Kenny Howes (born February 10, 1970) is an American musician primarily in the

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ...

genre.Borack, John. Shake Some Action: The Ultimate Power Pop Guide. Not Lame Recording Company. p. 118. .

Musical style/influences

While swaying into other genres such as

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

, garage, psychedelic pop, and

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

, Kenny Howes favors the

genre ("like

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...

but louder," he says).

History

Early years

Raised in Mulberry, Florida, United States, Howes began his musical endeavors at the age of ten by simultaneously learning the guitar and piano at home and the

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

at school. Through his musical ferocity for

, he quickly became proficient on these and other instruments. By his teens, Howes was performing regularly with many local garage cover bands in a variety of styles, including punk, new wave, new romantic,

Paisley Underground Paisley Underground is a musical genre that originated in California. It was particularly popular in Los Angeles, reaching a peak in the mid-1980s. Paisley Underground bands incorporated psychedelia, rich vocal harmonies and guitar interplay, owi ...

, folk/ acoustic, and AOR rock/ heavy metal.

1989 – 1996

In 1989, after graduating from Mulberry High School and then Polk Community College, Howes attended Florida State University in

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the populatio ...

, and while there began his recording career, following the breakup of his band The Mustardseeds and after a stint with local faves Zombie Birdhouse. Overdubbing all voices and instruments (except drums, performed by schoolmate Kelly Shane), Howes released his first collection ''Nothing Wrong With That'' first as a DIY cassette EP in 1993 and then (after adding four songs) as a full-length CD in 1995. After an East Coast US solo tour, he then recorded and released his CD ''Kenny Howes' Second Album'' in early 1996, which had favorable reviews and is known not only for the song "Girls With Glasses" ("one of the finest power pop tracks of the '90s," said author/power pop reviewer John Borack), but also for its cover art, which parodies '' The Beatles' Second Album''. In addition to favorable reviews, ''Kenny Howes' Second Album'' was ranked #157 on ''The 200 Greatest Power Pop Albums'' list in the 2007 book ''Shake Some Action: The Ultimate Power Pop Guide''. This disc once again featured only Howes and Shane, who had begun performing live as Kenny Howes and the Curious Yellow, along with guitarist Bob Anthony, bassist Ben Pringle (later of

Nerf Herder Nerf Herder is an American rock band from Santa Barbara, California, formed in 1994 by Parry Gripp (vocals, guitar), Charlie Dennis (bass) and Steve Sherlock (drums). They describe themselves as a " geek rock" band, and are known for simplis ...

and The Rentals), and Chuck Vaughan on combo organ (later replacing Pringle on bass). The band embarked on an East Coast tour in spring 1996.

1996 – 2002

In 1996, Howes and drummer Kelly Shane relocated to the

Atlanta, GA Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

area, and began work on Howes' next CD ''Back To You Today!'' (released 1998). The disc's cover art was an unintentional nod to Grand Funk Railroad's "

Pointing Finger Pointing finger may refer to: * Index finger, in human anatomy * Index (typography), an old punctuation mark which consists of a hand with extended index finger * ''The Pointing Finger'' (1919 film), an American film starring Mary MacLaren * '' ...

" logo. While piecing together a new group, Howes joined the psychedelic pop band

Orange Hat Orange Hat is an American rock and psychedelic pop band from Atlanta, GA. History Early years Guitarist Christo Harris started Orange Hat while in high school in 1983 and was joined by guitarist/bassist David "Zeus" Henderson several years late ...

(playing the Vox Continental organ), with whom he recorded the CD ''Pufferfish'' and continued to perform live until 2002. He rejoined Orange Hat ten years later, and continues to record and perform with the band. In 1998 a lineup stabilized for his new group, Kenny Howes & the Yeah!, comprising Howes, Shane, guitarist Jason NeSmith (of Orange Hat, later of

Casper and the Cookies Casper & the Cookies is an American rock and pop band from Athens, Georgia, United States. History Multi-instrumentalist and singer Jason NeSmith (pronounced "KNEE-smith," no relation to Michael Nesmith of the Monkees), began using the pseudo ...

) and bassist Kyle Harris (later of The Diamond Center). The group was a popular draw in both the Atlanta and Athens, GA

scenes. Also, starting in 1998, Howes also began performing regularly at the annual International Pop Overthrow

music festival in Los Angeles. He would typically perform with local L.A. backing musicians, although KH&Y did perform at the festival as a group in 2000, at the El Rey Theatre. In 2000, Howes signed a licensing/distribution deal with short-lived indie label SecondHeaven.com, who released ''The Right Idea,'' a compilation of remixed songs from Howes' first three CD releases, which were now

out of print __NOTOC__ An out-of-print (OOP) or out-of-commerce item or work is something that is no longer being published. The term applies to all types of printed matter, visual media, sound recordings, and video recordings. An out-of-print book is a boo ...

. Kenny appears briefly in Glenn Tilbrook's film '' One for the Road'', accompanying the Squeeze frontman in an impromptu 2001 living room concert in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

. Howes and his band began work on their first group recording in 2000 at Chase Park Transduction studios in Athens, GA, recorded by NeSmith and David Barbe of Sugar. (Some pre-production was done in

Hoboken, NJ Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58, ...

with producer Don Fleming.) These sessions, which featured a re-working of Kirsty MacColl's " They Don't Know," were released in a small run of CDs on Royal Fuzz Records as ''Kenny Howes & the Yeah!'' in late 2001; the album was re-titled ''Until Dawn'' and re-released on TallBoy Records in 2002, to greater distribution and acclaim. TallBoy Records also commissioned KH&Y to contribute to a special 7-inch record containing four artists' renditions of

The Move The Move were a British rock band of the late 1960s and the early 1970s. They scored nine top 20 UK singles in five years, but were among the most popular British bands not to find any real success in the United States. For most of their car ...

's " Do Ya," which was released in 2002. The group also contributed a recording of

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is exp ...

' " Venus and Mars/Rock Show" to the Demagogue Records compilation ''Love in Song: An Atlanta Tribute To Sir Paul McCartney'' (2000). KH&Y disbanded in December 2001. Howes performed with a new lineup in the Atlanta area for most of 2002; he then toured the northeast and midwest US with fellow singer/songwriter

Robbie Rist Robbie Rist (born April 4, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for playing Cousin Oliver in '' The Brady Bunch'', Martin in '' Grady'' and "Little John" in ''Big John, Little John''. Rist is also known for voicing assorted characters in ...

in October of that year.

2003 – 2010

Before relocating to

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...

in 2003, Howes began recording his CD ''Lady Friend'' in Hoschton, GA, releasing it in 2004. The title track was written by

David Crosby David Van Cortlandt Crosby (born August 14, 1941) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of both the Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash. Crosby joined the Byrds in 1964. They got ...

and originally recorded by

The Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole con ...

in 1967; the CD's cover art featured a Honda Super Cub motorcycle. While in California, Howes performed as a member of

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

garage-pop band

The Shambles The Shambles is a historic street in York, England, featuring preserved medieval buildings, some dating back as far as the fourteenth century. The street is narrow with many timber-framed buildings with jettied floors that overhang the street ...

and occasionally with Pat DiNizio of

The Smithereens The Smithereens are an American rock band from Carteret, New Jersey, United States. The group formed in 1980 with members Pat DiNizio (vocals & guitar), Jim Babjak (guitar & vocals), Mike Mesaros (bass guitar & vocals), and Dennis Diken (drum ...

, while continuing to play solo and band shows of his own material. Howes also collaborated on a side project, Hautewerk, who recorded and released the disc ''Stop Start Again'', and, in April 2009, licensed three songs to the

Rockband A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...

video game. Howes was also a member of The PopDudes, a lighthearted

cover band A cover band (or covers band) is a band that plays songs recorded by someone else, sometimes mimicking the original as accurately as possible, and sometimes re-interpreting or changing the original. These remade songs are known as cover songs. N ...

of rotating members who perform annually at the International Pop Overthrow festival in Los Angeles. The group recorded a version of

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The grou ...

's first single, "

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, a battle on 18 June 1815 in which Napoleon met his final defeat * Waterloo, Belgium, where the battle took place. Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Antarctica *King George Island (S ...

," which was included on the 2006 compilation CD ''International Pop Overthrow (Volume 9)''.

2010 – 2020

Howes released a compilation of his early recordings, ''Holding Up The Sound'', in October 2010, and toured to US East Coast for five weeks in support. He was also a master teacher at Huntington Beach High School's Academy for the Performing Arts, assisting and coaching the Academy's students for their Commercial Recording Arts Department's biannual performances, a role he had begun in 2004 and continues on occasion. From November 2011 to June 2012, Howes played 12-string bass in Pat DiNizio's "Confessions of a Rock Star" band, performing with the Smithereens frontman six nights a week at The Riviera Hotel & Casino in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...

. Upon the closing of the Las Vegas show, Howes relocated to

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

, where he performs regularly with his Atlanta-based band, Kenny Howes & The Wow. ''Power Pop Prime, Vol. 1- The Not Lame Years'', a book chronicling underground

Power Pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ...

artists from 1995–97, was published by Not Lame Media in 2012 and featured a chapter interviewing Howes, as well as listing his disc ''Kenny Howes' Second Album'' in the book's listing of The Top 100 Indie Power Pop Releases of the 1990s. In late 2011, Howes completed work on a new studio album, ''Tornadoes Here & Past'' (released November 2012), which the online blog PowerPopAholic referred to as a "triumphant comeback," and Georgia music magazine Stomp And Stammer called "more ambitious than Howes' previous records...his best of them all." Pat DiNizio and

The Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

's Marty Willson-Piper appear as special guests. He also performed occasionally as the fill-in bassist for

, including the closing night of famed New York City nightclub Kenny's Castaways in October 2012, for their June 2013 dates supporting

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were an American Rock music, rock band from Gainesville, Florida. Formed in 1976, the band originally comprised lead singer and rhythm guitarist Tom Petty, lead guitarist Mike Campbell (musician), Mike Campbell, ...

, and for a 2014 performance at Asbury Park, New Jersey's

Stone Pony The Stone Pony is a New Jersey music venue in Asbury Park, New Jersey known for launching the careers of many New Jersey music legends, including Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, and Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes.Yahoo Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo! Inc. (2017–present), Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds ma ...

LiveNation. Following DiNizio's death in December 2017, Howes performed with the surviving members of The Smithereens and others at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey at "Time and Time Again: A Celebration Of Pat DiNizio," in January 2018. An expanded version of Kenny’s band, billed as Kenny Howes And Friends, performed The Beatles’ Revolver album, with guest singers and auxiliary instrumentation, in honor of that album’s 50th Anniversary in August 2016. The Atlanta performance sold out, inspiring Howes and Friends to begin a series of annual Beatles 50th Anniversary shows, commemorating the respective year’s material, up through 1969/2019. In February 2017, Kenny released a music video for his new single, "She Knows What I Mean." In July 2017, Howes joined the Retro Futura Tour, a nationwide package American tour, as bass guitarist for Katrina Of

The Waves ''The Waves'' is a 1931 novel by English novelist Virginia Woolf. It is critically regarded as her most experimental work, consisting of ambiguous and cryptic soliloquies spoken mainly by six characters; Bernard, Susan, Rhoda, Neville, Jinny an ...

, Paul Young, and, for select shows,

Annabella Annabella, Anabella, or Anabela is a feminine given name. Notable people with the name include: *Annabella of Scotland (c. 1433–1509), daughter of King James I *Annabella (actress) (1907–1996), stage name of French actress Suzanne Georgette C ...

Bow Wow Wow Bow Wow Wow are an English new wave band, created by manager Malcolm McLaren in 1980. McLaren recruited members of Adam and the Ants to form the band behind 13-year-old Annabella Lwin on vocals. They released their debut EP '' Your Cassette ...

. In November 2018, Kenny performed on bass with Don Fleming for two

Velvet Monkeys Donald Gene Fleming (born September 25, 1957) is an American musician and producer. Besides fronting a number of his own bands, ( Velvet Monkeys, B.A.L.L., and Gumball) Fleming has produced Sonic Youth, Screaming Trees, Teenage Fanclub and Ho ...

reunion shows. The shows were part of a series of Birthday concerts in honor of Henry Owings’ 50th Birthday. Howes celebrated the 20th Anniversary of his compilation CD The Right Idea in February 2020 with an Atlanta performance featuring an expanded version of Kenny Howes and The Wow.http://529atlanta.com/calendar/9010/

Discography

Albums

* ''Nothing Wrong With That'' • AAJ Records, 1995 (CD) * ''Kenny Howes' Second Album'' • AAJ Records, 1996 (CD) * ''Back To You Today!'' • AAJ/Shoeleg Records, 1998 (CD) * ''Kenny Howes & the Yeah!'' • Royal Fuzz Records, 2001 (CD) * ''Until Dawn'' e-release of ''Kenny Howes & the Yeah!''• TallBoy Records, 2002 (CD) * ''Lady Friend'' • YEAH! Records, 2004 (CD) * ''Tornadoes Here & Past'' • YEAH! Records, 2012 (vinyl LP / download)

Compilation albums

* ''The Right Idea'' • Second Heaven Records, 2000 (CD) * ''Holding Up The Sound'' • YEAH! Records, 2010 (CD)

EPs

* ''Nothing Wrong With That'' • DIY release, 1993 (cassette) * ''In Between'' • DIY release, 1994 (cassette)

Singles

* "Somebody" / "Greatest Thing Around" • AAJ Records, 1994 ( 7-inch) * "She Knows What I Mean" • YEAH! Records, 2017 (download)

Various artist compilation appearances

* ''The World's Best Powerpop Compilation...Really'' • Not Lame Recordings, 1998 • "Easy on the Eye" (CD) * ''Pop Till You Drop'' • S'more Records, 1999 • "Girls With Glasses" (CD) * ''Love in Song: An Atlanta Tribute to Sir Paul McCartney'' • Demagogue Records, 2000 • "Venus & Mars / Rock Show" (CD) * ''Do Ya?'' • Tallboy Records, 2002 • "Do Ya" ( 7-inch) * ''Bands Best Friend'' • 2003 • "The Truth Is" (CD) * ''International Pop Overthrow (Volume 9)'' • Not Lame Recordings, 2006 • "

" with The PopDudes (CD)

Side projects

References

External links

ReverbNation
page
MySpace
page * All Music Guidelisting {{DEFAULTSORT:Howes, Kenny 1970 births American pop musicians Living people Guitarists from Florida People from Mulberry, Florida Mulberry High School (Mulberry, Florida) alumni Polk State College alumni 21st-century American guitarists