Kenny Morris (musician)

Last updated

Kenny Morris
Kenny Morris, musician.jpg
Morris performing live on TSR with Siouxsie and the Banshees, June 1979
Background information
Birth nameKenneth Ian Morris
Born (1957-02-01) 1 February 1957 (age 67)
OriginUnited Kingdom
Genres Post-punk (music)
Experimental (film)
Occupation(s) Musician, painter, drawer, filmmaker
Instrument(s)Drums
Website Official website

Kenneth Ian Morris (born 1 February 1957), known professionally as Kenny Morris, is an English drummer, songwriter and visual artist. He was the first studio drummer of Siouxsie and the Banshees. He joined the band in January 1977; he had attended their first live appearance at the 100 Club a few months earlier and had been impressed by their performance. Morris's first studio recording with the group was in November 1977 when they recorded their first John Peel session for BBC radio. Music journalist Kris Needs said : "Like as a rhythm machine for feet and guts Kenny Morris' drumming is unorthodox, primitive (in a tribal sense) and far removed from the clicking hi-hats of the fly-strength paradiddle merchants". [1]

He played mostly toms. He has been cited as a major influence by several drummers of the post-punk era including Stephen Morris of Joy Division, [2] Kevin Haskins of Bauhaus, [3] and Paul Ferguson of Killing Joke. [4]

During the recording of the band's debut single "Hong Kong Garden", producer Steve Lillywhite suggested to him to record the drums separately. Morris did the bass drum and the snare drum first. He did the cymbals and the tom-toms later. [5] Lillywhite also added echo on the drums, adding significant space to the entire recording. NME wrote that Lillywhite's work with Morris "revolutionis[ed] the post-punk band's sound with an innovative approach to laying down the drums". [6]

Morris played on the albums The Scream (1978) and Join Hands (1979). He left the band a few hours before a concert in Aberdeen at the beginning of the Join Hands tour, on 7 September 1979.

Life and career

Kenny Morris was born of Irish parents. [7] He grew up in Waltham Abbey, Essex. [8] He attended St Ignatius' College in Enfield, where he became a friend of future collaborator and film director John Maybury. Morris then attended Barnet College in London. [9] He also studied fine art and film-making at North East London Polytechnic. He first talked with Siouxsie and the Banshees in September 1976 after seeing their first concert at the 100 Club in London. He was attending Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts when he briefly joined the band the Flowers of Romance but after six months of rehearsals, they split before giving any concert. They didn't record anything. [10]

He joined Siouxsie and the Banshees in January 1977. He played cymbals-less drumming on most of their songs. [2] He also did a lot of percussion overdubs on the band's album The Scream . [11]

After leaving the Banshees, Morris worked as a drummer with Helen Terry and other musicians for live stage sets. He recorded and produced a 12" inch vinyl featuring two spoken words, performed by Dorothée Lalanne; "La Main Morte" and "Le Testament d'Auguste Rodin". "La Main Morte" was a film soundtrack co-composed with Maybury and Jean-Pierre Baudry (from French band Marc Seberg). "La Main Morte" was released on Genesis P-Orridge's Temple Records. [12]

Morris also directed five short films including La Main Morte, Blind Obedience, Le Trois Grace, Marilyn and Summer House. The films were all uploaded on his YouTube channel. [13]

In 1993, after living in London for twenty years, Morris moved to Ireland and, with a BA Honours degree in Fine Art, held several teaching posts. [7] He ran an art gallery in Kildare Town in the late 1990s. [14]

He paints and draws and sells his work online via his facebook official site. [15] He now resides in Cork, Ireland where he continues practicing and teaching Art. [16]

In January 2021, he revealed in an interview that he had written his memoir. [17] The book is scheduled for publication in 2025. [18]

In March 2024, there was an exhibition of his artworks in Dublin; the art show was titled A Banshee Left Wailing. [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joy Division</span> English rock band

Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siouxsie and the Banshees</span> British rock band

Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. The Times called the group "one of the most audacious and uncompromising musical adventurers of the post-punk era".

Kevin Michael Dompe, born and best-known as Kevin Michael Haskins, is an English drummer, best known from the British rock group Bauhaus. He was also a member of Tones on Tail and Love and Rockets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siouxsie Sioux</span> English singer

Susan Janet Ballion, known professionally as Siouxsie Sioux, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. She came to prominence as the leader and main lyricist of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, who were active from 1976 to 1996. They released 11 studio albums, and had several UK Top 20 singles including "Hong Kong Garden", "Happy House" and "Peek-a-Boo", plus a US Top 25 single in the Billboard Hot 100, with "Kiss Them for Me".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Morris (musician)</span> British drummer

Stephen Paul David Morris is an English drummer who is best known for his work with the rock band New Order and, previously, Joy Division. He also wrote and performed in The Other Two, a band consisting of Morris and his girlfriend and later wife, Gillian Gilbert. Morris also participated in the New Order spin-off band Bad Lieutenant.

Motorik is the 4/4 beat often used by, and heavily associated with, krautrock bands. Coined by music journalists, the term is German for "motor skill". The motorik beat was pioneered by Jaki Liebezeit, drummer with German experimental rock band Can. Klaus Dinger of Neu!, another early pioneer of motorik, later called it the "Apache beat". The motorik beat is heard in one section of Kraftwerk's "Autobahn", a song designed to celebrate exactly this experience. It is heard throughout Neu!'s "Hallogallo", from their self-titled album Neu!.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Lillywhite</span> English record producer

Stephen Alan Lillywhite, is a British record producer. Since he began his career in 1977, Lillywhite has been credited on over 500 records, and has collaborated with a variety of musicians including new wave acts XTC, Big Country, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Simple Minds, the Psychedelic Furs, Toyah, David Byrne, Talking Heads and Kirsty MacColl, as well as U2, the Rolling Stones, the Pogues, Blue October, Steel Pulse, the La's, Peter Gabriel, Morrissey, the Killers, Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Counting Crows and Joan Armatrading. He has won six Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2006. In 2012, he was made a Commander of the Order of The British Empire (CBE) for his contributions to music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Budgie (musician)</span> English drummer

Peter Edward Clarke, known professionally as Budgie, is an English drummer best known for his work in Siouxsie and the Banshees. He is also the co-founder of the Creatures.

<i>Peter Gabriel</i> (1980 album) Third solo album by Peter Gabriel

Peter Gabriel is the third solo studio album by the English rock musician Peter Gabriel, released on 30 May 1980 by Charisma Records. The album, produced by Steve Lillywhite, has been acclaimed as Gabriel's artistic breakthrough as a solo artist. AllMusic wrote that it established him as "one of rock's most ambitious, innovative musicians".

<i>The Scream</i> (album) 1978 studio album by Siouxsie and the Banshees

The Scream is the debut studio album by British rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released on 13 November 1978 by Polydor Records. The album is considered a landmark recording: its innovative combination of angular and serrated guitar with a bass-led rhythm and machine-like drums played mostly on toms, made it a pioneering work of the post-punk genre.

<i>Join Hands</i> 1979 studio album by Siouxsie and the Banshees

Join Hands is the second studio album by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released on 7 September 1979 by Polydor Records. Upon its release, it was praised by the British press, including Melody Maker, Sounds, NME and Record Mirror.

<i>Kaleidoscope</i> (Siouxsie and the Banshees album) 1980 studio album by Siouxsie and the Banshees

Kaleidoscope is the third studio album by British rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released on 1 August 1980 by Polydor Records. With the departure of John McKay and Kenny Morris and their replacement by two new musicians, Budgie on drums and John McGeoch on guitars, the band changed their musical direction and offered an album containing a wide variety of colors. "It was almost a different band", said Siouxsie.

Gated reverb or gated ambience is an audio processing technique that combines strong reverb and a noise gate that cuts the tail of the reverb. The effect is typically applied to recordings of drums to make the hits sound powerful and "punchy" while keeping the overall mix clean and transparent sounding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hong Kong Garden (song)</span> 1978 single by Siouxsie and the Banshees

"Hong Kong Garden" is the debut single of English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It was released as a single on 18 August 1978 by Polydor Records, reaching number 7 on the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mittageisen</span> 1979 single by Siouxsie and the Banshees

"Mittageisen" is a song by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It originally appeared on the band's 1978 debut album The Scream as "Metal Postcard (Mittageisen)"; the track was re-recorded in 1979, this time with the lyrics sung in German, and released as a single in West Germany with "Love in a Void" on the b-side. That September the song was given a UK release by record label Polydor as a double A-side single.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Happy House</span> 1980 single by Siouxsie and the Banshees

"Happy House" is a song written by Siouxsie Sioux and Steven Severin and recorded by their band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It was released as a single in March 1980 by record label Polydor, then later included on the band's third album, Kaleidoscope. "Happy House" was the group's first record made with guitarist John McGeoch and drummer Budgie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John McKay (musician)</span> Musical artist

John McKay is an English songwriter and guitarist. He was the first studio guitarist of Siouxsie and the Banshees. He was a member of the group from July 1977 until September 1979. He played a "jagged unorthodox chording", and created a "metal-shard roar" with his guitar. Q magazine included McKay's work on "Hong Kong Garden" in its list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Tracks Ever". He recorded two studio albums with the band, their debut album The Scream in 1978 and Join Hands in 1979.

Post-punk is a broad genre of music that emerged in 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experimental approach that encompassed a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-rock influences. Inspired by punk's energy and do it yourself ethic but determined to break from rock cliches, artists experimented with styles like funk, electronic music, jazz, and dance music; the production techniques of dub and disco; and ideas from art and politics, including critical theory, modernist art, cinema and literature. These communities produced independent record labels, visual art, multimedia performances and fanzines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Love in a Void</span> 1979 song by Siouxsie and the Banshees

"Love In a Void" is a song by the English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, written by singer Siouxsie Sioux, bassist Steven Severin, drummer Kenny Morris and guitarist Peter Fenton. Originally included as the b-side to the 1979 single "Mittageisen" in West Germany, it was later released as a double A-side single in September of the same year. It was also included on the band's 1981 ten track UK Gold certified compilation album Once Upon a Time: The Singles, and on the CD reissue of the album Join Hands.

References

  1. ↑ Needs, Kris (December 1978). "Overboard For... Funtime?". ZigZag .
  2. 1 2 Morris, Stephen (2019). Record Play Pause: Confessions of a Post-Punk Percussionist: The Joy Division Years Volume I. Constable. ISBN   978-1472126207. It would be Siouxsie and the Banshees to whom I most felt some kind of affinity. [...] the bass-led rhythm, the way first drummer Kenny Morris played mostly toms. In interviews Siouxsie would claim the sound of cymbals was forbidden [...] The Banshees had that [...] foreboding sound, sketching out the future from the dark of the past. [...] hearing the sessions they'd done on John Peel's show and reading gigs write-ups, I had to admit they sounded interesting.
    "Joy Division". Record Collector. 2020. Morris – a young Hawkwind/krautrock fan whose revolving drum patterns were inspired by Can's Jaki Liebezeit and the Banshees' Kenny Morris.
  3. ↑ Lyon, Judy (20 October 2018). "Bauhaus' Kevin Haskins On His Involvement with Foxes Tv". Torchedmagazine. Retrieved 1 November 2018. At the time there were two drummers who had an influence on me namely, Steven Morris from Joy Division and Kenny Morris from Siouxsie And The Banshees. With Kenny [Morris], I loved how he would use the tom tom drums rather than hi hats and cymbals.
  4. ↑ Garcia, Jane. "If Joke Could Kill [Jaz Coleman interview]". New Music News (14 June 1980). [The Banshees ?] Paul, the drummer, likes them.
  5. ↑ Tassell, Nige (12 January 2012). "Tori Amos, Kristin Hersh, Anton Corbin and more recall their big career firsts". The Guardian . Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  6. ↑ "The 50 Best Producers Ever: #40 – Steve Lillywhite". NME. 14 March 2012. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  7. 1 2 Halford, Grace (2 July 2001). "Artist's work 'greatly influenced' by Kildare". kildare.ie. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  8. ↑ Paytress, Mark (2003). Siouxsie & the Banshees: The Authorised Biography. Sanctuary. ISBN   1-86074-375-7.
  9. ↑ Frame, Pete. Pete Frame's Rockin' Around Britain. Omnibus, 1999. ISBN   0-7119-6973-6, ISBN   978-0-7119-6973-5
  10. ↑ Dunne, Tom (14 September 2016). "Audio Interview: Kenny Morris of Siouxsie and the". Newstalk.com. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  11. ↑ "196: Budgie (The Slits, Siouxsie Sioux and The Banshees, The Creatures, John Grant) - interview". Thetrapset.net. 2 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2024. "[from 00:32:55 Looking back the first album The Scream there are a lot of percussion overdubs, they are really part of the songs."
  12. ↑ "Kenny Morris - La Main Morte". Alicerabbit. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  13. ↑ "Kenny Morris - km videos". Kenny Morris on YouTube. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  14. ↑ Pete Frame; John Peel (October 1998). "Rock Family Trees: The Banshees and Other Creatures". BBC on Youtube. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  15. ↑ Kenny Morris art. Facebook. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  16. ↑ "Kenny Morris at Hive Gallery Waterford". Waterfordarts.com. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  17. ↑ "Retropopic 543 - Kenny Morris Talks: Early Days, 'The Scream', 'Join Hands' & Leaving The Banshees". Retropopic. January 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  18. 1 2 Robb, John (13 February 2024). "Kenny Morris (former Siouxsie and the Banshees drummer) announces prestigious art show in Dublin called A Banshee Left Wailing". Louderthanwar.com. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.