Robert Earl Keen
Robert Earl Keen Jr. | |
|---|---|
 Keen in 2018 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | January 11, 1956 |
| Origin | Houston, Texas, U.S. |
| Genres | Americana, country, bluegrass |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar, mandolin |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Labels | Dualtone, Arista, Sugar Hill, KOCH, Lost Highway, Rosetta |
| Website | robertearlkeen |
Robert Earl Keen (born January 11, 1956)[1] is an American singer-songwriter and entertainer. Debuting with 1984's No Kinda Dancer, the Houston native has recorded 18 full-length albums for both independent and major record labels. His songs have had cover versions recorded by many musicians, including George Strait, Joe Ely, Lyle Lovett, The Highwaymen and Nanci Griffith
Although both his albums and his live performances span many different styles, from folk, country, and bluegrass to rock, he is most commonly affiliated with roots music. Keen has toured extensively both in the US and abroad throughout his career, and was inducted into the Texas Heritage Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2012 along with Lyle Lovett and the late Townes Van Zandt.[2]
Early life and education[]
Keen was born and grew up in Houston, Texas, United States.[3] As a teenager, Keen was an avid reader who excelled in writing and literature classes. Keen was a fan of the English rock band Cream, and was influenced by country music by artists like Willie Nelson.[4]
He started playing guitar himself shortly thereafter, learning to play classic country covers out of a songbook the summer before starting college at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas.[3] He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English in 1978 and began writing songs and playing bluegrass and folk music with friends, including his childhood friend (and future longtime fiddle player in his band) Bryan Duckworth. During his college years Keen lived with future musician Lyle Lovett.[3]
Career[]
 | This section of a biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. (January 2017) |
In 1978, Keen graduated from Texas A&M and moved to Austin, Texas.[3] He performed in Austin's nightclubs and live music venues like the Cactus Cafe and Gruene Hall in nearby New Braunfels. In 1983, Keen won the New Folk competition at the Kerrville Folk Festival in Kerrville, Texas.[5] That same year, he began making his self-produced first album, No Kinda Dancer.[3]
Keen returned to Texas, in Nashville he signed a publishing deal, a new independent label deal, and signed with a national booking agent. After the release of his second and third albums, 1988's The Live Album and 1989's West Textures, he began to have commercial success.[3]
West Textures featured the first recording of what would soon become Keen's signature song, "The Road Goes on Forever". Fellow Texan Joe Ely recorded the song on his 1993 album Love and Danger, along with another Keen song, "Whenever Kindness Fails".[6] Keen's own version of "Whenever Kindness Fails" appeared on his fourth album, 1993's A Bigger Piece of Sky. In 1994, he released Gringo Honeymoon. In 1996, he released No. 2 Live Dinner.[6]
Keen has continued to write, record, and tour in the United States. His 1997 album, Picnic, marked the beginning of his on-again, off-again relationship with major labels (both that album and 1998's Walking Distance were issued on Arista Records, and 2001's Gravitational Forces, 2009's The Rose Hotel and 2011's Ready for Confetti were released on Lost Highway Records). Keen's other albums include 2003's Farm Fresh Onions (Audium/Koch Records) and 2005's What I Really Mean and 2006's Live at the Ryman (both on E1 Music). The producers with whom he has worked on those albums have included John Keane, Gurf Morlix, Gary Velletri, and Lloyd Maines.
His band includes:
- Bill Whitbeck — bass, upright bass, vocals
- Tom Van Schaik �� drums, vocals
- Brian Beken — fiddle, acoustic guitar, electric guitar
- Kym Warner — mandolin, electric guitar
Discography[]
Studio albums[]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [7] |
US [8] |
US Heat [9] |
US Indie [10] |
US Folk [11] |
US Grass [12] | ||||
| No Kinda Dancer |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| West Textures |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| A Bigger Piece of Sky |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Gringo Honeymoon |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Picnic |
|
— | 160 | 4 | — | — | — | ||
| Walking Distance |
|
— | 149 | 3 | — | — | — | ||
| Gravitational Forces |
|
10 | 111 | 1 | — | — | — | ||
| Farm Fresh Onions |
|
24 | 172 | 9 | 11 | — | — | ||
| What I Really Mean |
|
21 | 122 | 1 | 5 | — | — | ||
| The Rose Hotel |
|
17 | 83 | — | — | 10 | — | ||
| Ready for Confetti |
|
21 | 66 | — | — | 3 | — | ||
| Happy Prisoner: The Bluegrass Sessions |
|
10 | 109 | — | 6 | 5 | 1 | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Live albums[]
| Title | Album details | Peak positions | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [7] | |||||||||
| The Live Album |
|
— | |||||||
| No. 2 Live Dinner |
|
— | |||||||
| The Party Never Ends |
|
68 | |||||||
| Live from Austin TX |
|
— | |||||||
| Live at the Ryman |
|
— | |||||||
| Marfa After Dark |
|
— | |||||||
| Live Dinner Reunion[13] |
|
29 | |||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Compilation albums[]
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Best |
|
Singles[]
| Year | Single | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | "No Kinda Dancer" | No Kinda Dancer |
| "The Armadillo Jackal" | ||
| 1997 | "Over the Waterfall" | Picnic |
| "Levelland" | ||
| "Undone" | ||
| 1998 | "Down That Dusty Trail" | Walking Distance |
| 1999 | "That Buckin' Song" | |
| 2001 | "Hello New Orleans" | Gravitational Forces |
| "Not A Drop of Rain" | ||
| 2002 | "High Plains Jamboree" | |
| 2003 | "Furnace" | Farm Fresh Onions |
| "All I Have Is Today" | ||
| 2005 | "What I Really Mean" | What I Really Mean |
| "The Great Hank" | ||
| 2009 | "The Rose Hotel" | The Rose Hotel |
| 2010 | "The Man Behind the Drums" | |
| 2011 | "I Gotta Go" | Ready for Confetti |
Music videos[]
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | "Over the Waterfall" | Steven T. Miller/R. Brad Murano |
| 2004 | "Merry Christmas from the Family" | David McClister |
| 2005 | "What I Really Mean" | |
| 2015 | "Hot Corn, Cold Corn"[14] | Curtis Millard |
| "Footprints in the Snow"[15] | Matt Bizer |
Honors[]
| Year | Honor | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame | [16] |
References[]
- ^ Henkle, Doug. "FolkLib Index". Retrieved January 16, 2018.
- ^ Davis, John T. "Texas Heritage Songwriters Hall of Fame will induct Lyle Lovett, Robert Earl Keen and Townes Van Zandt". Austin American Statesman. Retrieved January 4, 2012.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Colin Larkin, ed. (1993). The Guinness Who's Who of Country Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 214. ISBN 0-85112-726-6.
- ^ Skanse, Richard. "Robert Earl Keen: A Man Apart". Lone Star Music Magazine. Retrieved January 4, 2013.
- ^ Davis, John T. "Robert Earl Keen: Can you patch together a feeling that's going to stick with somebody ten years from now?". No Depression. Archived from the original on November 22, 2014. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b McLeese, Don. "Straight outta Bandera: For Robert Earl Keen, music and business coexist at home, deep in the heart of Texas". No Depression. Archived from the original on July 19, 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Robert Earl Keen Jr. Album & Song Chart History - Country Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
- ^ "Robert Earl Keen Jr. Album & Song Chart History - Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
- ^ "Robert Earl Keen Jr. Album & Song Chart History - Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
- ^ "Robert Earl Keen Jr. Album & Song Chart History - Independent Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
- ^ "Robert Earl Keen Jr. Album & Song Chart History - Folk Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
- ^ "Robert Earl Keen Jr. Album & Song Chart History - Bluegrass Albums". Billboard. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
- ^ Melinda Newman (September 22, 2016). "Robert Earl Keen Records Album Sequel 20 Years in the Making". Rolling Stone.
- ^ "CMT : Videos : Robert Earl Keen : Hot Corn, Cold Corn". Country Music Television. Retrieved February 17, 2015.
- ^ "CMT : Videos : Robert Earl Keen : Footprints in the Snow". Country Music Television. Retrieved May 16, 2015.
- ^ "Robert Earl Keen". Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame | Fort Worth Texas. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
External links[]
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- 1956 births
- American acoustic guitarists
- American male guitarists
- American country singer-songwriters
- American country guitarists
- American folk guitarists
- American rock guitarists
- American male singer-songwriters
- Living people
- Musicians from Houston
- Musicians from San Antonio
- Musicians from New Braunfels, Texas
- Musicians from Austin, Texas
- Texas A&M University alumni
- Country musicians from Texas
- Arista Records artists
- Entertainment One Music artists
- Songwriters from Texas
- Sugar Hill Records artists
- Guitarists from Texas
- 20th-century American guitarists
- 20th-century American male musicians