Jackie McKeown

Who is Jackie McKeown?

Jackie McKeown is the Scottish former lead singer and guitarist for the Glasgow indie rock band The Yummy Fur and plays currently in 1990s.

McKeown grew up in Blantyre near Glasgow. His early teenage years were coloured by obsessions with David Bowie and European art cinema. At the age of 16 he began playing guitar and writing songs, forming his first bands, Glass Candle and Subliminal Girls, after leaving school in 1988.

Just prior to moving to Glasgow in 1992, he formed The Yummy Fur with Jamie McMorrow. He also performed in Cotton Gum and played guitar in Lung Leg for a UK tour. In the late 90s he often played lead guitar for Comet Gain and performs on their album Tigertown Pictures.

After The Yummy Fur decided to split in December 1999, McKeown turned thirty, got married and attended university for the first time, studying film theory. Having become tired of playing guitar, he formed a short-lived electronic pop band called The Girls with former Yummy Fur member Alex Kapranos which performed live only once.

In 2001 Mckeown began collaborating with The Yummy Fur's Paul Thomson, making absurdist electronic pop under the name 10,000 Volt Ghost. With the addition of Jenni McKenzie, this outfit became The Mars Hotel