Cory Heydon Cory Heydon grew up in Rudyard, Montana, population 183. It’s approximately a 3-hour drive from Glacier National Park/International Peace Park. Cory feels, “If people could go and experience the wilderness there and hang for a while, we would all have fewer problems”. His mother played the piano for Our Savior’s Lutheran Church. The […]
Dottie Martin “…one of the legendary Key West classics.” By Ralph De Palma Dottie was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. At age 17, she fell in love with a 4ft. 10in. jockey. They were married, traveled around the country, and later, divorced. Dottie started singing and performing at the age of 20. In […]
Lance Taylor – Woody Guthrie Was the First Punk Rocker By Ralph De Palma Lance Taylor was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1973. His father was in the Navy so the family moved frequently. He started playing the trombone in the sixth grade. He received a partial scholarship as a pitcher to West Virginia Wesleyan […]
Bubba Lownotes “The Lord Loves A Lazy Tenor” By Ralph De Palma Robert Barton, aka Bubba Lownotes, is a member of the Virginia Musicians Mafia here in Key West. He was born in Richmond, Virginia. The family moved to Greensboro and then Charlotte, North Carolina. In grade school, he played the clarinet then the tuba, […]
Larry Smith and Christine Cordone “A Musical Power Couple” Musical couple Larry Smith and wife, Christine Cordone, come from upstate New York and spent many years in the Woodstock area. Originally a schoolteacher, Larry instinctively nurtures others and helps promote them, to raise the level of their performance. He feels music is not about self-aggrandizement […]
Gary Hempsey The Hippie Doctrine By Ralph De Palma The original American Bandstand was in Philadelphia, and Gary Hempsey’s older sister took him along to listen to the music. Gary was thirteen when Woodstock happened. He loved the music and began playing the guitar and taking lessons in Center City, Philadelphia. At seventeen, he started […]
Rolando Rojas By Ralph De Palma Rolando’s original home is in Concepción, Chile. He studied music, learning classical guitar in high school. Later, in a vineyard/wine-making region of Viña del Mar, he studied classical piano and harmonies. While in music school, Rolando stopped playing guitar and learned the piano. He loves both instruments but did not […]
Carmen Rodriguez By Ralph De Palma Born and raised in Key West, Carmen Rodriguez graduated from Key West High School, attended Florida Keys Community College, and graduated from the University of South Florida in Tampa. Her mother, Milly Biegliese, was a singer whose stage name was Milly Kelly. She entertained in New York, singing mostly […]
Soul of Key West Calendar! Stay connected with Key West Musicians all year long… …and now you can download the 2022 Soul of Key West Calendar for free! Enjoy a new photos of your favorite Key West musician every month. Their birthdays are highlighted. We have all missed our normal Key West music scene with 55 […]
George Joseph Cook aka: Jersey Slim by Ralph De Palma George Joseph Cook is originally from Newark, New Jersey, born to a family of Italian immigrants. The original family surname was Cuoco. His father changed their name to Cook (Cuoco is Italian for cook) to make applying for work easier and avoid prejudice. George Cook […]
