John David Percy "Speedy" Keen (29 March 1945 – 12 March 2002)''The Guardian'' obituaries
– accessed July 2013 was a songwriter, vocalist, drummer and

keyboard player A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

, best known for his association with the rock band

Thunderclap Newman Thunderclap Newman were an English rock band that Pete Townshend of the Who and Kit Lambert formed in 1969 in a bid to showcase the talents of John "Speedy" Keen, Jimmy McCulloch, and Andy "Thunderclap" Newman. Their single, "Something in the ...

. He wrote "

Something in the Air "Something in the Air" is a song by English rock band Thunderclap Newman, written by Speedy Keen who also sang the song. It was a No. 1 single for three weeks in the UK Singles Chart in July 1969. The song has been used for films, television ...

" (1969) for the band, which reached No. 1 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. He also released two solo albums.

Career

Keen was born in

Ealing Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Ealing was histor ...

, London, England. 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. Keen's first recorded song was "Club of Lights", recorded in 1966 for

Reaction Records Reaction Records was an independent British record label, run by music executive Robert Stigwood in 1966 and 1967. Although Reaction released only three albums, one EP and eighteen singles in its brief existence, its roster included two of the ...

by Oscar (

Paul Nicholas Paul Nicholas (born Paul Oscar Beuselinck; 3 December 1944) is an English actor and singer. He started out with a pop career, but soon changed to musical theatre, playing the lead role in ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' at the West End’s Palace ...

). Before joining

, Keen shared a flat with and worked as a driver for

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Townsh ...

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

. He wrote "

Armenia City in the Sky "Armenia City in the Sky" is a song by the English rock band the Who, released on their 1967 album ''The Who Sell Out''. It is the only song on the album not written by any members of the band, as it was instead written by Speedy Keen, a frien ...

", which was included on the album ''

The Who Sell Out ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (1967). 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". Keen wrote "

", 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). "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 The Heartbreakers, sometimes referred to as Johnny Thunders' Heartbreakers, were an American punk rock band formed in New York City in 1975. The band spearheaded the first wave of punk rock. History Johnny Thunders (vocals/guitar) and Jerry N ...

and

Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...

. As a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

Keen played for others such as

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

, The Mission, and

Kenny G Kenneth Bruce Gorelick (born June 5, 1956), known professionally as Kenny G, is an American smooth jazz saxophonist, composer, and producer. His 1986 album ''Duotones'' brought him commercial success. Kenny G is one of the best-selling artis ...

. 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 The Swinging Blue Jeans are a four-piece 1960s British Merseybeat band, best known for their hit singles with the HMV label: "Hippy Hippy Shake", "Good Golly Miss Molly", and "You're No Good", issued in 1964. Subsequent singles released that y ...

("Something's Coming Along") and Crokodile Tears ("Your Love"). Keen died of heart failure in March 2002, seventeen days before his 57th birthday.

Discography

Albums

* ''Previous Convictions'' (1973,

Track Records Track Record (a.k.a. Track Records) was founded in 1966 in London by Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp, then managers of the rock group The Who. It was one of the first British-owned independent record labels in the United Kingdom. The most succe ...

) * ''Y' Know Wot I Mean?'' (1975,

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

)

References

External links

*
rocksbackpages.com: Speedy Keen articles
* ttp://www.thunderclapnewman.com/ Thunderclap Newman official {{DEFAULTSORT:Keen, Speedy 1945 births 2002 deaths English lyricists English male singers English record producers English rock drummers English songwriters Island Records artists People educated at Acton County Grammar School People from Ealing 20th-century English singers English session musicians 20th-century drummers 20th-century British male singers British male songwriters