The Kennedys are an American folk-rock band, consisting of husband and wife Pete and Maura Kennedy. They are recognized for their harmonies and instrumental prowess, blending elements of country music, bluegrass, Western swing and

jangle pop Jangle pop is a Music subgenre, subgenre of pop rock and college rock that emphasizes jangle, jangly guitars and 1960s-style pop music, pop melodies. The "jangly" guitar sound is characterized by its clean, shimmering and Arpeggio, arpeggiated ...

Biography

Pete and Maura Kennedy met in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

in 1992, when Pete was playing in

Nanci Griffith Nanci Caroline Griffith (July 6, 1953 – August 13, 2021) was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She often appeared on the PBS music program ''Austin City Limits'', starting in 1985 during season 10. In 1990, Griffith appeared on th ...

's band. For their first date, they each drove 500 miles to meet at

Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who was a central and pioneering figure of rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texa ...

's grave in

Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Lubbock County. With a population of 272,086 in 2024, Lubbock is the 10th-most populous city in Texas and the 84th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the ...

. In June 1993, Maura Kennedy (née Boudreau) joined Griffith's band as a harmony singer, and Maura and Pete began their career as a duo when they opened for Griffith during her UK and Ireland tour. Pete is from the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.; Maura grew up in Syracuse, New York. They lived for many years in the East Village in New York City, and in 2006 they joined other folk musicians living in Northampton, Massachusetts. They then returned to the East Village in 2008. {They currently reside in Tarrytown, NY. In the midst of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, and after losing concert engagements in 2020, the Kennedys started a weekly, all-request livestreaming show, beginning on Sunday, March 15, 2020, and running every Sunday. After the first several shows, they began including specialty shows, paying tribute to some of their favorite musical influences such as Bob Dylan, Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, John Lennon, Nanci Griffith, Patsy Cline, The Byrds, and a four-part Beatles mini-series. In addition, they have presented hours dedicated to specific genres, including the Summer of Love, a Beach Party, California Country Rock, British Invasion, and a Motown special.

Recordings

Their first album, ''River of Fallen Stars'', was released under the name "Pete and Maura Kennedy"; they released all subsequent albums as "The Kennedys". Their 1998 album ''Angel Fire'' featured many songs with literary references, such as "A Letter To

Emily Emily may refer to: * Emily (given name), including a list of people with the name Music * "Emily" (1964 song), title song by Johnny Mandel and Johnny Mercer to the film ''The Americanization of Emily'' * "Emily" (Dave Koz song), a 1990 song ...

" and "Just Like Henry David".

Performing and touring

When performing live, Pete plays the acoustic and electric guitar, electric sitar, bass, mandolin, and ukulele, while Maura plays acoustic and electric guitars and ukulele. They have performed in clubs and theatres throughout the United States, on a cruise, and at

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

's first and second inaugurations. The Kennedys were awarded the Kate Wolf Memorial Award by the

World Folk Music Association The World Folk Music Association is a non-profit organization formed in 1983 by folk singer/songwriter Tom Paxton and Dick Cerri, a radio host from Washington D. C. The first chairman of the board was Paxton and Cerri served as president. Paxton a ...

in 2001.

Other projects

In late 2006, Pete and Maura joined with Chris and Meredith Thompson to form The Strangelings, a folk-rock band prominently featuring Pete's electric sitar. Their first performance was on January 12, 2007. The music includes songs by both the Kennedys and the Thompsons in addition to traditional songs and covers. The full lineup of The Strangelings includes Pete, Maura, Chris Thompson, Eric Lee on

fiddle A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...

, Cheryl Prashker on percussion, and Ken Anderson and

Rebecca Hall Rebecca Maria Hall (born 3 May 1982) is an English actress and director. She made her first onscreen appearance at the age of 10 in the 1992 The Camomile Lawn (TV serial), television adaptation of ''The Camomile Lawn'', directed by her father, ...

, also known as Hungrytown.

Influences

Some of the Kennedys's influences include

Richard Thompson Richard Thompson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Richard Thompson (animator) (1914–1998), Warner Bros. cartoon animator in the 1950s * Richard Thompson (cartoonist) (1957–2016), cartoonist who also worked as an illustrator * Richard Tho ...

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

Dave Carter Dave Carter (August 13, 1952 July 19, 2002) was an American folk music singer-songwriter who described his style as "post-modern mythic American folk music". He was one half of the duo Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer, who were heralded as the ne ...

, and Buddy Holly. They have toured with Griffith several times, and covered songs by Thompson, Dylan, and Carter.

Discography

As the Kennedys

* 1995: ''River of Fallen Stars'' ( Green Linnet) * 1996: ''Life is Large'' (Green Linnet) * 1998: ''Angel Fire'' (

Philo Philo of Alexandria (; ; ; ), also called , was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. The only event in Philo's life that can be decisively dated is his representation of the Alexandrian J ...

) * 2000: ''Evolver'' ( Rounder) * 2001: ''Positively Live!'' (JiffyJam) * 2002: ''Get It Right'' (JiffyJam) * 2003: ''Stand'' (

Koch Koch may refer to: People * Koch (surname), people with this surname * Koch dynasty, a dynasty in Assam and Bengal, north east India * Koch family * Koch people (or Koche), an ethnic group originally from the ancient Koch kingdom in north east In ...

) * 2005: ''Half a Million Miles'' ( Appleseed) * 2006: ''Songs of the Open Road'' (Appleseed) * 2008: ''Better Dreams'' (Appleseed) * 2012: ''Retrospective'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.) * 2012: ''Closer Than You Know'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.) * 2014: ''Dance A Little Closer: The Kennedys Sing The Songs Of Nanci Griffith'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.) * 2015: ''West'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.) * 2018: ''Safe Until Tomorrow'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.) * 2022: ''Soul & Inspiration: Nuggets From The Livestream Archive, Volume One'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.) * 2023: ''Headwinds'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.)

As The Stringbusters

* 2007: ''Rhapsody in Uke'' (self-released) - an album of Hawaiian/swing/jazz music played largely on

ukulele The ukulele ( ; ); also called a uke (informally), is a member of the lute (ancient guitar) family of instruments. The ukulele is of Portuguese origin and was popularized in Hawaii. The tone and volume of the instrument vary with size and con ...

As The Snacks

* 2007: ''Meet the Snacks'' - An album of rock/pop for children

Pete Kennedy solo recordings

* 1985: ''Bound for Glory'' (Rosewood Records) * 1991: ''Highway 10'' (Third Floor) * 1992: ''Channel 3'' (Third Floor) * 1992: ''Shearwater: The Art of the Unplugged Guitar'' (Third Floor) * 1994: ''Shearwater: The Art of the Unplugged Guitar'' (Guitar Recordings) * 2002: ''Fingers On Fire'' (Powerhouse) - Pete Kennedy and with

Tom Principato Tom Principato (born 1952) is an American electric blues and blues rock singer, guitarist, and songwriter. Principato has recorded more than twenty albums over the years. One of his most recent releases, ''Robert Johnson Told Me So'' (2013), fe ...

recorded live in 1978 * 2008: ''Guitarslinger'' (The Kennedys LLC) * 2014: ''Tone, Twang, and Taste'' (The Kennedys, L.L.C.) * 2015: ''Heart of Gotham'' (The Kennedys LLC) * 2017: ''Solo Guitar: Pete Kennedy Performs Top Hits of 1964'' (Solo Sounds) * 2017: ''Solo Ukulele: Pete Kennedy Performs Top Christmas Favorites'' (Solo Sounds) * 2019: ''Solo Ukulele: Pete Kennedy Performs The Band's the Band'' (Solo Sounds) * 2020: ''Solo Guitar: Pete Kennedy Performs John Legend's Get Lifted'' (Solo Sounds) * 2020: ''Electric Sitar Meditations'' (The Kennedys LLC)

Maura Kennedy solo albums

* 2009: ''Parade of Echoes'' (Planned Effervescence) * 2015: ''Villanelle-Songs of Maura Kennedy and BD Love'' (

Varèse Sarabande Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, owned by Concord Music Group and distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and cast recording, original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums, as ...

)

With The Strangelings

* 2007: ''The Nuah Suite'' DVD (self-released) * 2007: ''Season of the Witch'' (self-released via

CD Baby CD Baby, Inc. is a Portland, Oregon based online distributor of independent music. The company was described as an "anti-label" by its parent company's Chief Operating Officer Tracy Maddux. It was established in 1998 and offered distribution fo ...

)

As producers

* 2005: Bedsit Poets - ''The Summer That Changed'' (Bongo Beat) * 2012: Nanci Griffith - ''Trouble in the Fields: An Artists' Tribute to Nanci Griffith'' (Paradiddle Records) * 2012: Nanci Griffith - ''Intersection'' (Proper Records)

As primary artist/song contributor

* 1997: various artists - ''A Holiday Feast, Vol. 2'' ( Hungry For Music) - track 6, "Nothing But a Child" * 1999: various artists - ''Main Stage Live: The Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Album'' (

Signature Sounds Signature Sounds Recordings is an independent record label specializing in Americana (music), Americana and modern folk music. Jim Olsen and Mark Thayer founded the label in 1995 to promote acoustic musicians who were playing in Northampton, Massa ...

) - track 2, "River of Fallen Stars" * 2000: various artists - ''Full Circle: a Tribute to

Gene Clark Harold Eugene Clark (November 17, 1944 – May 24, 1991) was an American singer-songwriter and founding member of the folk rock band the Byrds. He was the Byrds' principal songwriter between 1964 and early 1966, writing most of the band's best ...

'' ( Not Lame) - track 5, "Here Without You" * 2001: various artists - ''Americana Motel'' (Bay Gumbo) - track 13, "Tell Me How" * 2003: various artists - ''We Are Each Other's Angels'' (Hungry For Music) - track 1–18, "Angels Cry" * 2005: various artists - ''Remembering Rachel: Songs of

Rachel Bissex Rachel Bissex (December 27, 1956 – February 20, 2005) was an American folk singer-songwriter. Her works included "Dancing With My Mother" and "Drive All Night". Death Bissex died in 2005, aged 48, in Burlington, Vermont from breast cancer ...

'' (Rachel Bissex via CD Baby) - track 13, "Hey Marianne" * 2006: various artists - ''Five Way Street: A Tribute to

Buffalo Springfield Buffalo Springfield was a Canadian-American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1966 by Canadians Neil Young, Bruce Palmer and Dewey Martin (musician), Dewey Martin and Americans Stephen Stills and Richie Furay. The group, widely know ...

'' ( Not Lame) - track 17, "Pretty Girl Why" * 2006: various artists - ''A Case for Case: A Tribute to the Songs of

Peter Case Peter Case (born April 5, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His career is wide-ranging, from rock n' roll and blues, to folk rock and solo acoustic performance. Biography Early career Case was born in Buffalo, New York, B ...

'' (Hungry For Music) - track 3–2, "Great Big World" * 2007: various artists - ''Timeless Flyte, a Tribute to

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American Rock music, 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) being the so ...

: The Byrds Dylan Connection'' (REO) - track 7, "

You Ain't Goin' Nowhere "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere" is a song written by the American musician Bob Dylan in 1967 in Woodstock, New York, during the self-imposed exile from public appearances that followed his July 29, 1966 motorcycle accident. A recording of Dylan perf ...

" * 2012: various artists - ''Trouble in the Fields: An Artists Tribute to Nanci Griffith'' (Paradiddle) - track 3, "I'm Not Driving These Wheels" * 2017: ''Solo Instrumentals: Top Hits of the Beatles'' (Pete Kennedy, one track (Solo Sounds) * 2017: ''Solo Guitar: Post-Hipster Meditation Hits of the 20th Century'' (Pete Kennedy, two tracks) (Solo Sounds)

References

External links

*
Maura Kennedy's solo page

Pete Kennedy's solo page
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedys, The American folk rock groups American folk musical groups The Blue Moon Orchestra members Male–female musical duos Musical married couples Musical groups from Syracuse, New York Zoë Records artists