Kevin Kelley
Kevin Daniel Kelley (born March 25, 1943 in California , † April 6, 2002 in Los Angeles ) was an American drummer who became known through his work in the bands The Rising Sons and The Byrds .
Kelley was a cousin of the Byrds' founding member, Chris Hillman . During his school years at Beverly Hills High School, he played in the school band. He then studied music, first at Santa Monica College, later at Los Angeles City College. After finishing school he enlisted in the US Marines for three years and was stationed in Japan for a year , where he began to be interested in Far Eastern religions.
After his military service, he joined the group of Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder , The Rising Sons , in 1965 , where he replaced the later founding member of Spirit , Ed Cassidy , on drums. During this time he also learned to play guitar and piano. The Rising Sons were a band that mixed blues , folk and rock and, during their time with Kelley, managed about 20 studio recordings, but could only release one single. The remaining recordings were only released on CD in 1992.
After the dissolution of the Rising Sons in 1966, he worked in a men's clothing store. In January 1968 he was inducted into the Byrds by Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman. McGuinn and Hillman had shrunk to a Byrd duo in late 1967, after David Crosby was kicked out of the band and Michael Clarke had left shortly afterwards .
The Byrds performed as a trio in front of a small audience for a while before they were joined by Gram Parsons , who, together with Hillman, was able to push through the idea of a pure country LP. The result, Sweetheart Of The Rodeo, is considered a milestone in country rock . With their new program, the quartet tried to win over a new following among die-hard country fans and was even able to perform in the traditional Grand Ole Opry on March 15, 1968 .
After a European tour and disappointing sales of the Sweetheart album, the Byrds planned a tour of South Africa. When Gram Parsons refused because of the apartheid policy there, he was released from the band and the Byrds were a trio again. They were joined by guitarist Clarence White in August 1968 .
In search of a compromise between the old Byrds style and the new country influences, Hillman and White came to the conclusion that Kevin Kelley couldn't play hard enough for a country rock program. Instead, he was replaced by Gene Parsons , a musical companion of White.
After the Byrds, Kelley joined the formation Fever Tree, who recorded the album For Sale with him in 1969 . At the same time he began a career as a studio musician. In 1969 he worked on the album The Yellow Princess by John Fahey and in 1970 on the LP Gunfight At Carnegie Hall by Phil Ochs . In 1970 Jesse Barish, a friend of Marty Balin ( Jefferson Airplane ) founded the group Jesse, Wolf and Whings. With Kevin Kelley on drums, she recorded a single and an album of the same name.
1973 Kelley played on the LP What Did You ex pect of Michael Cohen and 1974. Let The Days Go By by Bryn Haworth .
In 2003 Legacy Records released a deluxe edition of the album Sweetheart Of The Rodeo with a previously unreleased song. Kevin Kelly was the lead singer on All I Have Is Memories .
He died of natural causes on April 6, 2002 in Los Angeles at the age of 59.
Web links
- Kevin Kelley discography at Byrdwatcher
- Kevin Kelley bio and discography at Starcluster Music
- The Byrds Lyrics page
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kelley, Kevin |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Kelley, Kevin Daniel (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American drummer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 25, 1943 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | California |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 6, 2002 |
| Place of death | los Angeles |