Kelly Walsh
In the early evenings at the Walsh home the kitchen was the place to be. That's where Dad played his favorite songs on his home made guitar. Plucking out the sounds of Leadbelly, the Everly Brothers, Chuck Berry to Simon and Garfunkle, to name a few, Kelly and her pajama-clad siblings would spin in circles, arms outstretched, as Dad sang. Dad never tired of playing. The kids never tired of spinning.
Kelly began performing to the hits of the seventies in her parent's basement. She also wrote and produced plays and organized variety shows. Employing the budding talent of her siblings and the neighborhood kids, performances took place on makeshift stages built in the basement or living room of any parent who could handle the clamor of 5-10 pre-teens for 3 or 4 hours at a time. Audiences were made up of everyone in the neighborhood and their parents.
In high school Kelly joined the chorus and began performing in her Church youth group's traveling productions. She also did Summer Stock. Kelly's brother learned to play the guitar and they began writing songs and singing together. Kelly studied with a vocal coach for a period during high school; the rest of her time was divided between learning to ride horses and training her collies.
Fast forward to college; Kelly was exploring new and interesting avenues. Performance took a turn to radio. While majoring in communications and journalism at the University of Rhode Island, she became active at WRIU-FM, the college station, as a newscaster and DJ. She also was trekking up to Providence a few times a week to attend concerts at local clubs. There were many up-and-coming bands to see, and punk rock was her favorite. The Living Room in Providence became her home away from home. The sub-culture surrounding bands like Black Flag, The Circle Jerks, Husker Du, Dead Kennedy's, and The Replacements as well as all the area punk and underground bands, became family. Kelly recalls feeling so comfortable and inspired amidst the chaos, yet it still did not occur to her that she could be making her own music.
Despite graduation and a few career oriented positions in the field of social services, Kelly still found herself surrounded by musicians. She began singing in the acoustic based Green Picket Fence with ex-punk guitarist Dave Chabot of Neutral Nation, guitarist Keith Wheeler and vocalist Phebe Wheeler. Dave gave Kelly her first guitar as a birthday present and she began writing songs even before she
could play them. She also studied again with a vocal coach.
Kelly spent eight months in San Diego learning to play guitar with musicians she met while there. Upon
her return she picked up a bass and started Plummet, a grungy rock outfit with drummer Travis Lawton and guitarist Greg Theriault. They played clubs and colleges around Providence.
When Plummet dissolved, Kelly took off to live on Block Island, practicing guitar with various musicians
who liked to hide out on the Island, including the old timer Rocket, an East Coast mandolinist and endless
source of inventive creativity. Kelly also began a regular practice of yoga and meditation.
Next it was off to Costa Rica for four months to learn some Spanish and the art of surfing. Back in Providence again, Kelly started up Randy, once again stomping stages with her old drummer Travis, her brother John Walsh, bassist Matt Zuchowski, and guitarist/songwriter Pat Healy. Randy's edgy,
sulky, silly sound showcased around Providence before calling it quits.
Kelly met Brit Producer Robert Hanson while playing solo shows in Providence and the two began arranging
music for her debut CD Cinderella Stories... Kelly toured the northeast with fellow solo performers Serena Andrews and Christine Hajjar, returning to Rhode Island to record her second CD Sea Notes. Now backed by Robert Hanson on bass and Michael Whitt of Into Oblivion on drums, Kelly's been showcasing her songs with a rock and roll edge, recently opening for Sally Taylor on her latest tour, and plans to restomp the stage once again in and around New England.
Kelly's folk tales are ensconsed in pop soliloquy. Her songs and her live presence still hint and occasionally uncover her punk influences, adding an edge to the voice of the fallen angel. She's created an art out of making you think, but one thing will never change, the girl loves to rock!!
PO Box 406 Block Island, RI 02807
www.kellywalsh.com
yoga@kellywalsh.com
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