Mike has earned endorsements from ESP Guitars, D'Addario, Peavey, Orange, Toontrack, and others. The Red Chord albums Fed Through the Teeth Machine and Prey For Eyes were listed in the Billboard Top 200, and 2005's release, Clients, was listed as #16 in Decibel Magazine's Top 100 Metal Albums of the Decade. Mike McKenzie is an American composer, recording-artist, and Boston Music Awards nominated musician living in New England. At a young age, Mike quickly became enamored with music, recording video game and TV themes with a boombox held up to the television speaker. This was to be Mike's record, to be sold on the door at the nightclub as the punters left [...] In a further twist, Denis prescribed that the musical style was to be Latin Fusion in the manner of Carlos Santana. He covered a wide repertoire, from Habanera and Calypso, to trad jazz, swing and jazz standards. The same year, the BBC made and broadcast a documentary about the band, their commune, an… His broadcast career with the BBC lasted for 20 years; he was a familiar name in broadcasting, with frequent appearances on the BBC Light Programme, playing a huge range of styles. He has performed in 18 North American, European, and Asian countries, played sold-out shows in 45 of the 50 United States, and sold over 100,000 records as the principal songwriter for his bands The Red Chord, Stomach Earth, and Beyond the Sixth Seal. He performed, either solo or with a combo, at various London venues as well as the Moss Empires circuit. Freddy Grant and Rannie Hart were noted for their versatility on the woodwind instruments. It’s the first time this has taken place, and it’s so important for us songwriters. These recordings, by the Grant-Lyttelton Paseo Jazz Band favoured a North American repertoire. Times are changing with the sound of music and Michael is trying to push his way through the music sound and find a foot hold for his sound. in "Humphrey Lyttelton: The Other Parlophones 1951-1954" (2006)], CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (, "TV Pop Diaries: Popular Music on British Television", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mike_McKenzie_(jazz_musician)&oldid=892786801, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, 24 January; 11 April; 4 July; 5 September 1959, 23/30 August; 16 October; 13 November 1959, 9/16/30 June; 7/14/21/28 July; 4/11/25 August; 18 August; 1 September 1960. Mike McKenzie is an award winning songwriter based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Composer/guitar player/other - Wear Your Wounds, Stomach Earth, The Red Chord, Umbra Vitae, Unraveller, Nightkin, Beyond the Sixth Seal & more Freddy Grant played clarinet and flute; Rannie "Sweet Lips" Hart was a trumpet virtuoso. The two of them joined forces in the The Red Chord, and the band soon launched into a trajectory that would include over 2,000 performances around the globe with notable tour-mates like Ozzy Osbourne, System of a Down, Gwar, Slipknot, Cannibal Corpse, Mastodon, and Converge. Grant, Hart, McKenzie, Holder and Quail influenced the direction of jazz in the UK through their interactions with British-born performers such as Humphrey Lyttleton and Johnny Dankworth. Vibert C. Cambridge, in his book Musical Life in Guyana, describes the contributions West Indian musicians made to the evolution of British popular music during the twentieth century, singling out calypso recordings in particular: By the 1950s musicians from British Guiana such as Robert Adams, Freddy Grant, Rannie Hart, Cy Grant, Frank Holder, Mike McKenzie and Iggy Quail were among the key contributors to this evolution. ;[5] even prior to that, in 1957, he had appeared in a BBC radio programme, Caribbean Carnival: The British West Indies Show. This group also accompanied Bill Rogers in 1952, when he visited the United Kingdom to record with the Melodisc and Parlophone labels. Times are changing with the sound of music and Michael is trying to push his way through the music sound and find a foot hold for his sound. On 30 January 1959, The Mike McKenzie Trio performed with Cleo Laine at the first Caribbean Carnival (West Indian Gazette Carnival) at St Pancras Town Hall, a precursor to the Notting Hill Carnival. Michael has turned those many memories and experiences into songs of introspection, reflection, and analysis. Their first recording was as part of Greasy Truckers Live at Dingwalls Dance Hall, a benefit album recorded at Dingwallsand released in 1973. A Cappella & Unplugged Open Mic @Chambersburg Ice Fest, Open Mic Night at Blue Bird Cafe for writers who have not played at the Blue Bird. The lyrics of "Tomato" (1952) and "Little Boy" (1953) are quoted in Frank Norman's 1959 novel, Stand on Me. In 1964 he appeared in a documentary filmed in a pub in the Isle of Dogs, accompanying its proprietor, Queenie Watts, performing the Sinatra classic, The Best Is Yet to Come. 1207 "Mama Inez" (Eliseo Grenet, L. Wolfe Gilbert)/, This page was last edited on 16 April 2019, at 21:29. Michael's love of country music is strong and lasting. These included remakes of British Guiana Bargee, Weed Woman, and Daddy Gone to Cove and John [and] Nice Woman, Ugly Man, Bald-Plated Emily, Necromancy, Sightseeing in the UK, and The Hungry Man from Clapham [...] a "shantoized" version of a popular British music hall song..."[10]. Oscar Grenville Hastings McKenzie (born 17 September 1922, British Guiana, died December 1999, Spain), known as Mike McKenzie, was a Guyanese jazz pianist, bandleader, vocalist, composer and arranger, who played in London from the 1950s to the 1980s. Bill Rogers' 1952 recordings features Freddy Grant on clarinet, flute, and maracas; Rannie Hart on trumpet and cigar box; Mike McKenzie on piano; Lawrence Weeks from India on bongos; and Joe Sampson on string bass. He has also worked with advertising producers, composing scores and recording voice overs for a variety of marketing projects. Oscar Grenville Hastings McKenzie (born 17 September 1922, British Guiana, died December 1999, Spain), known as Mike McKenzie, was a Guyanese jazz pianist, bandleader, vocalist, composer and arranger, who played in London from the 1950s to the 1980s. Preston rapidly established McKenzie as a regular recording artist and contributor to radio and television broadcasts for at least a decade. Mike's songwriting has consistently received accolades from various national and international publications. 2.3K likes. Mike began his solo musical career in 2017, after gaining experience co-writing with and producing other artists around Scotland, hitting the open mic scene with his melancholic outlook on love, life and happiness. Today, Mike's primary instrument remains the guitar, though he has gone on to learn a number of other instruments and refine his diverse vocal talents. At a young age, Mike quickly became enamored with music, recording video game and TV themes with a boombox held up to the television speaker. A consistent crowd favorite, they are recipients of multiple awards, including Best Cover Band by the NELA Music Awards for 2015 and 2016 and an amazing five time 'Best Of The Delta' award winner for Best Cover Band from Delta Style Magazine. Mike McKenzie and Iggy Quail were innovative pianists and members of the bands led by Grant and Hart. With the great memories of sitting on the porch with his father, listening to the likes of Merle Haggard, Jerry Reed, Willie Nelson, Alabama, the Oak Ridge Boys, George Jones, and others heard on the Grand Ole Opry.