Scott Kempner
Musical artist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Scott "Top Ten" Kempner (February 6, 1954 – November 29, 2023) was an American rock musician who was the rhythm guitarist of The Dictators. He was also a founding member of The Del-Lords and later a member of The Brandos.
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Scott Kempner | |
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Kempner in 2006 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | February 6, 1954 The Bronx, New York City, U.S. |
| Died | November 29, 2023 (aged 69) Connecticut, U.S. |
| Instrument | Guitar |
| Years active | 1972–2021 |
| Formerly of | The Brandos The Del-Lords The Dictators |
Spouse | Sharon Ludtke |
Background and career
Kempner was born in the Bronx on February 6, 1954.[1] He began his musical career in 1972, with friends Andy Shernoff and Ross Friedman, when they started The Dictators.[1] The band broke up for the first time in 1975, though they frequently reunited over the following decades, and Kempner continued to play with them until his retirement in 2021.[1]
Kempner released a solo in 1992 called Tenement Angels. He released his second solo album, Saving Grace, in July 2008 on 00:02:59 Records.[1]
In the early 1990s, Dion DiMucci joined Kempner and Frank Funaro of the Del-Lords and Mike Mesaros of the Smithereens in a short-lived band called Little Kings. A live album was later released, but not widely circulated or promoted.
Kempner contributed "Apache Tears" to the 2007 compilation album Song of America.
In summer 2008, Variety said about Kempner: "If the world were a just and fair place, Scott Kempner would be stopped regularly by musicians and music fans thanking him for the effect the records he made with the Del-Lords and the Dictators had on their lives. Kempner's music is impossible to not like: He's the rare master at making three-chord rock 'n' roll - inspired by the 1950s and '60s - sound fresh and vital, simultaneously urban and twangy, heartfelt, political and personal."[2]
A Del-Lords reunion album and tour were done in 2013, and Kempner sang and played guitar on the Carla Olson album Have Harmony Will Travel, performing Little Steven's "All I Needed Was You".