Kenneth Clark "Kenny" Loggins
(born January 7, 1948, in Everett, Washington) is an American singer and songwriter best known for a number of soft rock and adult contemporary hit singles beginning in the 1970s. Originally a part of the duo Loggins and Messina, he has also recorded as a solo artist and written hit songs for other artists.
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KENNY LOGGINS TICKETS
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Early life
Loggins was raised in
Alhambra,
California, where he formed a band called The Second Helping. This band released three singles in 1968 and 1969 on
Viva.
Greg Shaw described the efforts as "excellent
punky folk-pop records" that were written by Loggins who was likely to be the bandleader and singer as well; Shaw included "Let Me In" on both
Highs in the Mid-Sixties, Volume 2
and the
Pebbles, Volume 9
CD.
[1]
His early 20s found him in the band Gator Creek with Mike Deasy. An early version of "
Danny's Song" (later recorded by Loggins and Messina) was included on an effort on
Mercury Records.
Loggins and Messina
Loggins continued his career in the 1970s. After attracting the attention of fellow singer-songwriter
Jim Messina, the two began a duo career as
Loggins and Messina, which lasted until 1976. In 1977, Loggins went on to produce his first solo album,
Celebrate Me Home
, which included the hit "I Believe In Love," originally sung by
Barbra Streisand in
A Star Is Born
.
Nightwatch
, a popular album released in 1978, included the hit "Whenever I Call You Friend", a duet with
Stevie Nicks of
Fleetwood Mac. He followed this in 1979 with
Keep the Fire
.
Loggins also wrote the song "
What a Fool Believes" with
Michael McDonald. Each man recorded his own version of the song, with McDonald's recording his version as a member of
The Doobie Brothers. Loggins's version was released first, but The Doobie Brothers' version became better known, as it went to #1 on the pop charts. In 1980, Loggins and McDonald received a
Grammy nomination for
Song of the Year for "What a Fool Believes".
In 1979, Loggins and McDonald wrote "
This Is It" for Loggins's ailing father, who had to choose between life and death. The song earned Loggins a Grammy for
Best Male Pop Vocal. NBC Sports used the song to end its 1980 Coverage of The NCAA Tournament, in which Louisville defeated UCLA 59-54.
Solo career
Over the next decade, Loggins recorded many hit songs for movie
soundtracks. This began with "I'm Alright" (peaked at #7 in the U.S.), "Mr. Night" and "Lead the Way" from
Caddyshack.
Hits followed with "
Footloose" and "
I'm Free (Heaven Helps the Man)" from
Footloose,
"Meet Me Halfway" from
Over the Top,
"
Danger Zone" and "
Playing With the Boys" from
Top Gun
. Loggins also performed "Nobody's Fool" from the unsuccessful movie
Caddyshack II.
He also performed as a member of
USA for Africa on the famine-relief fundraising single "
We Are the World."
In the 1990s, Loggins continued his album career, including the popular 1994 children's album
Return to Pooh Corner,
which included the title single, a reworking of "
House at Pooh Corner" written for his newborn son Luke.
In 1991, Loggins recorded and produced
Leap of Faith,
which included the single "Conviction of the Heart." Former vice president
Al Gore billed this song as "the unofficial anthem of the environmental movement." On
Earth Day in 1995, Loggins performed at
The National Mall in
Washington, D.C. for a live audience of 500,000.
In 1997, Loggins released the album "
The Unimaginable Life" based on his book which was co-written by Loggins's wife Julia. Tracks include "Now That I Know Love," "The Art of Letting Go," and "One Chance at a Time." The album was produced by Loggins and Randy Jackson, and with background vocals by
Skyler Jett, Lamont VanHook and Howard Smith.
In 1998, Loggins later recorded a version of the popular Sesame Street song "One Small Voice" for the ABC television special,
Elmopalooza.
Recent years
In recent years Loggins has continued to record and produce within the
Adult Contemporary genre and scored a No. 1 single on the
Billboard
AC chart in 1997 with "For The First Time" (the
Oscar-nominated song from
One Fine Day
). His last movie song to date was
The Tigger Movie
song "
Your Heart Will Lead You Home", which he co-wrote with
Richard and Robert Sherman.
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In 2005, Loggins reconnected with Messina. The two decided to hit the road again; the result was a successful nationwide tour that resulted in the CD and DVD
Loggins and Messina Sittin' In Again
.
After a gap of nearly four years, 2007 saw Loggins joined start-up label for the release of his
How About Now
album. It also saw him inducted into Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard RockWalk.
[2]
On July 31, 2008, Loggins appeared on the TV program
Don't Forget the Lyrics!
and performed "I'm Alright" and "Footloose".
Loggins is working on a third children's album for
Disney that will tie to a new
Tigger movie.
[3]
On November 16, 2008, Loggins sang the National Anthem before the
Seattle Seahawks /
Arizona Cardinals NFL football game at
Qwest Field in
Seattle,
Washington.
On January 16, 2009, Loggins was referenced, along with Jim Messina, on the TV show
Psych
in the episode "Lassie Did a Bad Bad Thing." In a recurring joke throughout the episode, his name was mentioned and people thought that it referred to him instead of a career criminal with the same name.
Personal Life
Loggins was first married to Eva Ein from 1978-1990; they had three children together. The oldest,
Crosby Loggins, cut his first CD in 2007 entitled
We All Go Home.
In 2008, Crosby Loggins was voted the winner of the
MTV reality show Rock the Cradle
.
Loggins married for a second time to in 1992. The couple had two children, but divorced in 2004. During their marriage, they wrote a book called
The Unimaginable Life
about their relationship.
Loggins has a cousin, singer-songwriter
Dave Loggins.
Discography
Notes
- Liner notes, Highs in the Mid-Sixties, Volume 2. Ref. 21 Aug 2008.
- Kenny Loggins Inducted Into RockWalk. Associated Press. March 9, 2007.
- From 'Pooh' to 'Danger Zone,' Kenny Loggins has kept 'Footloose'