Robert Kennedy

Robert Kennedy is a Hammond organist, pianist, accordionist, vocalist, and composer born and raised in the American South and calling the San Francisco bay area his home since 1988. He has released two albums as a leader of organ-centered jazz combos, and appears as a sideman on recordings of straight-ahead and acoustic / hot-club jazz, rock, fusion, and pop.
Robert’s Jazz Organ Trio is built around the soul jazz and hard bop of the middle 20th century, drawing from players like Lee Morgan, Herbie Hancock, Hank Mobley, Horace Silver, and of course the greats of the Hammond organ: Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Charles Earland. Among his living inspirations Robert counts Billy Childs, Larry Goldings, Kenny Barron, and Tony Monaco.
A performing musician since childhood, Robert ventured into jazz as pianist for the Stanford University Jazz Band and as a private jazz piano student of the great pianist, band director, and educator Bill Bell. Later Robert performed as pianist with the SFJAZZ Monday Night Band and held the accordion chair in Mission Hot Club. He has had the pleasure of playing venues such as Yoshi’s, the Broadway at Music Circus pit orchestra, the Boom Boom Room, Mr. Tipple’s, San Francisco International Arts Festival, Doc’s Lab, Keys Jazz Bistro, the Blue Note Napa, and Sweetwater Music Hall. He has shared stages and recorded with renowned players such as Nancy Wright, Calvin Keys, Howard Alden, Jules Broussard, Howard Wiley, Ned Boynton, Will Weston, Terrence Brewer, and Connie Champagne.
His 2015 debut Hammond organ combo release Big Shoes spent nine weeks on the CMJ charts, peaking at #11, and his 2018 album Closer to Home peaked at #5 on NACC’s jazz chart, #1 on RMR’s jazz chart, and #32 on JazzWeek’s Top 50.
In addition to his freelance work on piano, Hammond organ, and accordion, Robert plays accordion as a member of Bistro Moustache, of The Vivants, and of The No-Mads.