Jo Ann Kelly (5 January 1944 – 21 October 1990) was an English

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

singer and guitarist. She is respected for her strong blues vocal style and for playing country blues guitar.

Early life

Kelly was born in

Streatham Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. Streatham was in Surrey ...

South London South London is the southern part of London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, London Borou ...

, England on 5 January 1944. She had two younger siblings, Susan and Dave. Her early interest in performing music grew out of hearing the Everly Brothers, Elvis Presley,

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

and Skiffle in the late 1950s. She learned 3 or 4 guitar chords from her younger brother, Dave Kelly.

Career

She appeared on several

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

s with her first in 1966 being ''New Sounds In Folk'' and then two years later on ''Blues Anytime Vol. 1: An Anthology Of British Blues'' (1968) Immediate Records before releasing her first solo album titled ''Jo-Ann Kelly'' (1969), this was issued on CBS in the UK and

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

in the US. She was also a core member of Tramp (band) along with her brother Dave Kelly. Jo-Ann Kelly and her brother Dave helped raise donations for Memphis Minnie in the 1960s. Canned Heat and Johnny Winter both tried to recruit Kelly, but she preferred to stay in the United Kingdom. She expanded to the European club circuit, where she worked with guitarist Pete Emery and other bands. In the early 1980s, she was a member of the Terry Smith Blues Band.

Death

In 1988, Kelly began to suffer from headaches. In 1989 she had an operation to remove a malignant

brain tumour A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and secondary ...

. She died on 21 October 1990, aged 46. Obituaries for Kelly appeared in major UK newspapers, including '' The Independent'', '' The Times'', and '' The Guardian''. Remembrances and obituaries also appeared in contemporary

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

magazines such as '' Blues & Rhythm'' and the ''British Blues Review'' The obituary in ''The Independent'' remarked, "To many American performers Jo Ann Kelly was the only British singer to earn their respect for her development of what they would be justified in thinking as 'their' genre".

Discography

Primary releases

* ''Jo-Ann Kelly: Blues & Gospel'' (No label, 1968) – EP with four songs, pressing limited to 99 copies. All original recordings are included on ''Retrospect 1964-72''. * ''Jo-Ann Kelly'' (

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...

, 1969) * ''Same Thing on Their Minds'' (

Sunset Sunset, also known as sundown, is the daily disappearance of the Sun below the horizon due to Earth's rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth (except the North and South poles), the equinox Sun sets due west at the moment of both the spring ...

, 1969) – With Tony McPhee. * ''Jo Ann Kelly With John Fahey, Woody Mann, John Miller, Alan Seidler'' ( Blue Goose, 1972) * ''Do It'' (Red Rag, 1976) – With Peter Emery. * ''Just Restless'', The Jo Ann Kelly Band (Appaloosa, 1984) * ''Jo Ann'' (Open, 1988) * ''Woman in (E)Motion Festival'' (Tradition & Moderne, 1995) – Recorded in Germany, 1988.

Compilations

* ''Retrospect 1964-72'' (Connoisseur Collection Document, 1990) * ''Key To The Highway: Rare And Unissued Recordings 1968-1974'' ( Mooncrest, 1999) * ''Talkin' Low: Rare And Unissued Recordings 1966-1988, volume 2'' (Mooncrest, 2000) * '' Tramp 1974: Rare And Unissued Recordings, volume 3'' (Mooncrest, 2001) * ''Black Rat Swing: The Collectors' Jo Ann Kelly'' (Castle, 2003) * ''Blues & Gospel: Rare and Unreleased Recordings'' (

Blues Matters! ''Blues Matters!'' is a bimonthly British blues magazine. History ''Blues Matters!'' was founded by Alan Pearce in 1999. It is published on a bimonthly basis. Alan King and Darren Howells (until 2009) previously served as the magazine's editor ...

, 2004) * ''Do It & more'' ( Manhaton, 2008) – Songs from ''Do It'' (1976) plus additional songs. * ''I Asked For Water, She Gave Me Gasoline'' (

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

– LP-12455 1969)

Featured

* ''Standing At The Burying Ground'',

Mississippi Fred McDowell Fred McDowell (January 12, 1904 – July 3, 1972), known by his stage name Mississippi Fred McDowell, was an American hill country blues singer and guitar player. Career McDowell was born in Rossville, Tennessee, United States. His parents were f ...

(Red Lightnin', 1984) – Recorded live at the Mayfair Hotel, London, UK, 8 March 1969, featuring Jo Ann Kelly, liner notes by Jo Ann Kelly. * ''Been Here And Gone'', Woody Mann & Jo Ann Kelly & Son House (Acoustic Music Records, 1999) – Recorded 1971–72, Kelly plays on eight songs. * Memphis 69': The 1969 Memphis Country Blues Festival.Concert film,played one song,accompanied by Guitarist,"Backwards" Sam Firk. Directed by Joe LaMatting/Produced by Bruce Watson&Lisa LaMattina. Executive Producer: Mathew Johnson,Bruce Watson&Gene Rosenthal.Fat Possum Records, 2019.

References

External links

Illustrated Jo Ann Kelly discography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Jo Ann 1944 births 1990 deaths People from Streatham 20th-century English singers English blues guitarists English blues singers English women guitarists Deaths from brain cancer in England Musicians from London Place of death missing 20th-century British guitarists 20th-century English women singers Tramp (band) members John Dummer Band members 20th-century women guitarists