Biography
Since the late 1980s, mandolinist Kenny Blackwell has maintained an active presence within the West Coast bluegrass community. His network includes close ties to outfits such as the Desert Rose Band and the Laurel Canyon Ramblers, while Los Angeles studios regularly summon him for sessions where recording artists seek a progressive bluegrass flavor on individual tracks. The less stimulating side of such work surfaces in his guitar playing on Randy Newman’s brief cut “Tartine De Merde,” otherwise known as “sh*t pie,” a selection disc jockeys could pair with Captain Beefheart’s “Hair Pie, Bake One” to assemble an especially unappealing program.
Like numerous fellow mandolinists, Blackwell received lessons from Jethro Burns, an outstanding technician on the instrument who also excelled as a teacher. After settling in California, he began working with the forward-thinking fiddler Richard Greene, appearing in groups including the Grass Is Greener during the early 1990s. Steady entry into studio, television, and film dates eventually positioned him as a founding member of the Laurel Canyon Ramblers, the noted California bluegrass ensemble that drew several alumni from Chris Hillman’s Desert Rose Band. The Ramblers recorded intermittently throughout the 1990s and reconvened in 1998 to issue Back on the Street Again, an album whose title nods to the frequently congested Laurel Canyon Boulevard.
Blackwell regularly joins efforts to enlarge the bluegrass songbook, an approach reminiscent of bebop practices in which almost any composition can be adapted through suitable rhythm and an increased tempo. He has taken part in bluegrass renditions of material by the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and the Dave Matthews Band. Ongoing performances place him in a trio completed by guitarist Dorian Michael and bassist Piper Heisig.
Like numerous fellow mandolinists, Blackwell received lessons from Jethro Burns, an outstanding technician on the instrument who also excelled as a teacher. After settling in California, he began working with the forward-thinking fiddler Richard Greene, appearing in groups including the Grass Is Greener during the early 1990s. Steady entry into studio, television, and film dates eventually positioned him as a founding member of the Laurel Canyon Ramblers, the noted California bluegrass ensemble that drew several alumni from Chris Hillman’s Desert Rose Band. The Ramblers recorded intermittently throughout the 1990s and reconvened in 1998 to issue Back on the Street Again, an album whose title nods to the frequently congested Laurel Canyon Boulevard.
Blackwell regularly joins efforts to enlarge the bluegrass songbook, an approach reminiscent of bebop practices in which almost any composition can be adapted through suitable rhythm and an increased tempo. He has taken part in bluegrass renditions of material by the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and the Dave Matthews Band. Ongoing performances place him in a trio completed by guitarist Dorian Michael and bassist Piper Heisig.
Albums
