Kenny Cohen, Class of 1965
Entertainer and Musician
BY HILLARD GROSSMAN FLORIDA TODAY
COCOA BEACH - He's opened for Jimi Hendrix, performed with The Eagles and even was part of a Top 40 "bubble gum" hit that still has a catchy jingle nearly four decades later. But the sweetest music to Kenny Cohen's ears always has been the sound of waves, especially those crashing high against the Cocoa Beach Pier. "Surfing? It just happened," he says, smiling. "I always loved the water. But when we moved here, it was like, 'Oh my God, life can't be this good.'"
He's now 59, his hair closely matches the silky gray sand beneath his feet and yet still is a terrific surfer and entertainer.As the Ron Jon 43rd Easter Surfing Festival gets in full swing today at Shepard Park and The Pier, Cohen can't help but get a little nostalgic when he tries to recall the day he won a junior title at the very first contest, sponsored by the Cocoa Beach Jaycees.
A Child Prodigy
His father, once an actor with Warner Bros., was a major in the U.S. Army and his mom was a "Vogue" fashion model. They were stationed in Munich, Germany, when Cohen's musical interest took hold at the age of 10.
"I actually started on the clarinet, but didn't think it looked too cool," he said. "One day, I'm looking through the window of a music store at some Chuck Berry music, figuring out how I was going to play that. So I picked up a guitar." Shortly after, Junior Walker, Ray Charles and James Brown introduced a new style of music. "In order to hit those high notes, I figured I had to get a tenor sax," Cohen said, laughing.
By the time he turned 13, he was a prodigy, touring with a USO All-Star Show. He became friends with the airmen, getting input on their musical tastes, and quickly expanded his talents.
The family's move to Brevard County launched another skill. In the fall of 1962, at the beach across from Capehart, north of Satellite Beach, he met lifeguard Artie Styers, an excellent surfer. "One day I got him to lend me his board," Cohen says. "I had watched him surf, and just learned by myself. Then, like everyone, you kind of get in one of those cliques and start hanging around other surfers."
Part of the 'In-Crowd'
But those "other" surfers weren't just ordinary. In Indialantic were guys like Jack Murphy (who became infamous for stealing the Star of India diamond) and Dick Catri, a couple of die-hard surfers who had come up from Miami in the late '50s and practically "discovered" the surfing area in Melbourne Beach and Sebastian. The Cocoa Beach group included Gary Propper, Claude Codgen, Mike Tabeling, Bruce Valuzzi and Bob Freeman, guys who helped make The Pier a famous hangout for surfers. Cohen became part of the Satellite Beach group with Styers, the Buckston brothers (Bobby and Billy) and the Gabriel brothers (Greg and Mike). "He was right there with the in-crowd," said Catri, one of the sport's legends who later was an adviser for the surf movie, "Ride the Wild Surf."
"All those guys were great surfers," Cohen said. "I remember those Buckston boys could ride the biggest waves with just a $1.25 Styrofoam board they had bought at the mini-mart."
Cohen bought his first board from Murphy at his "Surfboards by Murph the Surf" shop on the Indialantic boardwalk. "I think there were like two people making boards here at the time," Cohen said. "Jack was the Big Kahuna and we were all the little gremlins."
Jammin' at The Pier
Cohen, meanwhile, was quickly becoming the Big Kahuna on stage. At the time the Beach Boys were belting out surfing tunes in California, the East Coast began to gain notoriety not only for its surfing, but its music, too. During the first Cocoa Beach Jaycees Easter Surf Fest, Catri and Murphy were the promoters for the first "Surfer Stomp" at The Pier. Cohen, a bass player and singer for a band called The Dimensions while he was at Satellite High, was the headline act. He transferred to Cocoa Beach High as a senior and joined the band, "The Fantastic Group." Soon, he was performing at the nightclub that was on the then-called Canaveral Pier. "They were bringing in big acts like The Byrds and Percy Sledge," Cohen said."At Nort's Vanguard Lounge, where Shepherd Park is now, they had Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett and Nancy Wilson, all big names, and we were playing on the same bills as these acts."
Cohen was so young, he needed a "cabaret card" just to get into the establishment, but still had audiences rocking to the Zombies or Hendrix. Freeman, who has won seven titles in the Easter Surf Festival, recalled the night Cohen and Propper -- who later became the East Coast surfing champion -- hooked up at the Cocoa Beach Teen Town (now the Cocoa Beach Playhouse). "They showed the first surf movie, and Kenny's band played on the stage while the movie played," Freeman said. "It was the first of its kind. We were all stoked. Kenny's a cool cat."
World Ventures
In 1969, Cohen was done with Cocoa Beach. "I walked out of the water that day and left my board right at the base of The Pier," he said, "and kept on going to New York." He hooked up with a band called "New Day Ahead" and played at Mac's Kansas City, a club in downtown Manhattan. "One night we were playing there on the same weekend when the Rolling Stones were at Madison Square Garden, so after their show, most of the Stones' people came to our show," Cohen said. "But there were a bunch of others, like the Doors, for example. I mean, you've got to remember, New York was the rock and roll scene."He became good friends with Hendrix -- in fact, they shared a common love interest. Cohen even opened for Hendrix in Miami three months before he died.
Cohen's talents, from his singing to his sax and flute playing, took him all over the world. He performed with The Eagles, Carlos Santana, Rod Stewart and B.B. King, to name a few. He also was part of a smash hit with the band, Crazy Elephant, who released, "Gimme, Gimme, Good Lovin', which went to No. 12 on the "Billboard" charts in 1969 (No. 2 in Canada).
Eight years ago, he had a role in a Charles Waterford project that landed a Grammy nomination. He's even ridden in a limo with the rock group Van Halen, and met his sax "rival," Kenny G. "It was like Kenny G? I'm Kenny C," he said. "I told him, 'I just want to thank you because I'm making a lot of money playing your music.' "
Still the 'Big Dog'
These days, Cohen is still the headliner anywhere he performs, whether it's at the Cocoa Beach Marriott or DoubleTree Oceanfront, or Lou's Blues in Indialantic. He's put together a handful of releases, including "Red, White and Blues," "The KC Collection," "Sax on the Beach," "Kenny Cohen Live" and the soon-to-be released, "Sunny Side of the Street."
Austin Pettit, Cohen's original guitarist in his first true touring band, is still a fan. "You know, I first went to see him play in 1968 and he was the big dog back then -- and he's still the big dog today," said Pettit, who took over that band from Cohen when he went to New York, and still performs today.
"Kenny is a phenomenal musician," Catri said. "He even played at my wedding. Just a good guy."
Cocoa Beach's Pat O'Hare, a longtime surfboard shaper and a member of the East Coast Legends Hall of Fame, knew Cohen since he was 15 after moving to the area from Los Angeles. "We used to surf together and he was my racquetball partner for 15 years -- just a good athlete," O'Hare said. "I was a bartender at Dino's, where he played for six years. He's an excellent singer, kind of has that Rod Stewart voice, and is great with the horn. "All those other surfers he hung out with were great, and he was an excellent surfer, too, but there was no real money in surfing back then. So, financially, it's good thing he kept his day job."
Back in the Water
Cohen is back in the water now after a long, 26-year layoff. "Remember, in 1969 I had left here," Cohen said. "But after I got back, and after my youngest daughter was born, I got a call from Gary Propper in 1995, and he asked me what I wanted for my birthday. He said, 'Go down to Quiet Flight and get your gift.'"I went down there, and there were two brand new Gary Propper nose riders waiting for me. So I'm in the water anytime the waves are good."
And, he goes back to the same location where he surfed in the '60s -- the north side of The Pier. Being a goofy-footer (right foot forward on the board), he takes advantage of the lefts while facing the pylons, the same ones in which he'd "Shoot the Pier" without 
leashes or wetsuits. "Of course, we got banged up," he laughs. "I see those guys today, like Kelly Slater riding Pipeline. I don't know how they do it. They're like Cirque du Soleil."
Cohen admits his life hasn't always been perfect, details he'd rather not share. But he's eager to "have fun" the rest of the way. "I feel my best work is yet to come," he said. He hasn't thought about social security checks or retirement. "You know, I still get up on that stage like it's my first time, with that feeling like, 'What am I doing?'" he said. "But I also know you have to play like it's the last day of your life, like there's no tomorrow. "Surfing is like a spiritual experience, just like music. It's all about making people feel good. "If I feel like I've done something good and brought a little happiness to somebody, somewhere, then I've accomplished my goal. At this stage of the game, I'm just grateful for enduring it all."
He said he has no regrets of not becoming a professional surfer. "I always liked surfing," he said, "but it was like my life and destiny were orchestrated for me, like something else was calling me."No doubt about it, probably the sound of music.
Kenny’s web page address is:
http://www.kennycohen.com