“The “Other” Kenny in the Band… Meet Kenny Greenberg”
Kenny Greenberg
Kenny Greenberg, guitarist for Kenny Chesney, was born in Cleveland, OH. He went to junior high and high school in Louisville KY. After a year of college, he moved to Nashville to play professional guitar at the age of 20. Some of his musical influences were Neil Young, his favorite guitar player, Steve Bennett, who has played with Steve Earle, and Mark Knopfler. He has also said, “Yeah, I did come from rock. You know, I listened to the same stuff growing up that everybody else did – Hendrix and the Stones, and I was always a big blues fan. But I also liked the outlaw country stuff from the ’70s.”
For a couple of years Kenny was with a band called The Kingsnakes, which sometimes played at the infamous Bluebird Café. At this time, he also worked as a session guitarist with performers, such as, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Brooks & Dunn, Gretchen Wilson, Wynona Judd, Toby Keith, Sugarland, Tricia Yearwood, Faith Hill and, as one might expect, Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw. Kenny insists that he’s not the only Nashville session ace who wishes today’s country records were a bit less polished. “I guarantee you,” he says, “all those great players who play on all the slickest records don’t listen to music like that on their own time. Everyone wants to be more raw, but I just kind of do that naturally.”
Kenny began to produce albums for singers: Pam Tillis (Thunder and Roses), The Mavericks (The Mavericks), Joan Baez (Play Me Backwards), Josh Turner (Deep South) and many more. He produced the song A Soft Place to Fall for the film, The Horse Whisperer, and contributed instrumental music to the soundtrack of the film.
Kenny is a songwriter through and through. He not only writes for famous people (Amy Grant, Ashley Cleveland and SheDaisy), but for “Hollywood” too—he has written and produced instrumental music for VH1‘s Behind the Music, Beverly Hills 90210, Baywatch, Fox Sports, NBC Sports, and Entertainment Tonight. He has produced and written the 2004 ASCAP Christian Song of the Year, More.
For all of Kenny’s hard work, in 2007, he won a Grammy Award for Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album for his production on Ashley Cleveland‘s album Before the Daylight’s Shot. He’s also produced two other winners with Ashley Cleveland. In 2012, Kenny won the Academy of Country Music award for Guitarist of the Year for 2012. When asked if it was a surprise, Kenny replied, “It was definitely nice. It’s a huge honor, and I’m incredibly flattered. I’ve been nominated a bunch of times and never won, so to get it this time was pretty cool.”
In 2012, Kenny Chesney had this to say about Kenny, “Kenny is one of the best guitarists out there today, period,” Chesney says of Kenny Greenberg. “He’s been a great friend and collaborator over the years, right through ‘Welcome to the Fishbowl,’ and it’s going to be amazing to have him at the party each night this summer.” Kenny has toured with Toby Keith, Faith Hill, Bob Seger and with Kenny Chesney since 2012.
Kenny makes his home in Nashville with his wife Ashley Cleveland. There he manages his home studio, Ken’s Gold Club.
Another great research project from our favorite “Sandbar Contributor” LH…. Thank You!!!
References:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpAOMjDEdvc (warning—language)
Rig Rundown – Kenny Greenberg over 1 hr
(This was recorded in his recording studio—Ken’s Gold club)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenny_Greenberg
Wikipedia
https://kennygreenberg.com/bio/
Kenny’s site
http://tasteofcountry.com/kenny-chesney-brothers-of-the-sun-tour-band/
For your Enjoyment:
https://kennygreenberg.com/videos/
Videos, on Kenny’s site, of Kenny playing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYb_su_2Ufc