Kelly Jones (born 3 June 1974) is a Welsh musician and a founding member, lead singer, and guitarist of the rock band Stereophonics.
Early life and debut
Kelly Jones was born the youngest of three boys to Beryl and Arwyn Jones in the small Welsh former mining village of Cwmaman, Rhondda Cynon Taff,
Kelly Jones (born 3 June 1974) is a Welsh musician and a founding member, lead singer, and guitarist of the rock band Stereophonics.
Early life and debut
Kelly Jones was born the youngest of three boys to Beryl and Arwyn Jones in the small Welsh former mining village of Cwmaman, Rhondda Cynon Taff, spending his childhood with them and his two older brothers, Kevin and Lee.
Both of his parents worked in factories. His father coached youth football and pursued his own singing career. The name of Arwyn's backing band, Oscar and the Kingfishers, earned him the nickname 'Oscar' among friends and family. He went on to secure a record deal with Polydor, who renamed him 'Arwyn Davidson' due to the sheer number of Joneses in the music business at the time. Despite making multiple recordings, sharing the Hollies' manager and supporting slots with the likes of Roy Orbison, Arwyn had minimal mainstream success and only released a few singles (including a cover of the Graham Nash song "Simple Man").
During Jones' youth his uncle, a boxing referee, got him interested in the sport, and he later competed at a high level in South Wales. Following this Jones moved onto football, where he played for his county. Jones grew up in the village of Cwmaman, where he became friends with neighbours, Stuart Cable and Richard Jones (no relation), with whom he formed, in 1992, one of a string of covers bands.
Jones' talent for writing was apparent in his youth. He studied film at college and considered becoming a scriptwriter – attracting interest from the BBC for his work – before focusing on music. As his band progressed from covers to performing original material, Jones brought his gift for narrative to his lyrics. He also flirted with the idea of career in boxing, and was a successful fighter at junior levels.
There is a strong autobiographical thread to Jones' writing on Stereophonics' 1997 debut album, Word Gets Around, including an account of his teenage years working on a market stall, "More Life in a Tramps Vest".
Career
Kelly Jones and the Stereophonics September 2007
In 1996, after several years on the south Wales live circuit, Stereophonics were the first band to be signed to Richard Branson's new Virgin Records label V2. Their debut EP Looks Like Chaplin was not pressed in enough numbers to qualify for the charts, and their next single Local Boy in the Photograph peaked one place shy of the UK Top 50. However, their debut LP Word Gets Around, helped by a busy touring schedule that included a support slot on fellow Welsh band Manic Street Preachers' 1996–97 tour, peaked at number 6 on the UK Albums Chart.
In January 2005, Kelly Jones performed a solo set at the Tsunami Relief Cardiff charity concert at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
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