aged 69, on March 20, 2009, in Kitchener, Ontario, of complications from emphysema....
(1969) - Horses – Horses (1969)
- Gospel Oak – Gospel Oak (1970)
- Wake of the FloodWake of the FloodWake of the Flood is the sixth studio album by the Grateful Dead. It was recorded between August 4 and September 1, 1973 and originally released on October 15, 1973. It was the first release under the band's own label, Grateful Dead Records, after fulfilling their contract with Warner Bros. Records...
– Grateful DeadGrateful DeadThe Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long...
(1973) - Kingfish – KingfishKingfish (band)Kingfish is an American rock band led by Matthew Kelly, a musician, singer, and songwriter who plays guitar and harmonica. Kelly co-founded Kingfish in 1973 with New Riders of the Purple Sage bass player Dave Torbert and fellow San Francisco Bay Area musicians Robbie Hoddinott, Chris Herold, and...
(1976) - Come to MeCome to Me (Juice Newton album)Come to Me is an album by Juice Newton and Silver Spur released on the Capitol Records label in 1977. Many foreign issues of the album included "It's A Heartache", which was released as a one-off single in the United States.-Side one:...
– Juice NewtonJuice NewtonJudith Kay "Juice" Newton is an American Pop music and Country singer, songwriter and guitarist...
(1977) - Live 'n' Kickin'Live 'N' Kickin' (Kingfish album)Live 'n' Kickin' is the second album by the rock group Kingfish. It was recorded live at the Roxy in West Hollywood, California. Released as an LP in 1977, it has not been issued on CD.-Track listing:# "Goodbye Your Honor"...
– Kingfish (1977) - TridentTrident (Kingfish album)Trident is an album by the rock band Kingfish. Their second studio album and their third album overall, it was recorded at the Record Plant in Sausalito, California, and released by Jet Records in 1978....
– Kingfish (1978) - Shakedown StreetShakedown StreetShakedown Street is the tenth studio album by the Grateful Dead. It was released on November 15, 1978 by Arista.The album was released for the first time on CD in 1990 by Arista Records before being re-released in 2000 by BMG International. It was then remastered, expanded, and released as part of...
– Grateful Dead (1978) - Bobby and the Midnites – Bobby and the MidnitesBobby and the MidnitesBobby and the Midnites was a rock group led by Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead. The band was Weir's main side project during the first half of the 1980s. They released two albums, but were better known for their live concerts than for their work in the recording studio...
(1981) - KingfishKingfish (1985 album)Kingfish is an album by the rock band Kingfish. It contains previously unreleased tracks that were recorded at various times during the band's first eight years, and is sometimes referred to as Kingfish . Released by Relix Records as a vinyl LP in 1985, side one was recorded in the studio, and...
– Kingfish (1985) - Alive in Eighty FiveAlive in Eighty FiveAlive in Eighty Five — also known as Alive in '85 — is an album by the rock band Kingfish. It was recorded at Sweetwater in Mill Valley, California in 1985, and released by Relix Records as a vinyl LP later that year. It was released on CD in 1991.It is unclear whether or not Alive in Eighty Five...
– Kingfish (1985) - A Wing and a Prayer – Matthew Kelly (1987)
- Kingfish in Concert: King Biscuit Flower HourKingfish in Concert: King Biscuit Flower HourKingfish in Concert: King Biscuit Flower Hour is a live album by the rock group Kingfish. It was recorded at the Beacon Theatre in New York City on April 3, 1976, and released in 1996...
– Kingfish (1996) - Relix's Best of Kingfish – Kingfish (1997)
- Sundown on the ForestSundown on the ForestSundown on the Forest is an album by the rock group Kingfish. It was recorded over a period of several years with different combinations of musicians, and released in 1999...
– Kingfish (1999) - Evening MoodsEvening MoodsEvening Moods is a 2000 studio album by the band Ratdog, featuring former Grateful Dead rhythm guitarist Bob Weir. It consists of a number of new songs introduced by Ratdog during the previous year and a Grateful Dead song, "Corrina"...
– RatdogRatdogRatDog , is an American rock band. The group began as a side project for Grateful Dead rhythm guitarist Bob Weir and bassist Rob Wasserman. After the Grateful Dead disbanded in December 1995, following the death of Jerry Garcia on August 9, 1995, RatDog became Bob Weir's primary band...
(2000) - The Closing of WinterlandThe Closing of WinterlandThe Closing of Winterland is a 4 CD soundtrack of the Grateful Dead's New Year's Eve show 1978. The concert was also released as a 2 disc DVD. The title derives from the fact that it was the last concert in San Francisco's Winterland Arena, which was shut down shortly thereafter...
– Grateful Dead (2003)