Kevn Kinney

Kevn Kinney fronted the Atlanta rock outfit Drivin' n' Cryin' from its formation in 1986 onward, yet he also put out a series of stripped-down acoustic solo sets, frequently teaming with R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck. The 1990 Island release MacDougal Blues marked his entry into the folk world through its inviting title track and nine additional acoustic numbers, with Buck handling production and most of the playing supplied by Kinney’s Drivin' n' Cryin' colleagues. Although frequently labeled a working-class songwriter, Kinney resists easy grouping alongside Springsteen, Mellencamp, or Dave Alvin; his perspective on class instead reflects an in-between vantage shaped by time spent living and working in the city of Atlanta. A quiet warmth and strongly humanistic current run through his songs, further deepened by his choice of traditional instrumentation. The follow-up, Down Out Law on Mammoth in 1994, leans more somber and introspective than celebratory, presenting a spare, personal meditation carried almost entirely by Kinney’s lone guitar except for a single track. While still active with Drivin' n' Cryin', he also performed solo for an extended period, often joined onstage by Buck or his own brother. A collaboration that began as a side venture with Warren Haynes of Gov't Mule and formerly of the Allman Brothers evolved into Kinney’s third solo album, The Flower & the Knife, issued in 2000 and featuring additional contributions from Blues Traveler’s John Popper, Edwin McCain, members of Gov't Mule and the Allman Brothers, among others. Broken Hearts and Auto Parts followed in 2002, and a reunion effort with Drivin' n' Cryin', Great American Bubble Factory, appeared in 2009. Kinney resurfaced in 2012 with the solo album Good Country Mile, backed by the Golden Palominos.