Started off by playing in lots of bands and projects from an early age, Kees played bass bands like Groningen-based psychobilly-act The Ponems and as singer/guitarist in garage-band Sheffield Sunday.

 

Moved to the city of Utrecht, he performs uninterruptedly as  bar-/jazzpianist. His ‘home-base’ is night restaurant La Nuit, where he performs 6 nights a week, 3 hours a night. Soon, begin 1990 the name of the restaurant is changed to Le Piano. Kees will keep playing there for the next 5 years.

 

During this time, he organizes his first house concerts at his spacious apartment on the old canal of the Oudegracht in Utrecht. Well-known jazz-musicians has performed here, such as Peter Beets and Ilya Reijngoud. Moved again to the city of Haarlem, Kees plays piano in Katz, Amsterdam. In October 2002, Kees co-founded the Live in the Living Room house concert series. Since beginning of 2005 until present, he has continued these series with the successful Live in Your Living Room house concert network.

 

Early 2000s,  Kees starts the KC Soul-project, demo-ing his songs. Five years later this has resulted in 4 demos of 20 songs each. He tries out the songs in venues like Paradiso, KHL, Tricky Theater, De Cantine, Sappho, Fantasion, The Doors Palace, Patronaat, Stalles, Haags Pop Centrum, Popcentrale, etc. He is invited to record on other people’s albums, such as Barcelona-based singer/songwriter Rik van den Bosch.

In 2011, Kees releases his first album ‘Soul Cream Head Shake’. It receives good reviews from for example VPRO’s 3voor12, and Haarlems Dagblad. Online platform Musicfrom.nl calls it an “exceptionally strong debut”.

 

‘Off The Grid’, his second album, is recorded and mixed at Dubway Studios in New York City, with a band of local musicians. Music-mag OOR in a 2013 review on the album: “Kees Jonkheer comes awfully close to Netherlands´ finest”.

 

Spring 2016, Kees releases his third album ‘Echoes’, again for the most part recorded in New York City.

 

Quotes

OOR (2013): “Kees Jonkheer comes awfully close to Netherlands´ finest”

Musicfrom.nl (2013):“if Case continues to improve himself like this, a bright future is ahead”

Eindhovens Dagblad (2013): “Case Yonkhear bursts with ideas”

MusicFromNL (2011): “exceptionally strong debut”

VRPO 3voor12 (2011): “with Soul Cream Head Shake, Yonkhear proves being able to write fine songs and decorate them with even better arrangements”