Preston rapidly established McKenzie as a regular recording artist and contributor to radio and television broadcasts for at least a decade. [9], On 28 November 1972, McKenzie started a four-year residency at The White Elephant on the River in Chelsea, accompanied by Johnny Hawksworth and Stuart Livingston,[8] followed by seven years at The Dorchester, and finally in the '80s, nine years at The Savoy, eventually playing from his wheelchair. ;[5] even prior to that, in 1957, he had appeared in a BBC radio programme, Caribbean Carnival: The British West Indies Show. Mike's songwriting has consistently received accolades from various national and international publications. Upon graduating from high school, he met vocalist Guy Kozowyk at a Boston-area Battle of the Bands. The road has not been easy for Michael, trying to make his way through the country music industry and to get his music heard.Michael’s music roots run deep from classical, rock n roll, blues, southern gospel, and country music. In 1984, McKenzie recorded an LP of his songs with Elizabeth McKenzie, Spell It Out, which he co-produced with his son, the bass player John McKenzie. Michael's love of country music is strong and lasting. These included remakes of British Guiana Bargee, Weed Woman, and Daddy Gone to Cove and John [and] Nice Woman, Ugly Man, Bald-Plated Emily, Necromancy, Sightseeing in the UK, and The Hungry Man from Clapham [...] a "shantoized" version of a popular British music hall song..."[10]. Even with the influences of more modern artists such as Eric Church, Brantley Gilbert, Jason Aldean to name a few, Michael holds all of his country influences close to heart. Bill Rogers' 1952 recordings features Freddy Grant on clarinet, flute, and maracas; Rannie Hart on trumpet and cigar box; Mike McKenzie on piano; Lawrence Weeks from India on bongos; and Joe Sampson on string bass. A consistent crowd favorite, they are recipients of multiple awards, including Best Cover Band by the NELA Music Awards for 2015 and 2016 and an amazing five time 'Best Of The Delta' award winner for Best Cover Band from Delta Style Magazine. Michael has turned those many memories and experiences into songs of introspection, reflection, and analysis. Mike has earned endorsements from ESP Guitars, D'Addario, Peavey, Orange, Toontrack, and others. It’s the first time this has taken place, and it’s so important for us songwriters. Freddy Grant and Rannie Hart were featured on most of the seminal calypso recordings made in the United Kingdom during the 1950s. [6] Oscar Grenville Hastings McKenzie (born 17 September 1922, British Guiana, died December 1999, Spain), known as Mike McKenzie, was a Guyanese jazz pianist, bandleader, vocalist, composer and arranger, who played in London from the 1950s to the 1980s. Mike McKenzie wins BBC Radio Scotland Singer/Songwriter Award 2019 It’s just amazing. McKenzie's line ups similarly featured a fusion of instrumentalists - Joe Harriott, Shake Keane,[4] Bertie King, Humphrey Lyttleton, Denny Wright and Jack Fallon, and vocalists George Browne, Marie Bryant and Lili Verona. McKenzie started his career in 1970 as a member of the Global Village Trucking Company, who all lived together in an old farm house in Sotherton, Suffolk, with their families, and became a well-known live act by playing extended jams at numerous benefit concerts and free festivals. 1207 "Mama Inez" (Eliseo Grenet, L. Wolfe Gilbert)/, This page was last edited on 16 April 2019, at 21:29. These men along with Cy Grant also contributed to the popularization of calypso music. Today, Mike's primary instrument remains the guitar, though he has gone on to learn a number of other instruments and refine his diverse vocal talents. Michael McKenzie is a solo singer songwriter bridging the gap between the old country music sound and the more modern country sound. With the great memories of sitting on the porch with his father, listening to the likes of Merle Haggard, Jerry Reed, Willie Nelson, Alabama, the Oak Ridge Boys, George Jones, and others heard on the Grand Ole Opry. Mike McKenzie is an American composer, recording-artist, and Boston Music Awards nominated musician living in New England. 2.3K likes. At the start of the 1950s McKenzie was working with producer Denis Preston at both the BBC and for the Melodisc and Parlophone record labels. Mike McKenzie and Iggy Quail were innovative pianists and members of the bands led by Grant and Hart. At a young age, Mike quickly became enamored with music, recording video game and TV themes with a boombox held up to the television speaker. Mike began his solo musical career in 2017, after gaining experience co-writing with and producing other artists around Scotland, hitting the open mic scene with his melancholic outlook on love, life and happiness. Known for his technical songwriting and unique playing style, he has been featured in such magazines as Guitar World, Revolver, Outburn, and others. As he looks back on his past military service, the meeting of the love of his life (Debra, who helped him to bring about their son, Michael McKenzie III), and the impacting memories of his upbringing in Tallahassee Florida, Michael combines it all into something that for him is much more than just a song, and is instead a soulful expression.Michael enjoys meeting and talking with his audience members, and the conversations he has with them only adds more value to his songwriting experiences. It wasn't long until he was teaching himself how to play guitar and trading his finger skateboard for a copy of Testament's The Legacy. He has also worked with advertising producers, composing scores and recording voice overs for a variety of marketing projects. His broadcast career with the BBC lasted for 20 years; he was a familiar name in broadcasting, with frequent appearances on the BBC Light Programme, playing a huge range of styles. The lyrics of "Tomato" (1952) and "Little Boy" (1953) are quoted in Frank Norman's 1959 novel, Stand on Me. This group also accompanied Bill Rogers in 1952, when he visited the United Kingdom to record with the Melodisc and Parlophone labels. On 30 January 1959, The Mike McKenzie Trio performed with Cleo Laine at the first Caribbean Carnival (West Indian Gazette Carnival) at St Pancras Town Hall, a precursor to the Notting Hill Carnival. McKenzie also featured in the founding of the Black British carnival tradition. Vibert C. Cambridge, in his book Musical Life in Guyana, describes the contributions West Indian musicians made to the evolution of British popular music during the twentieth century, singling out calypso recordings in particular: By the 1950s musicians from British Guiana such as Robert Adams, Freddy Grant, Rannie Hart, Cy Grant, Frank Holder, Mike McKenzie and Iggy Quail were among the key contributors to this evolution. He continues to write and record for many other musical endeavors, always pursuing the honest creation of new music. These recordings, by the Grant-Lyttelton Paseo Jazz Band favoured a North American repertoire. He has performed in 18 North American, European, and Asian countries, played sold-out shows in 45 of the 50 United States, and sold over 100,000 records as the principal songwriter for his bands The Red Chord, Stomach Earth, and Beyond the Sixth Seal. There were two exceptions, however Fat Tuesday — another name for Mardi Gras in New Orleans — was based on a tune "dug up from the recesses of [Freddy Grant‘s] memory"; and Mike’s Tangana was written by Mike McKenzie in a way that fused black Latin American and North American styles. Times are changing with the sound of music and Michael is trying to push his way through the music sound and find a foot hold for his sound.

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