[1] He was predominantly a lyricist, putting words to existing music such as "Teddy Bears' Picnic" and "My Prayer" or co-writing with composers like Michael Carr, Wilhelm Grosz and Nat Simon.

Fellow lyricist Harry Castling introduced him to Bert Feldman, a music publisher based in London's "Tin Pan Alley", for whom Kennedy started to work.

[1] Kennedy wrote several more successful songs for Maurice, including "Red Sails in the Sunset" (1935), inspired by beautiful summer evenings in Portstewart, Northern Ireland; "Harbour Lights" (1937); and "South of the Border" (1939), inspired by a holiday picture postcard he received from Tijuana, Mexico, and written with composer Michael Carr.

[4] During the early stages of the Second World War, while serving in the British Army's Royal Artillery, where he rose to the rank of captain, he wrote the wartime hit, "We're Going to Hang out the Washing on the Siegfried Line".

[3] In the 1960s, Kennedy wrote the song "The Banks of the Erne'", for recording by his friend from the war years, Theo Hyde, also known as Ray Warren.