William Keith Relf (22 March 194312 May 1976) was an English musician, best known as the lead vocalist and harmonica player for rock band

the Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1963. The band started the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists: Eric Clapton (1963–1965), Jeff Beck (1965–1966) and Jimmy Page (1966–1968), all of whom ...

. He then formed the band

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

with his sister Jane Relf, the Yardbirds ex-drummer Jim McCarty and ex- The Nashville Teens keyboardist John Hawken.

Early life

Relf was born in the Richmond Institution on 22 March 1943 to Mary Elsie Vickers and William Arthur Percy Relf. Keith had a sister Jane. His father was a builder, while his mother was a housewife.

Musical career

Keith Relf and Jim McCarty of The Yardbirds

Relf started playing in bands around the summer of 1956 as a singer, guitarist, and harmonica player. Keith Relf in 1966

Relf co-wrote many of the original Yardbirds songs (" Shapes of Things", "I Ain't Done Wrong", " Over Under Sideways Down", " Happenings Ten Years Time Ago"), later showing a leaning towards acoustic/folk music as the sixties unfolded ("Only the Black Rose"). He also sang an early version of " Dazed and Confused" in live Yardbirds concerts, after hearing musician Jake Holmes perform the song, which was later recorded by the band's successor group

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

. His debut solo single, " Mr. Zero", peaked at No. 50 in the UK Singles Chart in May 1966. After the Yardbirds broke up in July 1968, Relf formed the acoustic duo Together, with fellow Yardbird Jim McCarty, followed immediately by

(which also featured his sister Jane Relf). After leaving Renaissance in 1970, he started producing other artists: Steamhammer, folk rock band Hunter Muskett, the acoustic

world music "World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-English speaking countries, including quasi-traditional, Cross-cultural communication, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical ...

group

Amber Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity."Amber" (2004). In Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen (eds.) ''Encyclopedia ...

, psychedelic band Saturnalia, and blues rock band Medicine Head (with whom he also played bass guitar). In 1974, he formed progressive/rock group Armageddon. Their self-titled debut, '' Armageddon'', was recorded in England and released in the United States on

A&M Records A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...

. The album's original liner notes used the term " supergroup"; their personnel (besides Relf) included drummer Bobby Caldwell (previously a member of Captain Beyond and Johnny Winter's band), guitarist Martin Pugh (from Steamhammer, '' The Rod Stewart Album'', and later of 7th Order), and bassist Louis Cennamo (also formerly of Renaissance and Steamhammer).

Personal life and death

In 1966, he married April Liversidge. They had two sons, Danny and Jason. On 12 May 1976, Relf died in the basement of his home at age 33 from

electrocution Electrocution is death or severe injury caused by electric shock from electric current passing through the body. The word is derived from "electro" and "execution", but it is also used for accidental death. The term "electrocution" was coined ...

while playing an ungrounded electric guitar. He had several health problems throughout his life, including

emphysema Emphysema is any air-filled enlargement in the body's tissues. Most commonly emphysema refers to the permanent enlargement of air spaces (alveoli) in the lungs, and is also known as pulmonary emphysema. Emphysema is a lower respiratory tract di ...

and

asthma Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wh ...

. He may have been taking medications such as theophylline commonly used to treat those diseases at the time, and these drugs may have led to

tachycardia Tachycardia, also called tachyarrhythmia, is a heart rate that exceeds the normal resting rate. In general, a resting heart rate over 100 beats per minute is accepted as tachycardia in adults. Heart rates above the resting rate may be normal ...

and/or

arrhythmia Arrhythmias, also known as cardiac arrhythmias, are irregularities in the cardiac cycle, heartbeat, including when it is too fast or too slow. Essentially, this is anything but normal sinus rhythm. A resting heart rate that is too fast – ab ...

which possibly contributed to his inability to survive the

electric shock An electrical injury (electric injury) or electrical shock (electric shock) is damage sustained to the skin or internal organs on direct contact with an electric current. The injury depends on the Current density, density of the current, tissu ...

. His death was announced two days later on 14 May, which is sometimes erroneously listed as the date of his death. He was buried in Richmond Cemetery.

Legacy

Relf's posthumous 1992

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...

induction with the Yardbirds was represented by his widow April, and sons Danny and Jason ("Jay").

Solo singles discography

Most of Relf's recordings were released under the name of the group he was in at the time. However, an early attempt was made to establish him as a solo musician, and two singles came out under his own name in 1966. * " Mr. Zero" / "Knowing" – UK Columbia DB7920 / U.S.

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

10044 (May 1966) ::

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

written by Bob Lind * "Shapes in My Mind" / "Blue Sands" – UK Columbia DB8084 / US Epic 10110 (November 1966) ::

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

is an

instrumental An instrumental or instrumental song is music without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through Semantic change, semantic widening, a broader sense of the word s ...

credited to Relf, but actually performed by the Outsiders (not to be confused with the US band, the Outsiders, who performed " Time Won't Let Me"). The US single featured the same version as the UK single; US promotional copies (on red vinyl) featured a complete re-edit of the song. A further single appeared in 1989: * "Together Now" / "All The Fallen Angels" – MCCM 89 002 (1989) ::US release only. The A-side was originally recorded in 1968 by Together. The B-side was recorded on 2 May 1976, ten days before Relf's death.

References

External links

The Yardbirds official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Relf, Keith 1943 births 1976 deaths 20th-century English singers Alumni of Kingston University English rock singers English blues singers English male singer-songwriters English harmonica players Blues singer-songwriters Electric blues musicians English blues rock musicians British blues (genre) musicians British rhythm and blues boom musicians Blues harmonica players Musicians from the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames People from Richmond, London Singers from the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames The Yardbirds members Accidental deaths by electrocution Accidental deaths in London Burials at Richmond Cemetery English baritones Maracas players Armageddon (British band) members Renaissance (band) members 20th-century English male singers