Please allow me to introduce myself…
My name is John, John Kenny, and I am a musician. For over 25 years now, I have been playing, writing and recording music, as well as managing several bands. I have played over 2,000 gigs with my own bands – such as Kadesh, Attic Choir, Running on Faith and Rubian – as well as doing session work and being fortunate enough to have some amazing other experiences like –
- Playing in a Blues Brothers tribute band
- supporting Ralph McTell on tour as part of an acoustic duo
- and maybe best of all, playing in an Elvis Presley band; I was privileged enough to spend some time with Scotty Moore in his Nashville home and listen to his amazing stories about playing with Elvis and hear about the birth of rock and roll as he had experienced.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have played with or played on the same bill as Bryn Haworth (Joan Armatrading, Gerry Rafferty), Chris Eaton (Cliff Richard), Norman Barratt (Gravy Train, Larry Norman), Mark Hunter (James), Ian Kirkham (Spiral Axis, Simply Red), John Renbourn, Bert Jansch, Ken Nicol (The Albion Band, Steeleye Span), Oasis, The Spice Girls, Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings, Suzi Quatro, Roy Wood’s Wizzard, The Animals, Sweet, John Coghlan’s Quo, Dr. Feelgood, John Otway, Michael Bruce (Alice Cooper), Dave Sharpe (The Alarm), Gerry Donoghue (Fairport Convention), Buck Brown (Nils Lofgren, Bruce Springsteen), Phil Kenzie (Beatles, Rod Stewart, Eagles), Keef Hartley (John Mayall & the Blues Breakers)… And on one surreal evening, whilst playing a gig, The Troggs were walking home from their own show and gave us the thumbs up!
I was also lucky enough to do an amazing 2 week tour in Mexico, where we drove south for 5 hours to Oaxaca to work with a children’s homeless centre, whilst also playing in community centres and churches. We also had a movie-scene moment, whilst on the Baja Peninsula, when we played a midnight gig under a million stars on the beach until the sun rose in glorious splendour over the sea.
Sadly, there have also been moments that didn’t quite pan out…
I almost got to jam with Billy Cox when he was playing a gig in the Nashville library but …
I’ve been a fan of The Alarm since the first album; then years later, we supported Dave Sharp, the guitar player. The week after, I got a call from him – he was putting a band together and wanted me to play guitar! It took a moment for my brain to process such an unbelievable opportunity, but I managed to say “you bet” and he sent me the CD’s. Unfortunately, as so often happens in this business, nothing ever actually came of it, but for a moment there, I was happy to hear those Alarm bells ringing!
Additionally, I hosted a radio show on Preston FM called ‘Bring Me Sunshine’ where I got to play a lot of the music that has influenced me over the years (a little more on that further down) and another show on Magic 828.
