Kenny Neal stands tall among the younger generation of blues players. His individual brand of blues, featuring a combination of Louisiana swamp blues, funky rhythms and soul-deep vocals, powered by his slashing guitar playing and loping harmonica, puts him at the forefront of contemporary blues players. When I picture Louisiana swamps, oil rigs, Mardi Gras, alligators, Cajuns, voodoo and filet gumbo, soulful musical traditions come to mind. It’s these that have shaped Kenny Neal, and molded him into the talent that he is today. Neal, a native of Baton Rouge, began playing music at a very young age.

The oldest of ten children, he learned the basics from his father, singer and blues harmonica player, Raful Neal. Family friends also contributed to Kenny’s early education. Friends like Lazy Lester, Buddy Guy and Slim Harpo. In fact, it was Harpo who gave the crying three-year-old a harmonica to pacify him. Kenny stopped crying that day, and eventually learned to play the harmonica. Along the way, he also mastered the bass, trumpet, piano and guitar. At 13, he joined his father’s band and began paying his musical dues. Four years later, he was recruited and toured extensively as Buddy Guy’s bass player. Following Buddy's advice to concentrate on his guitar playing, Kenny relocated to Toronto, and - along with his brothers Raful, Jr., Noel, Larry and Ronnie - formed the Neal Brothers Band, regularly backing visiting blues stars. Later he fronted Canada's Downchild Blues Band before returning to Baton Rouge to begin his solo career. To this day, he still has a staunch Canadian fan base.

Teaming with producer/ bassist/horn arranger Bob Greenlee, Kenny cut a series of albums featuring not only his laid-back, Baton Rouge blues, but also funky contemporary gems with a taste of rock and R&B. Since joining Alligator in 1988, his albums have been blues hits and the critics have hailed him as one of the best of the younger blues generation. Musician calls him, "an all American bluesman... he lays into the blues like nothing can stop him, or tame him."

In 1993, he toured Africa for the U.S. government, performing in seven countries. He's played with major blues stars from B. B. King to Buddy Guy, and has emerged as one of the few names on the short list of future blues greats. His music is deeply rooted in the Louisiana swamp blues tradition, but burns with a contemporary fire. "One of a mere handful of truly inventive young contemporary guitarists," announced the Chicago Tribune, "Neal has something fresh to say and the chops with which to say it." Packed with catchy R&B and blues tunes, his first and only album on King Snake Records, Bio on the Bayou, was released in 1987. The project immediately caught the ears of Bruce Iglauer, which led to a five album run on the Alligator label. Kenny, always looking for ways to appeal to a wider audience, took a respite from the cramped stages of smoky roadhouses and headed for the lights of Broadway.

In 1991, he starred as the lead in the much-acclaimed musical, Mule Bone. His performances garnered a prestigious Theater World Award for “The Most Outstanding New Talent On and Off Broadway.” His list of musical references reads like a Who’s Who of Blues and R& B - B.B. King, Bonnie Raitt, Muddy Waters, Aaron Neville, Buddy Guy and John Lee Hooker have all worked on projects with him at one time or another, and have nothing but respect for his talent and abilities.

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