Early Life and Musical Influences
Robert Earl Keen grew up in Texas’ Southwest Houston to an attorney mother and a geologist father. When he was a teenager, he was excellent in literature and was an avid reader as well. Apart from that, he was also a big fan of Cream, the English rock band and also of country music star, Willie Nelson. He was eventually introduced to the Houston music scene by his two years younger sister, who was a Foosball champion and played at different casinos and bars. As Robert would accompany her to these places, he would listen to the bands and artists performing there. Inspired, he started playing guitar himself and covered country music classics.
College and Songwriting Career
After graduating from Texas A&M University in Bachelors of Arts in English, Robert Earl Keen started writing songs as well as playing folk and bluegrass music with his childhood friend Bryan Duckworth. During his college years, he also came to know Lyle Lovett. Two of them started jamming and spent several evenings on the front porch of Keen’s rented house. Their song The Front Porch Song was inspired by those evenings. Later on, as both of them released their respective debut albums, they included the song in them.
From Nightclubs to Ready for Confetti
After graduation, Robert Earl Keen moved to Austin to pursue a career in music. He started performing at random pubs and nightclubs such as Gruene Hall and Cactus Café. Soon he had already built a solid local fan following. In the year 1983, Keen appeared in a concert at Kerrville Folk Festival, which he won. That very year, he also started working on his debut album along with his band mates, Nanci Griffith and Lovett. A year later, “No Kinda Dancer” was released through Philo Records. After that, he started to tour across the other states of America and also moved to Nashville, along with his wife, Kathleen. When he failed to find limelight there, he returned to Texas two years later.
Robert Earl Keen’s following albums; “The Live Album” and “West Texture” did good business and also earned him a fan following outside Texas. He continued to tour across the country. His third studio album included the track that has today become Keen’s anthem, The Road Goes on Forever. Further building on the fame of these albums, Keen continued to perform live as well as record music. His latest album, “Ready for Confetti’ came out in August of 2011 and debuted at number three on the US Folk chart. The road goes on for Keen, as he is embarking on yet another tour this year.
Andrea Davidson
Robert Earl Keen’s upcoming concerts at Annapolis will be opened by the sensational singer, Andrea Davidson. As declared by Andrea, she doesn’t write for any specific genre and doesn’t like to be labeled with one either. She merges guitar and vocals with percussions to create magical live performances. Her songs have been labeled as full of hope, honesty and passion. Andrea Davidson also believes in making this world a better place and has a strong faith in humanity. With her inspirational music, she has won the hearts of many already and her live concerts are what the fans look forward to.