WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.180 Have you ever wondered about, you know, the invisible 00:00:02.180 --> 00:00:04.879 threads that tie the history of rock music together? 00:00:04.960 --> 00:00:07.419 Oh, the hidden connections. Yeah. Right. Like 00:00:07.419 --> 00:00:09.439 the people who aren't always household names, 00:00:09.839 --> 00:00:12.460 but who are secretly behind some of the biggest 00:00:12.460 --> 00:00:14.660 moments in music. Definitely. I mean, we always 00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:16.219 think of the front men, right? The people on 00:00:16.219 --> 00:00:19.940 the posters. Exactly. But today, our mission 00:00:19.940 --> 00:00:23.500 for this deep dive is to map out the hidden architecture 00:00:23.500 --> 00:00:27.019 of British rock and pop culture. and we have 00:00:27.019 --> 00:00:29.859 the perfect subject for it. We really do. We're 00:00:29.859 --> 00:00:32.219 using a Wikipedia article today detailing the 00:00:32.219 --> 00:00:35.439 life and career of John David Percy Keene or 00:00:35.600 --> 00:00:38.219 as he was famously known to the industry, Speedy 00:00:38.219 --> 00:00:41.200 Keen. Speedy Keen. I mean, he lived from 1945 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:45.299 to 2002, and his career is just, it's staggering. 00:00:45.560 --> 00:00:48.320 It's wild. We're tracing the footsteps of this 00:00:48.320 --> 00:00:51.659 one highly adaptable, almost Zellig -like figure 00:00:51.659 --> 00:00:54.320 to see how it all connects. Yeah, because music 00:00:54.320 --> 00:00:56.060 history isn't just made by the people in the 00:00:56.060 --> 00:00:57.960 magazine covers. It's made by the people in the 00:00:57.960 --> 00:01:00.039 room, right? The people making those everyday 00:01:00.039 --> 00:01:03.380 connections. And Speedy Keen is, without a doubt, 00:01:03.539 --> 00:01:05.769 the ultimate musical chameleon. I mean, his career 00:01:05.769 --> 00:01:08.769 spans an unbelievable range of genres. You don't 00:01:08.769 --> 00:01:11.269 survive in that industry without being ridiculously 00:01:11.269 --> 00:01:13.909 adaptable. OK, let's unpack this. Yeah. Because 00:01:13.909 --> 00:01:16.370 we really need to start at the beginning of his 00:01:16.370 --> 00:01:19.250 journey to see how this young musician just, 00:01:19.250 --> 00:01:22.670 well, works his way into the epicenter of the 00:01:22.670 --> 00:01:26.069 1960s London music scene. Through sheer proximity 00:01:26.069 --> 00:01:28.390 and hustle, mostly. Right. So he's born in Ealing, 00:01:28.390 --> 00:01:32.150 London in March 1945. And he does this early 00:01:32.150 --> 00:01:33.810 apprenticeship in all these bands with those 00:01:33.810 --> 00:01:37.810 great very 60s names, like The Crusaders. The 00:01:37.810 --> 00:01:39.890 Second Thoughts, too. Yeah, The Second Thoughts. 00:01:40.010 --> 00:01:42.049 And he's playing alongside Patrick Campbell Lyons 00:01:42.049 --> 00:01:45.329 and Chris Thomas in that one. And The Eccentrics. 00:01:45.510 --> 00:01:48.109 Which is just a fantastic band name. It really 00:01:48.109 --> 00:01:49.870 is. And he actually gets his first recorded song 00:01:49.870 --> 00:01:52.329 out there in 1966. It's a track called Club of 00:01:52.329 --> 00:01:54.549 Lights. Right. Performed by Oscar, who was actually 00:01:54.549 --> 00:01:57.109 Paul Nicholas. Exactly. So he's grinding it out, 00:01:57.209 --> 00:01:59.209 getting a foot in the door. But then he ends 00:01:59.209 --> 00:02:01.670 up doing something that is just... Well, it's 00:02:01.670 --> 00:02:04.590 like an ambitious intern who somehow ends up 00:02:04.590 --> 00:02:07.530 writing the CEO's keynote speech. That is a perfect 00:02:07.530 --> 00:02:10.110 way to put it. He ends up sharing a flat with 00:02:10.110 --> 00:02:13.069 and working as a driver for Pete Townsend of 00:02:13.069 --> 00:02:15.870 The Who. What's fascinating here is how physical 00:02:15.870 --> 00:02:18.949 proximity to greatness so often breeds opportunity. 00:02:19.750 --> 00:02:21.550 You know, if you're in the room, or in this case, 00:02:21.810 --> 00:02:24.449 the van, right? If you're there and you have 00:02:24.449 --> 00:02:26.830 the talent, you can make things happen. It's 00:02:26.830 --> 00:02:29.889 just an absolute anomaly that Keen ends up writing 00:02:29.889 --> 00:02:34.139 the track. Armenia City in the Sky for The Who's 00:02:34.139 --> 00:02:37.060 1967 album, The Who Sellout. Wait, I have to 00:02:37.060 --> 00:02:39.319 jump in here and clarify something. Is it actually 00:02:39.319 --> 00:02:42.460 true that The Who never took outside material 00:02:42.460 --> 00:02:44.639 that was tailored for them? Basically, yeah. 00:02:45.060 --> 00:02:47.659 Because our source says this is the only song 00:02:47.659 --> 00:02:50.199 The Who ever performed that was specifically 00:02:50.199 --> 00:02:52.840 written for them by a non -member. It's incredible, 00:02:53.120 --> 00:02:55.139 right? Townsend was fiercely protective of his 00:02:55.139 --> 00:02:57.500 writing. The guy driving his van just casually 00:02:57.500 --> 00:03:00.159 writes the opening track for a generational masterpiece. 00:03:00.439 --> 00:03:02.219 Well, the timing was right. They needed something 00:03:02.219 --> 00:03:05.500 extremely specific, something surreal and psychedelic 00:03:05.500 --> 00:03:08.639 for that album concept. Keen had the goods. And 00:03:08.639 --> 00:03:11.080 there's that hilarious anecdote from their bassist, 00:03:11.319 --> 00:03:14.159 John Antwistle. Oh, I love that story. Right. 00:03:14.319 --> 00:03:16.939 He joked that the lyrics and vocals were so layered 00:03:16.939 --> 00:03:20.520 and weird that fans misheard the lyrics, our 00:03:20.520 --> 00:03:23.780 media city in the sky, as I'm an ear sitting 00:03:23.780 --> 00:03:25.979 in the sky. I mean, it does kind of sound like 00:03:25.979 --> 00:03:28.039 that. But, you know, getting that credit changed 00:03:28.039 --> 00:03:30.080 everything for him. So having proven himself 00:03:30.080 --> 00:03:33.240 as a writer for literally one of the biggest 00:03:33.240 --> 00:03:36.080 bands in the world, the natural next step is 00:03:36.080 --> 00:03:37.719 for him to step out from behind the curtain. 00:03:37.870 --> 00:03:39.889 Right, time to lead his own project. Which he 00:03:39.889 --> 00:03:42.270 does. He becomes the lead singer and the drummer 00:03:42.270 --> 00:03:45.189 for the rock band Thunder Clap Newman. And we 00:03:45.189 --> 00:03:48.069 have to pause and appreciate how difficult that 00:03:48.069 --> 00:03:51.060 is. Oh, it's insane. Being the drummer, the lead 00:03:51.060 --> 00:03:53.900 vocalist, and the primary songwriter simultaneously. 00:03:54.500 --> 00:03:56.680 It's like spinning plates while riding a unicycle. 00:03:56.860 --> 00:03:58.919 It really is. Most people struggle to do just 00:03:58.919 --> 00:04:01.280 one of those things well. But Keane is doing 00:04:01.280 --> 00:04:03.539 all three, and he writes their defining track 00:04:03.539 --> 00:04:07.379 in 1969. Something in the Air. Exactly. Which 00:04:07.379 --> 00:04:10.139 rockets all the way to number one on the UK singles 00:04:10.139 --> 00:04:13.659 chart. Just a massive, massive hit. This represents 00:04:13.659 --> 00:04:16.819 the absolute pinnacle of Keen's commercial visibility. 00:04:17.040 --> 00:04:19.600 It's that huge shift, you know, from being Pete 00:04:19.600 --> 00:04:22.100 Townsend's driver fading into the background 00:04:22.100 --> 00:04:25.339 to standing right atop the UK charts. It really 00:04:25.339 --> 00:04:27.399 shows you that the leap from the background to 00:04:27.399 --> 00:04:30.500 the foreground can happen with literally just 00:04:30.500 --> 00:04:33.120 one perfect song. Yeah, when it hits the zeitgeist 00:04:33.120 --> 00:04:35.800 just right. But of course, following up a massive 00:04:35.800 --> 00:04:40.779 number one hit is, well, it's brutal. The pressures 00:04:40.779 --> 00:04:43.360 of the music industry inevitably force an artist 00:04:43.360 --> 00:04:46.779 to forge a more individual identity. You can't 00:04:46.779 --> 00:04:49.019 just repeat the same magic trick forever. Right. 00:04:49.220 --> 00:04:51.920 Which leads us into his solo years. He records 00:04:51.920 --> 00:04:54.779 two solo albums, previous Convations in 1973, 00:04:55.240 --> 00:04:57.040 which was released on track records. Which makes 00:04:57.040 --> 00:04:59.060 sense with his Who connections. Exactly. And 00:04:59.060 --> 00:05:01.980 then, you know what I mean? In 1975, released 00:05:01.980 --> 00:05:05.259 on Island Records. Two really solid, fascinating 00:05:05.259 --> 00:05:07.459 solo efforts. So what does this all mean, like, 00:05:07.660 --> 00:05:09.720 in the grand scheme of his career? Well, it shows 00:05:09.720 --> 00:05:12.000 he was trying to establish his own voice outside 00:05:12.000 --> 00:05:15.100 of a band dynamic. True. But there's also this 00:05:15.100 --> 00:05:17.579 strange afterlife to recorded music that I find 00:05:17.579 --> 00:05:20.259 so interesting. There's a track called I Promise 00:05:20.259 --> 00:05:22.959 You from that second solo album. And the 1975 00:05:22.959 --> 00:05:26.199 one. Yeah. And it found an entirely new audience 00:05:26.199 --> 00:05:29.259 decades later. It was used in the American TV 00:05:29.259 --> 00:05:32.019 series The Big C. If we connect this to the bigger 00:05:32.019 --> 00:05:35.639 picture, this is a prime example of music synchronization 00:05:35.639 --> 00:05:39.389 or sync licensing. Right. It's just wild to think 00:05:39.389 --> 00:05:41.610 about a track laid down in a studio in the mid 00:05:41.610 --> 00:05:45.709 -1970s just lying dormant for years. Just sitting 00:05:45.709 --> 00:05:48.050 on a record on a shelf somewhere. Exactly, only 00:05:48.050 --> 00:05:50.290 to be pulled up decades later because it evokes 00:05:50.290 --> 00:05:52.750 the perfect emotional resonance for a completely 00:05:52.750 --> 00:05:55.350 modern television audience. It really shows that 00:05:55.350 --> 00:05:58.129 a song's true value isn't just about where it 00:05:58.129 --> 00:06:00.529 charts in its first week. It can have this incredibly 00:06:00.529 --> 00:06:02.970 long tail. Oh, absolutely. The emotional core 00:06:02.970 --> 00:06:05.370 of a good song doesn't expire. OK, here's where 00:06:05.370 --> 00:06:07.660 it gets. really interesting. I know where you're 00:06:07.660 --> 00:06:09.939 going with this. Uh huh. Right. Because if you 00:06:09.939 --> 00:06:12.240 thought Keane was just gonna like settle into 00:06:12.240 --> 00:06:15.800 a comfortable career as a legacy 60s and 70s 00:06:15.800 --> 00:06:19.160 pop rock artist, his next career move shatters 00:06:19.160 --> 00:06:21.959 that expectation entirely. It is the ultimate 00:06:21.959 --> 00:06:25.639 stylistic whiplash. We're talking a move from 00:06:25.639 --> 00:06:30.139 pop to the absolute rawest edges of rock. He 00:06:30.139 --> 00:06:31.879 steps into the producer's chair. And not just 00:06:31.879 --> 00:06:35.220 for anybody. No. He produces the eponymous first 00:06:35.220 --> 00:06:38.560 album for Heavy Metal Titan's Motorhead. Motorhead? 00:06:38.779 --> 00:06:41.300 And he produces the proto -punk classic L .A 00:06:41.300 --> 00:06:43.680 .M .F. for the Heartbreakers. Johnny Thunder's 00:06:43.680 --> 00:06:45.879 band. Yeah. I just, I can't wrap my head around 00:06:45.879 --> 00:06:48.319 this pivot. It's like a classical composer suddenly 00:06:48.319 --> 00:06:51.240 deciding to direct a gritty, high octane action 00:06:51.240 --> 00:06:54.220 movie. How does the guy who's saying something 00:06:54.220 --> 00:06:57.170 in the air... Help give birth to Motorhead. Well, 00:06:57.269 --> 00:06:59.170 you have to look at what a great producer actually 00:06:59.170 --> 00:07:01.589 does. OK. A great producer doesn't just impart 00:07:01.589 --> 00:07:04.970 their own sound onto a band. They translate the 00:07:04.970 --> 00:07:07.189 raw energy of the artists in the room. So he 00:07:07.189 --> 00:07:08.970 wasn't trying to make Lemmy sound like a pop 00:07:08.970 --> 00:07:12.790 singer. Not at all. Keane had this deep fundamental 00:07:12.790 --> 00:07:15.149 understanding of song structure. And when you're 00:07:15.149 --> 00:07:17.449 dealing with the chaotic energy of protopunk 00:07:17.449 --> 00:07:20.290 and early metal, you need someone who knows where 00:07:20.290 --> 00:07:22.550 the structural beams go, so to speak. That makes 00:07:22.550 --> 00:07:25.439 total sense. Right. He allowed them to be as 00:07:25.439 --> 00:07:28.360 abrasive and loud as they wanted, but he wrangled 00:07:28.360 --> 00:07:31.759 that noise into cohesive legendary albums. He 00:07:31.759 --> 00:07:35.000 gave their chaos a skeleton. Wow. He really was 00:07:35.000 --> 00:07:37.519 just a master of the mechanics of music. Completely. 00:07:37.879 --> 00:07:40.420 And that totally explains his next phase, to 00:07:40.420 --> 00:07:43.180 round out his career. Because he refuses to be 00:07:43.180 --> 00:07:45.959 boxed into a single genre, or even a single role. 00:07:46.399 --> 00:07:48.399 He actually returns to the background. Acting 00:07:48.399 --> 00:07:51.060 as the ultimate musical utility player. Yes. 00:07:51.230 --> 00:07:54.329 He starts working as a session musician, and 00:07:54.329 --> 00:07:57.370 the roster is wildly diverse. He works with rock 00:07:57.370 --> 00:07:59.930 legend Rod Stewart. That huge gig. He plays for 00:07:59.930 --> 00:08:02.209 the gothic rock band The Mission. Which is such 00:08:02.209 --> 00:08:06.569 a specific sound. And he works with smooth jazz 00:08:06.569 --> 00:08:08.889 saxophonist Kenny G. Yeah, that one always gets 00:08:08.889 --> 00:08:11.230 people. I mean, I have to push back in disbelief 00:08:11.230 --> 00:08:13.810 here. Connecting Motorhead, The Who, and Kenny 00:08:13.810 --> 00:08:16.970 G, that is a pipeline that seems completely mathematically 00:08:16.970 --> 00:08:19.009 impossible. It really shouldn't exist. But he 00:08:19.009 --> 00:08:22.420 did it. and not just as a player. He's also writing 00:08:22.420 --> 00:08:25.100 songs for the Swinging Blue Jeans, a track called 00:08:25.100 --> 00:08:27.319 Something's Coming Along, and he writes Your 00:08:27.319 --> 00:08:30.100 Love for Crocodile Tears. He's even providing 00:08:30.100 --> 00:08:33.600 music for TV programs like The Zoo and doing 00:08:33.600 --> 00:08:36.860 various television advertisements. Think about 00:08:36.860 --> 00:08:39.399 the sheer technical mastery required to play 00:08:39.399 --> 00:08:43.220 keyboards, drums, guitar, Hammond organs, and 00:08:43.220 --> 00:08:46.700 provide vocals across so many wildly different 00:08:46.700 --> 00:08:49.590 genres. This raises an important question, though, 00:08:49.669 --> 00:08:52.389 about what it truly means to be a working musician. 00:08:52.629 --> 00:08:55.009 How so? Well, we usually celebrate the people 00:08:55.009 --> 00:08:58.379 chasing the spotlight. superstars. But the most 00:08:58.379 --> 00:09:00.720 successful, essential people in the music industry 00:09:00.720 --> 00:09:03.360 aren't always those people. Right. They are the 00:09:03.360 --> 00:09:05.980 reliable, adaptable craftsmen. The ones who can 00:09:05.980 --> 00:09:08.200 just walk into a studio, assess what's needed, 00:09:08.559 --> 00:09:10.659 and speak any musical language required of them 00:09:10.659 --> 00:09:12.740 on any given day. Just totally checking their 00:09:12.740 --> 00:09:15.200 ego at the door to serve the song. Exactly. Whether 00:09:15.200 --> 00:09:18.059 it's heavy metal, goth rock, or a TV commercial. 00:09:18.200 --> 00:09:21.450 That is just incredibly respectable. Unfortunately, 00:09:21.730 --> 00:09:23.269 Speedy Keen passed away from heart failure in 00:09:23.269 --> 00:09:26.169 March 2002. He was only 56 years old. Far too 00:09:26.169 --> 00:09:28.129 young. Far too young. But when you look back 00:09:28.129 --> 00:09:29.929 at the incredible journey we just took today, 00:09:31.029 --> 00:09:33.669 from being a driver for Pete Townsend, to a number 00:09:33.669 --> 00:09:35.789 one hit maker, to a punk and metal producer. 00:09:36.029 --> 00:09:38.870 And then to a Kenny G session player. It's just 00:09:38.870 --> 00:09:41.070 astonishing. I think for you listening, this 00:09:41.070 --> 00:09:42.909 is really why you should care about stories like 00:09:42.909 --> 00:09:45.710 this. Pop culture isn't just a simple series 00:09:45.710 --> 00:09:47.809 of famous frontmen standing in the spotlight. 00:09:47.870 --> 00:09:50.789 No, not at all. It's this massively complex web, 00:09:51.029 --> 00:09:54.509 and it's held together by brilliant, adaptable 00:09:54.509 --> 00:09:57.250 journeymen like Speedy Keen. So I'll leave you 00:09:57.250 --> 00:09:59.730 with this final thought to mull over. The next 00:09:59.730 --> 00:10:02.049 time you listen to a legendary culture shifting 00:10:02.049 --> 00:10:06.049 album, ask yourself... Who was driving the tour 00:10:06.049 --> 00:10:10.009 van? Who was making the tea in the studio? Because 00:10:10.009 --> 00:10:12.629 the real architects of our culture are so often 00:10:12.629 --> 00:10:15.450 hiding in plain sight. They're just tucked away 00:10:15.450 --> 00:10:17.610 in the small print of the liner notes waiting 00:10:17.610 --> 00:10:20.190 to be discovered. That is such a great point 00:10:20.190 --> 00:10:22.129 to end on. Thank you all for joining us on this 00:10:22.129 --> 00:10:23.570 deep dive and we'll catch you next time.