Speedy Keen

Songwriter, vocalist, drummer

Vocals
drums
guitar
Hammond organ
keyboards

Years active1966–2002Labels

Track
Island
Roadrunner
Cleopatra

Musical artist

John David Percy "Speedy" Keen (29 March 1945 – 12 March 2002)^[1] was a songwriter, vocalist, drummer and keyboard player, best known for his association with the rock band Thunderclap Newman. He wrote "Something in the Air" (1969) for the band, which reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart. He also released two solo albums.

Career

Keen was born in Ealing, London, England.^[2] He played early on with such bands as The Krewsaders, The Second Thoughts (1964–65, with Patrick Campbell-Lyons and Chris Thomas) and The Eccentrics.^[3] Keen's first recorded song was "Club of Lights", recorded in 1966 for Reaction Records by Oscar (Paul Nicholas).

Before joining Thunderclap Newman, Keen shared a flat with and worked as a driver for Pete Townshend of The Who. He wrote "Armenia City in the Sky",^[2] which was included on the album The Who Sell Out (1967).^[1] This was the only song The Who ever performed that was specifically written for the group by a non-member. Who bassist Entwistle joked that people thought it was "I'm an Ear Sitting in the Sky".^[4] Keen wrote "Something in the Air", his best-known song, for Thunderclap Newman and recorded two solo albums for Track and Island both of which have been released on CD by Esoteric (Cherry Red).^[2] "I Promise You" from the second album was used in the American TV series, The Big C. Keen was later a record producer for The Heartbreakers^[2] and Motörhead.

As a session musician Keen played for others such as Rod Stewart, The Mission, and Kenny G. He also provided music for television advertisements and television programmes such as The Zoo. As a writer, apart from "Something in the Air", "Armenia City in the Sky" and "Club of Lights", he wrote songs for The Swinging Blue Jeans ("Something's Coming Along") and Crokodile Tears ("Your Love").

Keen died of heart failure in March 2002.^[1]

Discography

Albums

Previous Convictions (1973, Track Records)
Y' Know Wot I Mean? (1975, Island Records)^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c The Guardian obituaries – accessed July 2013
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1350. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
^ Warburton, Nick. "The Second Thoughts". The Strange Brew. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
^ Alan G. Parker (2010). The Who by Numbers: The Story of The Who Through Their Music. Helter Skelter Publishing. p. 48.