Johnny Wheels is a singer / songwriter / harmonica player inspired by the soul of the Pacific Northwest.
The “Swamp Donkeys” are Johnny’s band-mates who are inspired by Johnny to “live a song” on the edge.
Johnny:
“Nope! You won’t hear a song exactly the same way twice – that’s what CD’s are for. We like to add some spice of musical exploration”
The son of a traveling bass player and singer, Johnny “Wheels” Kennicott had music in his blood since birth, but expressing himself musically took on new importance when Johnny broke his neck in a childhood accident, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down.
“The days of football practice after school were definitely over”, Johnny says, but music still provided an outlet for his infectious energy and his creative potential.
Though his father’s instrument of choice and his early passion of playing drums were now out due to limited function, Johnny found, through determined trial and error, he could manipulate his paralyzed diaphragm to not only sing, but also blow the harmonica. Since that time, Johnny has been traveling the Pacific Northwest music scene, spreading the gospel of the blues.
Collectively, the band hails from Oregon, Texas and California and is typically tagged as a Blues band; Although, the diversity of the members’ musical backgrounds becomes evident as the worlds of R&B, Soul, Jazz, Funk and Rock are blended under a Blues umbrella.
Members include:
Johnny Wheels, Vocals, Harmonica
Brandon Logan, Vocals, Guitar
Taylor Frazier, Vocals, Bass
Members of Johnny Wheels & the Swamp Donkeys have performed and or shared the stage with:
- Cheap Trick
- Curtis Salgado
- Dana Carvey
- Jeff Tamelier (Tower Of Power)
- Jim Belushi
- Linda Hornbuckle
- Lisa Mann
- Paul Delay
- Rocco Prestia (Tower Of Power)
- Soul Vaccination
- Tc Coleman
- Jimi Bott
- Scott Law
- Ben Rice
- Robert Cray
- Great White
- Quiet Riot
- Dan Aykroyd
- Jim Belushi
- Ivan Deprume
- Steppenwolf
… and many others.