Scott McKeon
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Scott McKeon is a British
blues rock Blues rock is a fusion music genre, genre and form of rock music, rock and blues music that relies on the chords/scales and instrumental improvisation of blues. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electri ...
guitarist, songwriter, singer, and music tutor. He has issued four albums under his name, and worked as a session musician both in the recording studio and in live concert appearances. He is currently the guitarist in
Sir Tom Jones Sir Thomas Jones Woodward (born Thomas John Woodward; 7 June 1940) is a Welsh singer. His career began with a string of top 10 hits in the 1960s and he has since toured regularly, with appearances in Las Vegas from 1967 to 2011. His voice has b ...
' backing ensemble. McKeon has issued an online guide to guitar playing techniques, and manufactured his own bespoke guitar pedals and signature pickups.


Life and career

He grew up in
Southern England Southern England, also known as the South of England or the South, is a sub-national part of England. Officially, it is made up of the southern, south-western and part of the eastern parts of England, consisting of the statistical regions of ...
in a musical family. His father had been a guitarist for the Diplomats, who had opened shows in the early 1960s for both
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 ...
and
Gerry and the Pacemakers Gerry and the Pacemakers were an English beat group prominent in the 1960s Merseybeat scene. In common with the Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein and recorded by George Martin. Their early successes helped make ...
. With access to his parents record collection as a guide, McKeon was playing the guitar by the age of four, and could manage with a full size
Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of double- cutaway electric guitar designed between 1952 and 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corpora ...
by the age of eight. He became the face of a television advertisement for Fender, who were trying to engage with a new generation of guitar players. He was turned towards blues music when aged ten, after viewing video footage of
Stevie Ray Vaughan Stephen Ray Vaughan (also known as SRV; October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and frontman of the blues rock trio Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble (band), Double Trouble. Although his ma ...
, which led to McKeon playing in a blues band when just 13 years old. However his father died around this time, but not before McKeon was named ''
Guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...
'' magazine's 'Young Guitarist of the Year' in 1998. Competent and confident enough to record a demo CD when aged 18, a copy was passed to
Jakko Jakszyk Michael "Jakko" Jakszyk ( , born Michael Lee Curran, 8 June 1958) is an English musician, record producer, and actor. He has released several solo albums as a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as lead singer and se ...
and then on to Paul Crockford, the manager of
Mark Knopfler Mark Freuder Knopfler OBE (born 12 August 1949) is a British musician. He was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the rock band Dire Straits from 1977 to 1995, and he is the one of the two members who stayed during the band's existence ...
. Crockford began to represent McKeon and this led to McKeon recording his debut album, ''Can't Take No More'', which was released on 26 February 2007. It was produced by Jesse Davey, once of the British blues band, The Hoax. In promoting the album, McKeon toured across Europe and the United States, which included performing at the
Montreal International Jazz Festival The Festival international de Jazz de Montréal is an annual jazz festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montreal Jazz Fest holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz festival. Every year it features roughly 3,000 ar ...
, and the
Glastonbury Festival The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (commonly referred to as simply Glastonbury Festival, known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts held near Pilton, Somerset, England, in most su ...
, and making American television appearances. McKeon wrote the music for Robert M. Knight's 2009 '' Rock Prophecies'' documentary, which won him a RIIFF Award for 'Best Soundtrack'. His second album, ''Trouble'', was released by
Provogue Records Provogue Records is a European record label and part of the Mascot Label Group. Founded by Jan Van Der Linden in the early 1990s, the label specializes in rock and blues. Its catalog includes Gary Moore, Joe Bonamassa, Beth Hart, Eric Johnson, ...
on 29 March 2010. The album included contributions from
Robbie McIntosh Robbie McIntosh (born 25 October 1957) is an English guitarist. McIntosh is best known as a session guitarist and member of the Pretenders from 1982 until 1987. In 1988 he began doing session guitar work for Paul McCartney, joining his band ...
and
David Ryan Harris David Ryan Harris (born 1967 or 1968) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist based in Los Angeles, California, United States. Born in Evanston, Illinois, Harris moved to Atlanta at a young age. Harris has had a varied career as a musici ...
from
John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but he left for Atlanta in 1997 with fellow guitarist Clay Cook, with whom he formed the short-liv ...
's band. In support of the album's release, McKeon toured, opening shows for
Derek Trucks Derek Trucks (born June 8, 1979) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and founder of The Derek Trucks Band. He became an official member of The Allman Brothers Band in 1999. In 2010, he formed the Tedeschi Trucks Band with his wife, blues si ...
, Gary Clark Jr. and the
Arc Angels Arc Angels is a blues rock supergroup formed in Austin, Texas in the early 1990s. The band came together after the death of Stevie Ray Vaughan and was composed of Vaughan’s friends Doyle Bramhall II and Charlie Sexton and two of the band ...
. He also made his first performance at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...
, when supporting
Joe Bonamassa Joseph Leonard Bonamassa ( ; born May 8, 1977) is an American blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. He started his career at age twelve, when he opened for B.B. King. Since 2000, Bonamassa has released fifteen solo albums through his inde ...
. A track from the album was used both on ''
Guitar Hero 5 ''Guitar Hero 5'' is a 2009 rhythm game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision. It is the fifth main installment and the ninth overall installment in the Guitar Hero, ''Guitar Hero'' series. The game was released internationally in ...
'', and on the television programme, ''LA Task Force''. McKeon had relocated to London in 2010, and began to attract work as a session musician for a number of years, working with
Zigaboo Modeliste Joseph "Ziggy" Modeliste (born December 28, 1948), also known as Zigaboo Modeliste, is an American drummer best known as a founding member of the funk band the Meters. He is widely considered an innovator in the funk genre and New Orleans style ...
,
James Arthur James Andrew Arthur (born 2 March 1988) is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame after winning the ninth series of ''The X Factor'' in 2012. His debut single, a cover of Shontelle's " Impossible", was released by Syco Music aft ...
,
Emeli Sandé Adele Emily Sandé ( ; previously Gouraguine; born 10 March 1987), known professionally as Emeli Sandé, is a British singer and songwriter. Born in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England and raised in Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, Sandé rose t ...
,
Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...
,
Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...
,
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,
Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran ( ; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...
and
Rebecca Ferguson Rebecca Louisa Ferguson Sundström (born 19 October 1983) is a Swedish actress. Ferguson began her television acting career in 1999 with the Swedish soap opera ''Nya tider'' and made her motion picture acting debut in 2004 with the Swedish slash ...
. In 2014, McKeon was invited to join
Sir Tom Jones Sir Thomas Jones Woodward (born Thomas John Woodward; 7 June 1940) is a Welsh singer. His career began with a string of top 10 hits in the 1960s and he has since toured regularly, with appearances in Las Vegas from 1967 to 2011. His voice has b ...
' backing ensemble, where he remains to his day. His work with Jones has included television appearances on '' Later... with Jools Holland'' and ''
TFI Friday ''TFI Friday'' (Thank Four it's Friday) is an entertainment show that was broadcast on Channel 4 television in the United Kingdom. It was produced by Ginger Productions, written by Danny Baker, and hosted by Chris Evans, for the first five ...
'', and performing in 2019 at the
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (commonly called Jazz Fest or Jazzfest) is an annual celebration of local music and culture held at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana. Jazz Fest attracts thousands of vi ...
. During 2011, McKeon spent time writing in
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
, a spell which included working with
Tyler Bryant Tyler Dow Bryant (born February 24, 1991) is an American guitarist from Paris, Texas. He is best known as the lead guitarist and vocalist of the rock band Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown. Early and personal life Bryant got his first guitar at th ...
and Heidi Rojas. McKeon is proud of his 1962 sunburst Fender Stratocaster, a gift from his father when McKeon was 12 years old. As the instrument aged and became more fragile, McKeon jumped at the offer from the Fender Custom Shop in 2016 to provide an exact replica. McKeon stated "We flew the ’62 over to Fender and they had it for a month or so to get the exact wear patterns and to perfectly copy the look and feel. Then, a year or so later, the replica turned up and completely blew me away!" In 2017, McKeon founded a group, Rufus Black, which in addition to McKeon included singer Gavin Conder, guitarist Ben Jones and percussionist Russ Parker. They released an album, ''Rise Up''. In early 2018, McKeon attended a charity event, where he ended up playing his replica Fender on stage alongside one of his musical heroes,
Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...
. The experience enthused McKeon to want to record another album. Other session work saw McKeon, in 2019, join
Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, philosopher and historian. Schiller is considered by most Germans to be Germany's most important classical playwright. He was born i ...
on his '' Morgenstund'' tour, playing 15 shows in Germany. Later that year, McKeon joined
Doyle Bramhall II Doyle Bramhall II (born December 24, 1968) is an American guitarist, producer and songwriter best known for his work with Eric Clapton and Roger Waters. He is the son of the songwriter and drummer Doyle Bramhall. Early life Bramhall was born ...
's band for part of his European tour. McKeon has also been part of
John Illsley John Edward Illsley (born 24 June 1949) is an English musician, best known as bassist of the rock band Dire Straits, and he is one of the two members who stayed in the band during the existence, along with the frontman Mark Knopfler. He has re ...
's live band, and he featured on Illsley's 2019 album, ''Coming Up for Air''. Following delays caused by the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confirm ...
, McKeon's third album, ''New Morning'', was released on 23 April 2021. The album was recorded in various London studios, including
RAK Studios RAK Studios is a recording studio complex, with residential facilities, used by Rak Records, and located near Regent's Park in central London, England. It was founded in 1976 by English record producer Mickie Most. History The RAK complex res ...
, and was produced by
Paul Stacey Paul Stacey (born 27 September 1963) is a British guitarist and producer, best known for his work with Oasis, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Steven Wilson, and the Black Crowes. Biography Stacey's early work included the 1990s band, the ...
. From the age of 18, McKeon had been designing and manufacturing his own guitar fuzz pedal and signature pickups, modelled on his own guitar. He noted thereafter that "after opening a couple of shows for Joe Bonamassa he asked me what the pedal was and if I could make him one, before telling me I should sell them". McKeon's own SM Fuzz, was soon available and purchased and used by Gary Clark Jr. and Doyle Bramhall II among others, and McKeon later developed an all-new SM Octave Fuzz. McKeon also created an online teaching aid for blues guitar players. The course starts at the early roots of R&B, and gives advice and tips to master more tricky techniques. The lessons include a range of interactive tabs and notation throughout, that can be slowed down and looped to aid understanding. There are 31 mini lessons, starting with acoustic guitar playing before moving through to electric, with subtle variations on a theme explored and explained. McKeon's latest venture was recording the five track mini-album, ''Live at Real World Studios''. The personnel were similar to those used on McKeon's album, ''New Morning'', with Paul Stacey again acting as record producer. It was released on 8 April 2022.


Discography


Albums


See also

*
List of British blues musicians This is an incomplete list of British blues bands and musicians. Individuals * Ian A. Anderson * Elles Bailey *Ginger Baker *Long John Baldry *Chris Barber * Norman Beaker *Jeff Beck * Duster Bennett * Graham Bond * Marcus Bonfanti *John Bonham ...


References


External links


2021 interviewScott McKeon - Live at Real World Studios (short film)
{{DEFAULTSORT:McKeon, Scott Year of birth missing (living people) Living people British blues guitarists British blues singers British male singer-songwriters Blues rock musicians British music educators