The latest CD from Kenny Shore. Recorded at The Rubber Room in Chapel Hill, NC with an all-star cast of musicians.
Press
Fervor Coulee-Roots Music Opinions
When a cherished troubadour is taken from us, as John Prine was in 2020, it isn’t surprising that we so yearn to hear that voice again that our mind plays tricks, inserting his phrasing and vocal qualities in fresh recordings. Perhaps that is what happens across Kenny Shore’s album Happiness & Misery. I don’t believe Shore sounds much like Prine, but there are moments within the fabulous “Haunted,” “If I Ever Needed Someone,” and “Far Away” where one might swear Prine is singing to us from the long ago.
A veteran singer-songwriter, Shore lost his wife to cancer in 2017 and his work is even more heartfelt than ever, where each story touches on the human experience with insight and wisdom.
Alan Cackett - UK music critic
North Carolina troubadour Kenny Shore showcases both his soft-rock singer-songwriter side and his more soulful with high octave vocals and on-the-mark harmonies, bringing to mind the quieter side of John Prine with a rootsy rock sensibility. A seamless blend of sounds. Kenny effortlessly blends elements of New Orleans jazz, Muscle Shoals soul, Carolina bluegrass romps and classic rock into a sound that is a dream for fans who grew up with the guitar-preponderate rock of the 1970s.
(Time Stands Still) … combines elements of folk, rock, country and other genres, his vocal approach having warmth and soul.
(She’s Broken)… has a gentle, kind of sweet feel to it, but still finds moments of humor, as in the line “Sometimes I’m in a bad state, and I’m not talking about Carolina”. … This is one of my personal favorites.
John Apice - Americana Highways
If he gets a little more daring and cutting edge I’d add his name to a list like Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, and late great Northern Ireland singer songwriter David McWilliams (Days of Pearly Spencer, Marlena)
Remo Ricaldone - Lonestartime.com Italy
Kenny Shore is a singer-songwriter with a vein and inspirations that go from folk to country and sometimes move towards 'New Orleans' fascinations and close to the spirit of the more roots Van Morrison in his American period in the early seventies. The North Carolina musician is strongly linked to tradition and characters such as John Prine and Guy Clark remain fundamental reference points of his art. "Time Stands Still" is a clear manifestation of his way of being and condenses his passions in a simple and sincere way, relying on the production of Jerry Brown and the accompaniment of a handful of inspired and discreet sidemen who support him properly. Scrolling through the sound path of his work, the homage to John Prine in "Almost Like Heaven" immediately catches the eye, while almost soulful suggestions emerge from the initial "Put Yourself In My Shoes" thanks to the organ Joe MacPhail's hammond and Danny Abrams' baritone sax. Frankly country is the melody of "Wander Around" with banjo and lap steel, enveloping that of "She's Broken", perky and tasty "Down In Louisiana" which takes us directly to New Orleans, all interpreted with profound sincerity. "Everything We Needed" still underlines the poetics of Kenny Shore, intense and authentic, "Able To Try" still has the soul scent of Van Morrison's ballads, with the vocal support of the good Taz Halloween, the title track "Time Stands Still ” reappropriates the more country sounds with another moment of the most beautiful, caressed by acoustic guitars and mandolin, shortly before dismissing the listener with the short instrumental “The 24th Of June” in which ours tries his hand at the banjo. An album that has the merit of introducing us to a sincere and genuine artist.