Biography Kathi McDonald

Kathi McDonald remains as one of the great, unsung legends of Rock ‘n’ Roll. A long-time backup singer for such classic performers as Joe Cocker, Leon Russell, the Rolling Stones, Elton John, Long John Baldry, and Ike & Tina Turner, Kathi contributed to some of the most thrilling, iconic music of the 60s and 70s, lending her bold, stirring vocals to songs that have shaped and rocked generations.

Kathi grew up in Mt. Vernon, Washington, where her passion for music flared early on. She began singing professionally at the tender age of 12 in clubs around the Seattle area. She had her first real brush with stardom at 19, when she was invited to audition as the lead singer of what was to become Big Brother and the Holding Company by none other than storied music promoter Chet Helms, often referred to as the Father of San Francisco’s 1967 “Summer of Love”. While Kathi hitchhiked her way down the coast from Seattle, however, a young Janis Joplin beat her to the audition and snagged the gig for herself. Nevertheless, Kathi’s relationship with the raucous Blues band would prove far from finished

Kathi stayed in San Francisco to enjoy the thriving music scene, playing clubs and seeing other future greats develop their acts. Then, on one chance night, while attending an Ike & Tina Turner concert at the fabled Fillmore West, Kathi’s life would change forever. As Kathi remembered in a 2009 interview*:

"I was about eight months pregnant. […] When they were doing 'River Deep Mountain High,' I sang a part I'd memorized from the record. Ike heard me and said he wanted to see me in the back after the show. I thought he was pissed and that I'd embarrassed myself in front of one of my biggest influences. But he said he wanted me in the studio the next day. I said, 'OK, I'm there.' After that, I did all the backup work for three and a half years. I was the Ikettes in the studio. They had the girls onstage and they had the studio Ikettes, and that was me."

From that chance encounter, Kathi’s immortal career was launched. She would spend the following three and a half years performing as an Ikette for the beloved Rock ‘n’ Roll act. During this period, Kathi honed her vocal craft and learned the art of live performance, touring practically non-stop and even recording backup on their acclaimed 1970 record, Come Together. She took only 10 days off to return home to have her baby daughter, Erin, before jet setting back to Las Vegas to continue performing, newborn child in tow.

It was on tour with Ike & Tina Turner that fellow-Ikette Claudia Lennear invited Kathi to join her on Joe Cocker’s hit 1970 tour. Kathi’s soulful sound proved a perfect match for the famed British Rock and Blues performer. Her vocal talents were featured throughout the celebrated live album, Mad Dogs and Englishmen, which commemorated the tour.

Following the tour, songwriter and fellow Mad Dog, Leon Russell, asked Kathi to perform on his 1971 album, Leon Russell and the Shelter People. She went on tour with the act, as well, for three and a half months, before returning to Russell’s Tulsa, Oklahoma estate.

When Janis Joplin left Big Brother and the Holding Company in 1968 to form her new Soul-inspired backup group, Kozmic Blues Band, Kathi was asked to replace the timeless singer as lead vocalist, touring with the cavorting Blues ensemble, as well as delivering performances on several records, including Be a Brother in 1970, How Hard It Is in 1971, and the later released Can’t Go Home Again.

As a result of her stints with Joe Cocker, Leon Russell, and Big Brother and the Holding Company, Kathi’s renown began to grow, and she was soon in high demand by other major recording artists of the time. She performed on Elton John’s Tumbleweed Connection in 1970. In 1971, Kathi contributed to Delaney and Bonnie’s To Bonnie From Delaney, Rita Coolidge’s eponymous debut album, as well as Freddie King’s Getting Ready, and in 1972, she recorded on Dave Mason’s Headkeeper, as well as on “All Down the Line” and “Loving Cup” on the Rolling Stones’ electrifying double album, Exile on Main Street.

In 1974, Kathi recorded her debut solo album, Insane Asylum, with Capitol Records. Featuring an illustrious line-up of musicians, including the unforgettable Sly Stone on the opening track; Nils Lofgren, Ronnie Montrose, and Neal Schon on guitar; Aynsley Dunbar on drums; Pete Sears on bass and keyboards; as well as the incomparable Pointer Sisters on backup vocals and the Tower of Power on horns, Kathi’s compelling Blues record earned considerable critical acclaim and experienced great success in Japan.

Soon after completing her Insane Asylum tour, Kathi found the opportunity to audition for British Blues singer Long John Baldry, setting off on what was to become a decades-long musical relationship with the celebrated artist. Baldry came up singing in Blues bands in England throughout the early 60s, performing with other would-be greats of the time, like Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Brian Jones in Alex Kroner’s Blues Incorporated, as well as with Rod Stewart, Julie Driscoll, and Brian Auger in Steampacket and later with Elton John in Bluesology. Kathi and Baldry toured together for over 20 years. Their 1980 interpretation of “You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feelin’” was a smashing success, going gold in Canada and Australia, where they were first released, and gaining considerable popularity in the US, as well.

In the 90s, Kathi once again pursued her solo career with Save Your Breath (101 North Records), released 20 years after her debut album. Like Insane Asylum, Kathi’s second solo record garnered the attention of critics and music-insiders alike.

Shortly thereafter, Kathi joined the Merrimack Records label, entering a collaboration that would see some of the most rousing, swinging, heartfelt music of her long, unbelievable career. In 1997, she worked with singer and guitarist Nick Vigarino on The Ghost of Time, a swaggering, sultry Blues record, which featured an all-star ensemble of Rock, Blues, and Jazz musicians, including guitarist Robben Ford, keyboardist Brian Auger, bassist Nathan East, drummer Ralph Penland, and saxophonist Hollis Gentry III. Kathi’s sizzling performance on the Blues anthem, “Yardbird” was certain to rattle the walls and set loose the floorboards on every listen.

Kathi followed in 1999 with her third solo record, Above & Beyond, also for the Merrimack label. On this singular Blues album, Kathi evoked the power and soul of other female greats before her, like Etta James, Billie Holiday, and Bessie Smith. Delivering a vibrant vocal range, growling in one song and belting to the rafters in the next, Kathi dazzled listeners on a slew of original numbers – like “A Soulful Prayer” and “Don’t Give Up on Me”, written by Rob Carmichael and producer Joe Melnikas, as well as “Chicken Today Feathers Tomorrow”, which Kathi had composed 20 years prior while performing in the Roots Rock community. She likewise blew audiences away with gusty interpretations of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You” and Donovan’s “Season of the Witch”.

Later in the same year, Kathi contributed to two albums by the Seattle Women in Rhythm & Blues, Back Porch Gossip and We Are Not Good Girls, both recorded on the Joe Records label. The Washington Blues Society also recognized her with several awards for Best Female Vocalist and added her to its Hall of Fame roster.

Following her rash of success in 1999, Kathi would go on to make two more records: the eponymous Kathi McDonald in 2003 and On with the Show, by Kathi McDonald & Friends, in 2010.

Kathi McDonald died, suddenly, on October 3, 2012, in Seattle, at the age of 64. Although her death was untimely, Kathi will live on forever through her immeasurable contribution to the world of music, not only in her accompanying performances on countless hits of the past four decades, but through her one-of-a-kind, mighty sound, which will echo in our hearts and minds for years to come.

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*Liberatore, Paul. “Kathi McDonald Solidifies Her Legacy as Rock ‘n’ Roll Survivor.” Marinij 13 Aug. 2009: Web. Accessed 4 Nov. 2013.

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