Scott Kempner
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Scott Kempner |
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Scott "Top Ten" Kempner (February 6, 1954 - November 29, 2023)[1] was the American rhythm guitarist of The Dictators, having played with the band since they formed in 1974 (only leaving the band for a few years starting in 2002). He was also a founding member of The Del-Lords and later a member of The Brandos. He released a critically acclaimed solo album in 1992 called Tenement Angels.[2]
Kempner contributed "Apache Tears" to the 2007 compilation album Song of America. He released his second solo album, Saving Grace, in July 2008 on 00:02:59 Records.
In the early 1990s, Dion DiMucci joined Kempner and Frank Funaro of the Del-Lords and Mike Mesaros of the Smithereens in a short-lived band called Little Kings. A live album was later released, but not widely circulated or promoted.
In Summer 2008, Variety said about Kempner: "If the world were a just and fair place, Scott Kempner would be stopped regularly by musicians and music fans thanking him for the effect the records he made with the Del-Lords and the Dictators had on their lives. Kempner's music is impossible to not like: He's the rare master at making three-chord rock 'n' roll - inspired by the 1950s and '60s - sound fresh and vital, simultaneously urban and twangy, heartfelt, political and personal."[3]
A Del-Lords reunion album and tour was done in 2013, and Kempner sang and played guitar on the Carla Olson album Have Harmony Will Travel, performing Little Steven's "All I Needed Was You".
References
- ^ Staff, Best Classic Bands (2023-11-29). "Scott Kempner, Founding Member of NYC Bands The Dictators and Del-Lords, Dies". Best Classic Bands. Retrieved 2023-11-29.
- ^ "Artist Search for "scott kempner"". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
- ^ "Scott Kempner". Weblogs.variety.com. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
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