Charles Ethan Kenning (born August 19, 1943 in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

) is an American singer, songwriter and musician who performed as George Edwards when he led 1960s

acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage rock, garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelia, psychedelic subculture. While the term has sometimes been used interchangeably with "psyc ...

band,

H. P. Lovecraft Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of Weird fiction, weird, Science fiction, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. Born in Provi ...

. He was

adopted Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

as a child and brought up under the name George Edwards. He reverted to his birth name of Ethan Kenning in his mid-30s. H. P. Lovecraft, An interview with George Edwards
''

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'', 1991 In the mid-1960s he performed

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

music in clubs in Chicago and as a session singer with Dunwich Records. He released an unsuccessful version of

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

' " Norwegian Wood" on Dunwich Records in 1966, before forming a new band, H. P. Lovecraft. The band featured striking

vocal harmonies Vocal harmony is a style of vocal music in which a consonant note or notes are simultaneously sung as a main melody in a predominantly homophonic texture. Vocal harmonies are used in many subgenres of European art music, including Classical chor ...

between Edwards and the classically-trained Dave Michaels and atmospheric instrumentation and effects on songs. Some of the band's songs were co-written by Edwards, including some inspired by the writings of the author of the same name. The band released two albums, ''

'' in 1967 and '' H. P. Lovecraft II'' in 1968 before splitting up in early 1969. Edwards then worked for a time as a music show promoter, before he and original H.P. Lovecraft drummer Michael Tegza formed a new band, Lovecraft. Edwards left this band after their first album. Edwards, later known a
Ethan Kenning
, then worked in music production in California and in writing and producing TV and radio commercials. He won two

Clio Awards The Clio Awards, also simply known as The Clios, is an annual award program that recognizes innovation and creative excellence in advertising, design, and communication, as judged by an international panel of advertising professionals. The award ...

for

Levi's Levi Strauss & Co. ( ) is an American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's ( ) brand of denim jeans. It was founded in May 1853 when German-Jewish immigrant Levi Strauss moved from Buttenheim, Bavaria, to San Francisco, California, ...

commercials with

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. He won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His ...

and

Leon Redbone Leon Redbone (born Dickran Gobalian; August 26, 1949 – May 30, 2019) was a singer-songwriter and musician specializing in jazz, blues, and Tin Pan Alley classics. Recognized by his hat (often a Panama), dark sunglasses, and black tie, he was ...

and also produced commercials for

Taco Bell Taco Bell Corp. is an American multinational chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962 by Glen Bell (1923–2010) in Downey, California. Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. The restaurants serve a variety of Mexican-inspired ...

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (Bank of America) (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment banking, investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in ...

, and others. He has also worked occasionally with Dave Michaels. More recently he has worked as manager and producer of improvisational singer Rhiannon. A fictional portrayal of George Edwards appears as the central character in

Harry Turtledove Harry Norman Turtledove (born June 14, 1949) is an American author who is best known for his work in the genres of alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction, and mystery fiction. He is a student of history and completed his ...

's short horror-adventure story "The Fillmore Shoggoth," where a performance of the Lovecraft tribute band is disrupted when Lovecraftian monsters attack the theater.Joshi, S.T., ed.; ''The Madness of Cthulhu''. London: Titan Books, 2014.

References

External links

www.ethankenning.com
1943 births Living people American rock singers Musicians from Chicago H. P. Lovecraft (band) members {{US-rock-musician-stub