John Kelly (broadcaster, writer)
Encyclopedia
John Kelly is an award winning Irish
broadcaster
and writer
. He presents The View
on RTÉ One
and The JK Ensemble on RTÉ lyric fm
. He used to present Other Voices.
in Belfast to present the radio music show The Bottom Line. In 1991 he won the Sony Award was for best daily music show - The John Kelly Programme. Also in 1991 he won the EMA Award for Television Personality of the Year. He was, at the time, presenting an arts programme 29 Bedford Street. In 1992 he won an EMA Award was for best radio documentary - Maritime Blues which told the story of the club which was at the heart of the Irish rhythm and blues boom and which spawned the likes of Van Morrison
and Them
. Kelly interviewed just about every key player including Van Morrison
and Rory Gallagher
.
– forming a successful night-time partnership with Donal Dineen
whose Here Comes the Night
immediately followed The Eclectic Ballroom. He moved to RTE
in 2000 to present Mystery Train
and won the PPI
Award for Music Broadcaster of the Year. Mystery Train
was yet another instant cult classic and a trusted music source for the discerning listener. Elvis Costello
showed up regularly to co-present and the show was listened to all over the world.
"An extraordinary programme” said Bono
, “To go from Duke Ellington
to Björk
. To go from Woody Guthrie
to The Virgin Prunes. It’s an amazing thing to pull off. There's nothing like it anywhere in the world." When Mystery Train
was suddenly taken off air in 2007 it was an event of some national controversy with the matter being raised in the Irish Senate. The final show was a featured as a news item on the national RTE
9 0’clock news and U2
and Elvis Costello
appeared in gestures of support. Kelly admitted in interviews that he seriously considered quitting altogether at this time but late in 2008 he moved to RTE
Lyric FM to present a new and very different show called The JK Ensemble.
Although RTE
Lyric FM has traditionally been a classical music station The JK Ensemble covers everything from J.S. Bach to Brian Eno
and from Miles Davis
to Sigur Rós
. John Kelly surprised everyone with an insistence on playing Igor Stravinsky
, John Coltrane
, Shostakovich, Lou Reed
and Kurt Weill
in the middle of the day but, again, the show was an instant success which significantly raised the profile of the station. When Kelly was on leave on one occasion the show was guest presented by two stars of The Wire
– Reg. E Cathey and Clarke Peters
.
Kelly also presents Radio Clash on the digital channel 2XM which is a mixture of reggae, dub, punk and tracks from contemporary acts like TV on the Radio
, White Stripes and Arcade Fire.
’s only arts weekly review programme broadcast on Tuesday nights. A panel, with Kelly in the chair, and his pals in the other chairs, discusses movies, theatre and the visual arts with a musical performance at the end with acts such as Bono
and Edge
, Lyle Lovett
and Brad Melhdau. The View has also been the scene of the debut performances by many acts including the 2006 winner of the Choice Music Prize
Julie Feeney
, and Josh Ritter
. The View Presents is a separate strand of interview specials where Kelly talks at length with the likes of Seamus Heaney
, Neil Jordan
, The Edge
, Steve Reich
and Emmylou Harris
. For several seasons he presented the RTE
music series Other Voices where he introduced artists like Ray Davies
, Amy Winehouse
and Elbow
from a small church in Dingle
in County Kerry. Most recently he co-presented the series with BBC
Radio 1’s Annie Mac
.
) many leading figures in the music and arts world - Van Morrison
, Lou Reed
, David Bowie
, Seamus Heaney
, Nina Simone
, Brian Eno
, Al Green
, Steve Reich
, Peter Brook
, John McGahern
, Solomon Burke
, George Martin
, Sam Phillips
, U2
, Brian Wilson
, Elvis Costello
, Emmylou Harris
, Vanessa Redgrave
, Yoko Ono
, BB King, John Berger
, Herbie Hancock
, Townes Van Zandt
, Laurie Anderson
, Mose Allison
, Philip Glass
, Screaming Jay Hawkins, Jimmy Scott
, Philip Lynott, Randy Newman
, Peter O’Toole and many more.
in Tennessee
and Mississippi
and travelled further throughout the United States
with the RTE
travel programme No Frontiers
. Other musical trips for radio have taken him to Senegal
, Estonia
and China
. He worked as a music consultant on the Neil Jordan
movie The Good Thief – which explains all the Leonard Cohen
in the film.
and contributed to numerous other publications on matters musical and cultural.
and was published in most of the important journals and magazines. He gave many readings in Ireland
, Great Britain
and the US. Although he had featured in several significant anthologies he never published a volume of his own. Instead he took to writing prose.
The Little Hammer (Jonathan Cape 2000) and Sophisticated Boom Boom
– a book about music – was also published by Jonathan Cape in 2003. It was singled out for special praise by the writer William Gibson
when asked by the (London) Independent
what books he had by his bedside. He said it was “A universally applicable evocation of male adolesence and the of the gifts that music brings.” The Little Hammer was also critically well received with the Guardian
describing it as, “Immediate, passionate and shot through with descriptive brilliance, the narrative voice is both charming and convincing.” The List said it was “Completely illuminating. A book to be read and savoured.” The Guardian
called it “A witty, inventive, exhilarating novel.”
That Culture Book will be published by Harper Collins at Christmas 2010.
, Tom Robinson
, Horslips
, Gavin Friday
and Paul Brady
and also co-wrote half a dozen songs on the Paul Brady
album Say What You Feel
.
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
broadcaster
Presenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
. He presents The View
The View (Irish TV series)
The View is an Irish television programme broadcast on RTÉ One. Presented by John Kelly, it centres on arts-related topics. It was initially known as Later On 2 and was presented by various presenters until John Kelly joined RTÉ from Today FM, Later On 2 was broadcast on first Network 2 in 1997, it...
on RTÉ One
RTÉ One
RTÉ One is the flagship television channel of Raidió Teilifís Éireann , and it is the most popular and most watched television channel in Ireland. It was launched as Telefís Éireann on 31 December 1961, it was renamed RTÉ Television in 1966, and it was renamed as RTÉ One upon the launch of RTÉ...
and The JK Ensemble on RTÉ lyric fm
RTÉ lyric fm
RTÉ lyric fm is an Irish classical music radio station, owned by the public-service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann. The station, which is based in Limerick, was launched in 1999 and is available on FM in Ireland, on satellite, on Sky Digital in Ireland and United Kingdom and via the...
. He used to present Other Voices.
Early days
John Kelly studied law at Queen's University Belfast, completed his postgraduate professional qualifications at the Institute of Professional legal studies and then promptly joined the BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in Belfast to present the radio music show The Bottom Line. In 1991 he won the Sony Award was for best daily music show - The John Kelly Programme. Also in 1991 he won the EMA Award for Television Personality of the Year. He was, at the time, presenting an arts programme 29 Bedford Street. In 1992 he won an EMA Award was for best radio documentary - Maritime Blues which told the story of the club which was at the heart of the Irish rhythm and blues boom and which spawned the likes of Van Morrison
Van Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
and Them
Them (band)
Them were a Northern Irish band formed in Belfast in April 1964, most prominently known for the garage rock standard "Gloria" and launching singer Van Morrison's musical career...
. Kelly interviewed just about every key player including Van Morrison
Van Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
and Rory Gallagher
Rory Gallagher
William Rory Gallagher, ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995, was an Irish blues-rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Ireland, and raised in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, after forming the band Taste...
.
Radio
In the late nineties John Kelly moved to Dublin to present the groundbreaking Eclectic Ballroom on what was then called Radio Ireland and which later became Today FMToday FM
Radio Ireland Ltd, trading as 100-102 Today FM is an Irish commercial FM radio station which is available nationally. The station, which commenced broadcasting on Saint Patrick's Day in 1997, can be received nationally and carries a mix of music and talk...
– forming a successful night-time partnership with Donal Dineen
Donal Dineen
Donal Dineen is an Irish radio presenter, photographer, film maker and former television presenter from County Kerry. He currently presents an assortment of electronica and world music on his Small Hours late-night radio show on Today FM...
whose Here Comes the Night
Here Comes the Night (radio show)
Here Comes the Night was a late night radio show hosted by Donal Dineen on Today FM. It commenced broadcasting on 17 March 1997, lasting for a seven-year period before being replaced by Dineen's current show Small Hours. It was Dineen's first radio show on Today FM, airing from the station's...
immediately followed The Eclectic Ballroom. He moved to RTE
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
in 2000 to present Mystery Train
Mystery Train
"Mystery Train" is a song written by Junior Parker and Sam Phillips. It was first recorded in Phillip's Memphis Recording Service and Sun Records at 706 Union Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee in 1953. Raymond Hill plays tenor sax and Matt Murphy plays lead guitar with Bill Johnson on piano, Pat Hare on...
and won the PPI
PPI
PPI may refer to:-Biochemistry:*PPi, the anion P2O74−, a Pyrophosphate*PPI, Peptidyl prolyl cis-trans-isomerase, a human chaperone *PPI, a right-handed form of polyproline helix, a secondary structure in proteins-Indicators and indexes:...
Award for Music Broadcaster of the Year. Mystery Train
Mystery Train
"Mystery Train" is a song written by Junior Parker and Sam Phillips. It was first recorded in Phillip's Memphis Recording Service and Sun Records at 706 Union Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee in 1953. Raymond Hill plays tenor sax and Matt Murphy plays lead guitar with Bill Johnson on piano, Pat Hare on...
was yet another instant cult classic and a trusted music source for the discerning listener. Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
showed up regularly to co-present and the show was listened to all over the world.
"An extraordinary programme” said Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
, “To go from Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
to Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
. To go from Woody Guthrie
Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
to The Virgin Prunes. It’s an amazing thing to pull off. There's nothing like it anywhere in the world." When Mystery Train
Mystery Train
"Mystery Train" is a song written by Junior Parker and Sam Phillips. It was first recorded in Phillip's Memphis Recording Service and Sun Records at 706 Union Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee in 1953. Raymond Hill plays tenor sax and Matt Murphy plays lead guitar with Bill Johnson on piano, Pat Hare on...
was suddenly taken off air in 2007 it was an event of some national controversy with the matter being raised in the Irish Senate. The final show was a featured as a news item on the national RTE
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
9 0’clock news and U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
and Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
appeared in gestures of support. Kelly admitted in interviews that he seriously considered quitting altogether at this time but late in 2008 he moved to RTE
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
Lyric FM to present a new and very different show called The JK Ensemble.
Although RTE
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
Lyric FM has traditionally been a classical music station The JK Ensemble covers everything from J.S. Bach to Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
and from Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
to Sigur Rós
Sigur Rós
Sigur Rós is an Icelandic post-rock band with classicaland minimalist elements. The band is known for its ethereal sound, and frontman Jónsi Birgisson's falsetto vocals and use of bowed guitar. In January 2010, the band announced that they will be on hiatus. Since then, it has since been announced...
. John Kelly surprised everyone with an insistence on playing Igor Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
, John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
, Shostakovich, Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
and Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
in the middle of the day but, again, the show was an instant success which significantly raised the profile of the station. When Kelly was on leave on one occasion the show was guest presented by two stars of The Wire
The WIRE
the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
– Reg. E Cathey and Clarke Peters
Clarke Peters
Clarke Peters is an American actor, singer, writer and director best known for his role as Detective Lester Freamon on the HBO drama The Wire.-Early life:...
.
Kelly also presents Radio Clash on the digital channel 2XM which is a mixture of reggae, dub, punk and tracks from contemporary acts like TV on the Radio
TV on the Radio
TV on the Radio is an American art rock band formed in 2001 in Brooklyn, New York, whose music spans numerous diverse genres, from post-punk to electro and free jazz to soul music....
, White Stripes and Arcade Fire.
Television
The View is RTERTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
’s only arts weekly review programme broadcast on Tuesday nights. A panel, with Kelly in the chair, and his pals in the other chairs, discusses movies, theatre and the visual arts with a musical performance at the end with acts such as Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
and Edge
The Edge
David Howell Evans , more widely known by his stage name The Edge , is a musician best known as the guitarist, backing vocalist, and keyboardist of the Irish rock band U2. A member of the group since its inception, he has recorded 12 studio albums with the band and has released one solo record...
, Lyle Lovett
Lyle Lovett
Lyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
and Brad Melhdau. The View has also been the scene of the debut performances by many acts including the 2006 winner of the Choice Music Prize
Choice Music Prize
-Establishment:It was established by journalist Jim Carroll and manager Dave Reid in 2005. as an alternative to the industry-dominated Meteor Music Awards. The Choice Music Prize is modelled after the Mercury Prize which is awarded each year to the best album from the United Kingdom or Ireland...
Julie Feeney
Julie Feeney
Julie Feeney, award-winning Irish composer, song-writer, singer and music producer.-Overview:Feeney is an award-winning and critically acclaimed Irish composer, singer, record producer, musician, songwriter, theatre artist and educator. She composes both instrumental and electronic music, and...
, and Josh Ritter
Josh Ritter
Josh Ritter is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and author who performs and records with The Royal City Band. Ritter is known for his distinctive Americana style and narrative lyrics. In 2006 he was named one of the "100 Greatest Living Songwriters" by Paste magazine.- Early life :Josh...
. The View Presents is a separate strand of interview specials where Kelly talks at length with the likes of Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...
, Neil Jordan
Neil Jordan
Neil Patrick Jordan is an Irish filmmaker and novelist. He won an Academy Award for The Crying Game.- Early life :...
, The Edge
The Edge
David Howell Evans , more widely known by his stage name The Edge , is a musician best known as the guitarist, backing vocalist, and keyboardist of the Irish rock band U2. A member of the group since its inception, he has recorded 12 studio albums with the band and has released one solo record...
, Steve Reich
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael "Steve" Reich is an American composer who together with La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass is a pioneering composer of minimal music...
and Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
. For several seasons he presented the RTE
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
music series Other Voices where he introduced artists like Ray Davies
Ray Davies
Ray Davies, CBE is an English rock musician. He is best known as lead singer and songwriter for the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother, Dave...
, Amy Winehouse
Amy Winehouse
Amy Jade Winehouse was an English singer-songwriter known for her powerful deep contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres including R&B, soul and jazz. Winehouse's 2003 debut album, Frank, was critically successful in the UK and was nominated for the Mercury Prize...
and Elbow
Elbow (band)
Elbow are an English rock band. They have played together since 1990 and recorded five studio albums, the most recent of which is Build a Rocket Boys!, released in March 2011...
from a small church in Dingle
Dingle
Dingle is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about 49 kilometres southwest of Tralee and 71 kilometres northwest of Killarney....
in County Kerry. Most recently he co-presented the series with BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Radio 1’s Annie Mac
Annie Mac
Annie Mac is an Irish DJ and television presenter who hosts an eponymous electronic dance music show on BBC Radio 1 in the United Kingdom which airs at 7:00 pm on Friday evenings as well as a Sunday evening show alongside co-presenter Nick Grimshaw.-Personal life:Annie Mac was born in Dublin,...
.
Interviewer
Over the years he has interviewed (for TV, radio and The Irish TimesThe Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
) many leading figures in the music and arts world - Van Morrison
Van Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
, Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...
, Nina Simone
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...
, Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
, Al Green
Al Green
Albert Greene , better known as Al Green, is an American gospel and soul music singer. He reached the peak of his popularity in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "You Oughta Be With Me", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Love and Happiness", and "Let's Stay Together"...
, Steve Reich
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael "Steve" Reich is an American composer who together with La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass is a pioneering composer of minimal music...
, Peter Brook
Peter Brook
Peter Stephen Paul Brook CH, CBE is an English theatre and film director and innovator, who has been based in France since the early 1970s.-Life:...
, John McGahern
John McGahern
John McGahern was one of the most important Irish authors of the latter half of the twentieth century. Before his death in 2006 he was hailed as "the greatest living Irish novelist" by The Observer.-Life:...
, Solomon Burke
Solomon Burke
Solomon Burke was an American singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, mortician, and an archbishop of the United House of Prayer For All People. Burke was known as "King Solomon", the "King of Rock 'n' Soul", and as the "Bishop of Soul", and described as "the Muhammad Ali of soul", and as "the most...
, George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
, Sam Phillips
Sam Phillips
Samuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American businessman, record executive, record producer and DJ who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
, U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
, Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
, Vanessa Redgrave
Vanessa Redgrave
Vanessa Redgrave, CBE is an English actress of stage, screen and television, as well as a political activist.She rose to prominence in 1961 playing Rosalind in As You Like It with the Royal Shakespeare Company and has since made more than 35 appearances on London's West End and Broadway, winning...
, Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
, BB King, John Berger
John Berger
John Peter Berger is an English art critic, novelist, painter and author. His novel G. won the 1972 Booker Prize, and his essay on art criticism Ways of Seeing, written as an accompaniment to a BBC series, is often used as a university text.-Education:Born in Hackney, London, England, Berger was...
, Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
, Townes Van Zandt
Townes Van Zandt
John Townes Van Zandt , best known as Townes Van Zandt, was an American Texas Country-folk music singer-songwriter, performer, and poet...
, Laurie Anderson
Laurie Anderson
Laura Phillips "Laurie" Anderson is an American experimental performance artist, composer and musician who plays violin and keyboards and sings in a variety of experimental music and art rock styles. Initially trained as a sculptor, Anderson did her first performance-art piece in the late 1960s...
, Mose Allison
Mose Allison
Mose John Allison, Jr. is an American jazz blues pianist and singer.-Biography:...
, Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass is an American composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century and is widely acknowledged as a composer who has brought art music to the public .His music is often described as minimalist, along with...
, Screaming Jay Hawkins, Jimmy Scott
Jimmy Scott
Jimmy Scott , aka "Little" Jimmy Scott, is an American jazz vocalist famous for his unusually high contralto voice which is due to Kallmann's syndrome, a very rare genetic condition. The condition stunted his growth at four feet eleven inches until, at age 37, he grew another 8 inches to the...
, Philip Lynott, Randy Newman
Randy Newman
Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is known for his mordant pop songs and for film scores....
, Peter O’Toole and many more.
Miscellaneous
John Kelly narrated U2’s Missing Sarajevo DVD documentary, filmed his own documentary on Elvis PresleyElvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
and travelled further throughout the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with the RTE
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
travel programme No Frontiers
No Frontiers
No Frontiers is a music album by Irish singer Mary Black. This ground-breaking album assured Black's status as one of Ireland's most respected artists in Europe and also in the US, where the release of the album greatly increased her popularity. It went straight to the top of the Irish album chart...
. Other musical trips for radio have taken him to Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. He worked as a music consultant on the Neil Jordan
Neil Jordan
Neil Patrick Jordan is an Irish filmmaker and novelist. He won an Academy Award for The Crying Game.- Early life :...
movie The Good Thief – which explains all the Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
in the film.
Journalism
Kelly has written a column for The Irish TimesThe Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
and contributed to numerous other publications on matters musical and cultural.
Books
At university and immediately afterwards John Kelly was primarily known as a poetPoet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and was published in most of the important journals and magazines. He gave many readings in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and the US. Although he had featured in several significant anthologies he never published a volume of his own. Instead he took to writing prose.
The Little Hammer (Jonathan Cape 2000) and Sophisticated Boom Boom
Sophisticated Boom Boom
Sophisticated Boom Boom is the debut album by the British pop group Dead or Alive, released in 1984. Containing mostly synth pop and dance elements, the record was a minor success in the UK where it peaked at #29 and contained the band's first UK Top 40 single, a remake of KC & the Sunshine Band's...
– a book about music – was also published by Jonathan Cape in 2003. It was singled out for special praise by the writer William Gibson
William Gibson
William Gibson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.William Gibson may also refer to:-Association football:*Will Gibson , Scottish footballer...
when asked by the (London) Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
what books he had by his bedside. He said it was “A universally applicable evocation of male adolesence and the of the gifts that music brings.” The Little Hammer was also critically well received with the Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
describing it as, “Immediate, passionate and shot through with descriptive brilliance, the narrative voice is both charming and convincing.” The List said it was “Completely illuminating. A book to be read and savoured.” The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
called it “A witty, inventive, exhilarating novel.”
That Culture Book will be published by Harper Collins at Christmas 2010.
Music
John Kelly has played harmonica on stage with Van MorrisonVan Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
, Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson is an English singer-songwriter, bassist and radio presenter, better known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band...
, Horslips
Horslips
Horslips are an Irish Celtic rock band that compose, arrange and perform songs based on traditional Irish jigs and reels. The group are regarded as 'founding fathers of Celtic rock' for their fusion of traditional Irish music with rock music and went on to inspire many local and international acts....
, Gavin Friday
Gavin Friday
Gavin Friday is an Irish singer and songwriter, composer, actor and painter.-Career:Gavin was born in Dublin and grew up in Finglas, a neighbourhood located on Dublin's Northside...
and Paul Brady
Paul Brady
Paul Joseph Brady is an Irish singer-songwriter, whose work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age...
and also co-wrote half a dozen songs on the Paul Brady
Paul Brady
Paul Joseph Brady is an Irish singer-songwriter, whose work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age...
album Say What You Feel
Say What You Feel
Say What You Feel is a 2005 album by Irish singer/songwriter Paul Brady, his ninth solo album.-Track listing:#Smile#Don't Try To Please Me#Love In A Bubble#I Only Want You#Living For The Corporation#Say What You Feel#Locked Up In Heaven...
.