Les Kerr is a songwriter, recording artist and performer who brings blues, New Orleans music, Zydeco, rock and bluegrass together to create his “Hillbilly Blues Caribbean Rock & Roll.” Now based in Nashville, the Mississippi Gulf Coast native has recorded four CDs and performs throughout the U.S.
Kerr’s concert highlights include headlining annual Mardi Gras concerts at Nashville’s Bluebird Café since 1992. He has also performed at the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Music City Jazz and Heritage Festival (both in Nashville), the Franklin (TN) Jazz Festival, Huntsville, Alabama’s Panoply Festival and Rockabilly Fest 2000 in Jackson, Tennessee.
Kerr knows whereof he sings when it comes to the blues and New Orleans sounds he performs. His affection for the blues is evident in several songs from Red Blues. Kerr wrote or co-wrote twelve of the album’s thirteen songs and the CD was nominated for Blues CD of the Year in 2001 by the Music City Blues Society. About the album, the New Orleans-based music magazine OffBEAT stated, “Kerr’s musical stylings aptly cover the gamut from rockabilly to boogie to Caribbean beats with ease.”
Christmas on the Coast, Kerr’s most recent CD, includes vocal accompaniment on several songs by The Jordanaires, who are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. The legendary group recorded with Elvis Presley, Patsy Cline and other notable entertainers. The CD contains ten songs, several of which were written by Kerr, and received positive reviews from the Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN), The Tennessean (Nashville, TN), the Clarion-Ledger (Jackson, MS) and other publications.
Below the Level of the Sea shows the influence of New Orleans on the singer. Several songs, including The Camellia Grill, were inspired by the Crescent City. The Cajun-influenced Magnolia Springs and the Zydeco version of Frankie and Johnny included on the album illustrate Kerr’s diversity and appreciation of the music of the region.
Southern Sound Sessions contains sixteen original songs recorded in Mobile, Alabama, another Gulf Coast city Les Kerr called home for seven years before he moved to Nashville.
A three-time nominee for Music City Blues Society awards, Kerr has been nominated for the society’s Male Vocalist of the Year, CD of the Year and Entertainer of the Year awards. He placed in the top three in the Music City Blues Acoustic Blues Challenge – 2000. He has also served as vice president of the Music City Blues Society and on the board of directors of the Tennessee Jazz and Blues Society.
Also an author, Kerr co-wrote The All-American Truck Stop Cookbook (Rutledge Hill Press/Thomas Nelson, 2002) with Ken Beck and Jim Clark and frequently contributes to magazines and newspapers. Tennessee, a book published in 2004 by Graphic Arts Center Publishing, features Kerr’s words and photos by George Humphries. In addition, Kerr contributed to The Bluebird Café Scrapbook (Harper Entertainment, 2002) with an essay about the Mardi Gras concerts he has performed at the notable venue and a recipe for pralines.
More information about Les Kerr is available online at www.leskerr.com.