J-Henry's somewhat slow, but steady climb, which fits his small town roots, typifies the struggling artist who pays their dues by playing small bars around the country and gradually working their way up to larger venues. But, he doesn't completely begrudge the kids who seemingly make it overnight by recording other people's songs without having to traverse the often grueling club scene. In fact, he says he enjoyed a recent House of Blues gig with American Idol finalist Constatine Maroulis. And, it's obvious he values the time spent in the small clubs and still plays the Stone Pony in Asbury Park a few times a year.
A great credit to a musician is when they don't need fancy production to make them sound good and can reproduce the recorded sounds live on stage. J-Henry and crew pass that test with flying colors. Opening for a major act like Sheryl Crow is never easy, but the 5000+ Trump Taj Mahal crowd instantly warmed to the Jersey boy-made-good and he held the crowds attention during all of his originals on through to a closing cover of Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" that J-Henry reworked with a funky vibe to fit his style.
In addition to putting out likeable, "regular guy" rock and roll, J-Henry has been building his heartland cred by playing several NASCAR races around the country and will be at the in Indianapolis on August 6th playing in front of about 150,000 people on the infield at the Allstate Brickyard 400. Based on my talk with him and the performance I saw in Atlantic City, I have no doubt more than a few new fans will be won over that afternoon.
For more information on J-Henry visit his website or MySpace page.
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