Kevin Montgomery

Kevin’s father, Bob Montgomery, was one of Buddy’s earliest songwriting partners, as the pair met in junior high school in 1949 and performed together both on stage and for local radio shows for almost a decade.

When Buddy decided to pursue a career as a solo performer, Bob decided to concentrate on songwriting, penning many of Buddy’s much-loved songs, often co-writing with Buddy and Buddy’s producer Norman Petty. Holly in the Hills, a compilation of Buddy and Bob recordings, was released in 1965 and featured ‘Wishing’, ‘Flower of My Heart’ and ‘Got to Get You Near Me Blues’.

Bob’s son Kevin Montgomery grew up in Nashville with Bob, surrounded by music, and then learned his trade busking in New York. Kevin made his album debut in 1993 with Fear Nothing, opening shows for such artists as Sheryl Crow and David Crosby, and was featured on many compilations, including duetting with Mary Chapin Carpenter on the Buddy tribute album Not Fade Away. Sir Paul McCartney was so impressed with Kevin’s songwriting that he invited Kevin to perform with his band at the Buddy Holly Week in 2000 at London’s Mermaid Theatre.

Mike Read

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The Buddy Holly Educational Foundation is a registered charity in the United States and the United Kingdom, with a mission to extend musical education to new generations regardless of income or ethnicity or learning levels.