Age, Biography and Wiki

Shake Keane (Ellsworth McGranahan Keane) was born on 30 May, 1927 in Kingstown, St Vincent, West Indies, is a Vincentian jazz musician and poet (1927–1997). Discover Shake Keane's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Learn How rich is he in this year and how he spends money? Also learn how he earned most of networth at the age of 70 years old?

Popular As Ellsworth McGranahan Keane
Occupation Musician and poet
Age 70 years old
Zodiac Sign Gemini
Born 30 May 1927
Birthday 30 May
Birthplace Kingstown, St Vincent, West Indies
Date of death 11 November, 1997
Died Place Oslo, Norway
Nationality West

We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 30 May. He is a member of famous musician with the age 70 years old group.

Shake Keane Height, Weight & Measurements

At 70 years old, Shake Keane height not available right now. We will update Shake Keane's Height, weight, Body Measurements, Eye Color, Hair Color, Shoe & Dress size soon as possible.

Physical Status
Height Not Available
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Dating & Relationship status

He is currently single. He is not dating anyone. We don't have much information about He's past relationship and any previous engaged. According to our Database, He has no children.

Family
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Shake Keane Net Worth

His net worth has been growing significantly in 2023-2024. So, how much is Shake Keane worth at the age of 70 years old? Shake Keane’s income source is mostly from being a successful musician. He is from West. We have estimated Shake Keane's net worth, money, salary, income, and assets.

Net Worth in 2024 $1 Million - $5 Million
Salary in 2024 Under Review
Net Worth in 2023 Pending
Salary in 2023 Under Review
House Not Available
Cars Not Available
Source of Income musician

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Timeline

1927

Ellsworth McGranahan "Shake" Keane (30 May 1927 – 11 November 1997) was a Vincentian jazz musician and poet.

The authoritative collection to date of Shake Keane's poetry is The Angel Horn – Shake Keane (1927–1997) Collected Poems, published by House of Nehesi Publishers in 2005 and launched that same year at the St. Martin Book Fair to an audience of more than 200 guests.

Keane himself had selected the poems for inclusion but died before publication.

The book was seen through to publication by his widow, Margaret Bynoe.

1940

In the 1940s, with his mother Dorcas working to raise six children, the teenager joined one of the island's leading bands, Ted Lawrence and His Silvertone Orchestra.

During Keane's early adulthood in St Vincent, his principal interest was literature, rather than the music for which he would become better known.

He had been dubbed "Shakespeare" by his school friends, on account of his love of prose and poetry.

This nickname was subsequently shortened to "Shake", which name he came to use throughout his adult life.

1950

He published two books of poetry – L'Oubili (1950) and Ixion (1952) – while still in St Vincent.

Thanks to an old friend and colleague from the BBC in the 1950s, Eric Bye, Keane established a regular pattern of work in Norway from 1991 to his death.

He contributed music to Norwegian television and stage productions for the next few years, also touring the country playing jazz.

1952

Keane emigrated to Great Britain in 1952.

He worked on BBC Radio's Caribbean Voices programme, reading poetry and interviewing fellow writers and musicians.

He began reading literature at London University by day, while also playing the trumpet in London nightclubs, working in a number of styles including cabaret, highlife, soca, mento, calypso and jazz.

1953

During 1953, Keane met Christiane Richard, from Lyon, France, at one of his performances in London.

1959

He is best known today for his role as a jazz trumpeter, principally his work as a member of the ground-breaking Joe Harriott Quintet (1959–65).

Born on the Caribbean island of St Vincent into "a humble family that loved books and music", Keane attended Kingstown Methodist School and St Vincent Grammar School.

He was taught to play the trumpet by his father, Charles (who died when Keane was 13), and gave his first public recital at the age of six.

When he was 14 years old, Keane led a musical band made up of his brothers.

From 1959, he committed more fully to jazz, spending six years as a member of pioneering alto saxophonist Joe Harriott's band.

Harriott's group was the first in Europe, and one of the first worldwide, to play free jazz, and Keane contributed mightily to the band's artistic success, thanks to his fleet and powerful improvisatory skills on trumpet and flugelhorn.

Both Harriott and Keane played with the Mike McKenzie Harlem All Stars.

During this period, Keane and Harriott also played extensively with English jazz pianist Michael Garrick, often in a "poetry and jazz" setting.

He also made a small handful of records under his own name, but these were usually light jazz, a world away from his work with Harriott and Garrick.

1960

He became featured soloist with the Kurt Edelhagen Radio Orchestra, and also joined the pre-eminent European jazz ensemble of the 1960s, The Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band.

The couple settled down together in Tufnell Park and had two sons in the early 1960s: Alan and Noel Julian.

They moved to Notting Hill to live with his friend and bandmate, Coleridge Goode.

1966

In 1966, Keane left Britain to settle in Germany.

At some point, Keane formed a relationship with Scots-born Elizabeth Uma Ramanan, with whom he had a son, Roland Ramanan, in 1966, by which time Keane had left for Germany to join Edelhagen's orchestra.

1970

Keane's musical career was set aside in the early 1970s, as he returned to St Vincent in 1972 to take up a government position as director of culture, remaining in the post until 1975.

Afterwards, he turned to teaching as his main profession, while continuing to write poetry.

1979

His collection One a Week with Water (1979) won the prestigious Cuban Casa de las Américas prize for poetry.

1981

In 1981, Keane moved to New York City, settling the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn.

1989

He did not return full-time to music until 1989, when he rejoined Michael Garrick and his old band mates Coleridge Goode and Bobby Orr for a tour in honour of Joe Harriott.

1990

In the 1990s, Keane remained based in Brooklyn.

He had reestablished contact with Margaret Bynoe, an academic who also hailed from St Vincent.

1991

In 1991, Keane appeared in a BBC Arena documentary with the Jamaican poet Linton Kwesi Johnson, filmed by Anthony Wall.

They married and set up home together in 1991.

1997

It was while preparing for one such tour that he became ill, subsequently dying from stomach cancer on 11 November 1997 in Oslo, at the age of 70.

2003

In 2003, he was honoured by his country with the unveiling of a life-size bust at the Peace Memorial Hall in Kingstown.