Ralph Carney facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ralph Carney |
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Carney in 2010
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| Born | January 23, 1956 Akron, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | December 17, 2017 (aged 61) Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
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Ralph Carney was an amazing American musician. He was born on January 23, 1956, and passed away on December 17, 2017. Ralph could play many different instruments, sing, and write music.
While he was best known for playing the saxophone and clarinet, he also collected and played many other instruments. Some of these were quite unusual! He was famous for working with the musician Tom Waits. Ralph also helped create the theme song for the TV show BoJack Horseman with his nephew, Patrick Carney.
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Ralph Carney's Early Life
Ralph Carney grew up in Akron, Ohio. He loved listening to music on an old record player. He was the youngest of three children. His parents encouraged his interest in music.
Ralph first showed interest in art. But in eighth grade, he started focusing on music. He began learning to play the five-string banjo, violin, and harmonica. He played bluegrass and country blues. When he was 15, he started playing the saxophone. He also worked at a record store in a mall.
Ralph Carney's Music Career
Ralph Carney began his professional music journey as a founding member of the band Tin Huey. This group played experimental rock and new wave music.
Besides his work with Tin Huey in the 1970s and Tom Waits from the 1980s, Ralph played with many other artists. He recorded or performed with musicians like Elvis Costello, Jonathan Richman, and St. Vincent. In 1981, he was a main member of a group called the Swollen Monkeys. They released an album that year.
Ralph also released several solo albums. He was part of the Oranj Symphonette band. He also led a band in San Francisco called Carneyball Johnson. With this group, he played saxophones, Turkish clarinet, piccolo, trumpet, and percussion, and he sang.
Ralph worked with the band the Black Keys on their album Attack & Release in 2008. He sometimes joined them on stage during their tours. In 2014, he worked with his nephew Patrick Carney on the theme song for BoJack Horseman.
He toured with They Might Be Giants in 2009. He also recorded music for the silent film Der Golem in 2008. Ralph performed live with bands like Yo La Tengo and Medeski Martin & Wood.
Ralph Carney also wrote music for poetry records. One was with poet Robert Creeley. He also created music for some short cartoons on CartoonNetwork.com in 2001. His old band, Tin Huey, released a collection of unreleased songs in 2009. From 2009 onwards, he recorded and played shows with his group, Ralph Carney's Serious Jass Project. They released a new record called Seriously in 2011.
Ralph Carney's Personal Life
Ralph Carney's nephew, Patrick Carney, is the drummer for the rock band the Black Keys. They worked together on the theme music for the Netflix show BoJack Horseman. If you watch season 5 of the show, you can see a special tribute to Ralph Carney in the opening credits.
His older brother, Jim Carney, used to be a reporter for the Akron Beacon Journal newspaper.
Ralph Carney passed away on December 17, 2017, at 61 years old. He died after an accident at his home in Portland, Oregon. He is remembered by his daughter, Hedda, and his partner, Megan Hinchliffe.
Ralph Carney's Albums
Here are some of the albums Ralph Carney released on his own:
- Happiness Finally Came to Them (1987)
- Black Power (1994)
- Ralph Sounds (1997)
- I Like You (A Lot) (1999)
- This Is! Ralph Carney (2003)
- Ralph Carney's Serious Jass Project (2009)
- Seriously (with Ralph Carney's Serious Jass Project) (2011)
- OH, PA (a spoken word album with David Greenberger) (2011)
- Secret Language (with David Coulter) (2012)
- All at Once (with All Ones) (2016)
- Songs for Unsung Holidays (with Chris Butler) (2018)
