Scott Kempner

WHO ME?Rock N Roll is a living history and I feel connected to this music; I feel connected to Robert Johnson and Woody Guthrie and Elvis Presley, to the Beatles, Bob Dylan, to Otis and Aretha, to the Stooges and Bruce Springsteen. I have staked out a claim to the music's past, present and of its future. This is where I find my voice, my own expression, my little shout-out to the world.I was born in the South Bronx in 1954, the year of Rock'n'Roll. Elvis was cutting his first Sun record when I first felt the Bronx summer sun on my face. In the summer of '59 I went to my first Yankees game, and they become my religion. Mickey Mantle my god. My summers were spent in that great ballpark. This was pretty much my life until a few days after my 10th birthday. That was when the Beatles played the Ed Sullivan Show. This is when life starts to (rock'n') roll. Two years later i see The Who for the first time and my life's path is set. I get my first guitar, a Gibson SG Standard, walnut brown. The next morning I see my reflection in the mirror holding that thing and the mirror roars back its approval for the first time. In the summer of '70 I see The Stooges for the first time and now all bets are off. Two years after that I get a phone call from Andy Shernoff. he and Ross the Boss wanna start a Rock'n'Roll band. Make that THE Rock'n'Roll Band. Along with my childhood best pal, Dick Manitoba, we become the Dictators.As the great philosopher Lou Whitney said, Been around the world twice, spoke to everybody once; I learned a few things. I co-founded and played with the Dictators for 30 years. Thats right, 30 years. Now they call it Punk, they didnt when we started; or for the first few years we were trying to make a living at it. I played rhythm guitar for the band. I took it serious, real serious. I kept that rocknroll locomotive on the tracks every night, no matter what. But it was during those lonesome late night after hours that I was chasing down my secret dream. I wanted, more than anything, to write the same kinda songs that had inspired me, that shook me, that got me to this very mile marker on the road.It was around 1980-81 that I hooked up with Manny Caiati. He was a bass player looking for something more. I played him some of my tunes and the Del-Lords were born. It was the summer of 1982 that Eric Ambel and Frank Funaro auditioned together, and I mean together; like, at the same time together!! Well, very long story very short, we had a good 8 year run. We made four albums for EMI , received 3 times the press that label mate David Bowie was getting. Videos for the singles Poor Man, Heaven, and our biggest selling single Judas Kiss splattered MTV during its 80s heydey. We headlined the very first CMJ and SXSW conventions. I also participated in the Lester Bangs and various songwriting panels. It was during the Del Lords that I established my loyal, what they now call No Depression, I mean Americana, following.In 1992, I released a solo album called TENEMENT ANGELS on the then-fledgling Razor & Tie label. Its even got the awesome Skeletons of Springfield, Mo. as the backing band. Other members of the Del Lords went on to-----fill in the blanks with Eric and Frank. Then one day in 1995, out of the clear blue, I get a phone call from Dion. Yeah, that Dion, ya know DiMucci, of the Belmonts. A hero to all of us who grew up in the Bronx. He had heard TENEMENT ANGELS and the final Del-Lords album, LOVERS WHO WANDER (the title of a Dion classic wouldntcha know ) and wanted to know why his records dont sound like that. This led to his relocation,,a return to NYC and six months of getting to know each and writing songs. We called my pals Mike Mesaros and Frank Funaro and now we four were LITTLE KINGS. We got one warts-and-all 8-track live recording from the Mercury Lounge in NYC out of it. (Its available on ACE in the UK.) Then, I gratefully and graciously played with D for a coupla years doing, what he calls the Dion Thing. A dream come true for this little Bronx boy.Now, here I am, living in Los Angeles, got a new band with Neil Giraldo (weve only been talking about this since he produced the 2nd Del-Lords album, JOHNNY COMES MARCHING HOME. Cut to present, Neil and I are the PARADISE BROTHERS with one song released on a record of all Springsteen covers called LIGHT OF DAY. The records proceeds go to the Kristin Carr Fund for cancer research, so go buy it. We cut SOULS OF THE DEPARTED. We're currently working on an album, as well as some movie related stuffAll of which brings me to SAVING GRACE, a new solo record, the first thing Ive ever done that I feel completely 100% about. It is who I am, for better or worse. It features no other guitar players, but it does feature several of my pals on all the other stuff. What can I say; its a rocknroll album; actually its a ROCKNROLL album, if that means anything to anyone anymore. It sure as shit means something to me. Hopefully, the ghosts of all my heroes will come dancing right in your living room; and hopefully it has a place right here in 06, as well. American guitar music. RocknRoll. Dont Tread On Me!!