Kingfish - Matthew Kelly
By: Dominick A. Miserandino
Matthew Kelly talks about his early influences, Bob Weir, Jerry Garcia and operating a health food restaurant.
DM) Your band has a number of albums ... which one is your favorite?
MK) Our current release, "Sundown on the Forest," because it represents where we are now in our musical development. And our first release,"'Kingfish," has a special place in my heart.
DM) How has it been to play with the famous Bob Weir?
MK) Bob and I go back to junior high, and we've played together for so many years that I think of him as my dear friend and colleague. Obviously, I love to play with him.
DM) The band has stuck together for a while ... What's your advice to other bands on this subject?
MK) Find musicians whose work you admire and whose personalities and spirits enrich your life.
DM) Matt, you've also guest appeared on a number of different albums. Who else would you like to collaborate with?
MK) I would have loved the opportunity to play with some of the old giants of blues. I look forward to having a chance to play with Johnnie Johnson, a true living legend.
DM) Who first influenced you to start in music?
MK) Listening to late night radio as a boy and discovering blues music.
DM) Where did you learn to play the harmonica?
MK) I just picked it up and did it ... inspiration and perspiration.
DM) Somebody once said that with the death of Jerry Garcia, his style of music died, too. I've also read that "a new set of bands filled the void like a phoenix." Which do you agree with?
MK) Jerry's spirit and the innovation he brought to music live on both in his contemporaries and a whole new group of musicians. His legacy is a truly worthy one.
DM) If it wasn't music, what would you be doing?
MK) Operating a health food restaurant, growing organic foods, and living a very simple life.
DM) There was a large gap, between the late '80s to the '90s, that Kingfish didn't
release an album. Why?
MK) I was touring with both Kingfish and Ratdog.
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