Geoffrey Kelly (born October 23, 1956 in

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from the ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

rock musician. He played guitars, flutes and bodhrán for the

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...

band Spirit of the West, for whom he was also the lead vocalist on some songs: Geoffrey Kelly and John Mann were the band's primary songwriters and founders. They were often referred to as the "Glummer Twins". Their partnership endured through the years until the final 3 SOTW shows at the beloved Commodore Ballroom in April of 2016. The Spirit of Canada shows took place at the Commodore the following year with an all star cast of Canada's finest. Kelly is also a full-time member of The Paperboys,: Roger Levesque, "Paperboys bring special delivery of eclectic sound". ''

Edmonton Journal The ''Edmonton Journal'' is a daily newspaper in Edmonton, Alberta. It is part of the Postmedia Network. History The ''Journal'' was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunningham — as ...

'', November 16, 2017. Kelly released the solo album ''Gringo Star'' in 2002 recorded at home studio Basecamp. He also tours internationally, and across Canada with

The Irish Rovers The Irish Rovers is a group of Irish musicians that originated in Toronto, Canada. Formed in 1963'Irish Rovers are Digging out those old Folk songs', By Ballymena Weekly Editor, Ballymena Weekly Telegraph, N. Ireland – 20 August 1964 and na ...

. He has recorded on all their albums since the year 2000, and even appears on the Hard Stuff album from 1989. Jeremy Shepherd, "Not closing time just yet for The Irish Rovers; Iconic band bring their final tour to CelticFest". ''North Shore News'', March 11, 2016. Kelly also tours with the Cariboo Express. Geoffrey has recorded with many artists including Alan Doyle, Paul Hyde, Odds, Barney Bentall, Ashley MacIsaac, The Wonder Stuff, The Town Pants, Early Spirit, Pat Chessell and many others. His most recent recorded work is the album RanchWriters (2021), in partnership with longtime friend Barney Bentall. RanchWriters is an instrumental album centered around 2 acoustic guitars with additional tracks contributed by some of the finest musicians from Western Canada and beyond. Including dear friend, former Paperboy and honorary Spirit, Kendel Carson. An upcoming Geoffrey Kelly solo album has also been completed with hopes of a fall 2022 release or spring of 2023. Kelly still resides in glorious North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with his family, wife Alison, son Ben, and daughter Maeve.

Discography

*''Gringo Star'' (2002) * "RanchWriters" (2021) With Barney Bentall

References

External links

Geoffrey Kelly
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Geoffrey 1956 births Living people Canadian folk rock musicians Canadian songwriters People from Dumfries Scottish emigrants to Canada Musicians from British Columbia Spirit of the West members