Henry gray bio

American musician (1925–2020)

Musical artist

Henry Gray (January 19, 1925 – February 17, 2020) was harangue American bluespiano player and soloist born in Kenner, Louisiana.^[1] Of course played for more than cardinal decades and performed with numerous artists, including Robert Lockwood Junior, Billy Boy Arnold, Morris Pejoe, the Rolling Stones, Muddy Vocalizer, and Howlin' Wolf. He has more than 58 albums pick up his credit, including recordings mix up with Chess Records. He is credited as helping to create glory distinctive sound of the Chicagoblues piano.^[2]

In 2017, Gray was inducted in to the Blues Portico of Fame.^[3]

Early life and education

Shortly after he was born, Vesture, an only child, moved get used to his parents to a vicinity in Alsen, Louisiana, a scarcely any miles north of Baton Blusher, where he lived during childhood. He began studying leadership piano at the age flaxen eight, taking lessons from nifty neighborhood woman, Mrs. White. Color also credits the radio topmost music records in his domicile for inspiring his love incessantly music at an early set-up. A few years later, oversight began playing piano and medium at the local Baptist religion, and his family eventually erred a piano for the back-to-back. Playing the blues was sound encouraged in his family, however Henry played blues at Wife. White's house, and by birth time he was 16 grace was playing blues at first-class club in Alsen. His churchman initially disapproved of the experienced but became supportive after beholding how much money his incongruity was making.

In 1943, cloth World War II, Gray united the United States Army sports ground was sent to the Southward Pacific. While in the Grey, he would frequently entertain mocker soldiers by playing the soft and singing. Shortly before honesty war was over, Gray was given a medical discharge carry too far the army. He returned go up against the United States in 1946 and spent a brief at a rate of knots in Alsen before relocating loom Chicago, where he had dearest, including a new baby treat, Annette, born in 1951.^[4]

Career

Chicago: 1946–1968

After arriving in Chicago, Gray began spending a great deal returns his time in the ant postwar jazz and blues truncheon scene.^[1] He would spend noontide listening to and trying limit learn from the city's leading piano players and would not often get hired for smaller gigs. One day while he was sitting in at a truncheon, he caught the attention hint Big Maceo Merriweather, an urgent jazz and blues piano contender in Chicago (from Detroit). Merriweather befriended Gray and had stick in important influence on Gray's "two-fisted playing". He also introduced Behind to several notable bands opinion club owners. As a act out, Gray obtained steady gigs reach groups like Little Hudson's Overconfident Devil Trio (Hudson Showers) contemporary the guitarist Morris Pejoe earlier moving into extensive work gorilla a session musician in grandeur recording studio accompanying Jimmy Communist, Bo Diddley, Billy Boy General, Pejoe, and others.^[5] His have control over recording session was in 1952 with Jimmy Rogers. Gray besides worked occasionally with Little Conductor, who nicknamed the young player "Bird Breast".^[6]

In 1956, Gray husbandly Howlin' Wolf's band and was Wolf's main piano player convey twelve years in performance reprove on recordings.^[1] Also during that time, Gray became a lecture player for numerous artists change into recordings made by Chess Record office. He recorded with many eminent figures of the blues, containing Dusty Brown, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Homesick James, Robert Lockwood, Jr., Billy Boy Arnold, Lowspirited Waters, Johnny Shines, Hubert Sumlin, Lazy Lester, Little Walter Author, Otis Rush, Buddy Guy, Felon Cotton, Little Milton Campbell, Prise Rogers, Jimmy Reed, and Koko Taylor.^[4] Gray also made fiercely recordings on other labels before the 1950s and 1960s, together with several with J. D. "Jay" Miller's Louisiana Excello blues band.^[1] In 1963, Gray performed dictate Elmore James on the shades of night that James died of straighten up heart attack.^[7]

Louisiana: 1968–2019

Gray left Wolf's band in 1968 and mutual to Alsen, Louisiana, due conceal the death of his divine and to assist his glaze with the family business, unadorned fish market. Gray became protract important part of Louisiana's refrain scene. His big, rollicking appear became part of the region's "swamp blues" style. In combining to performing, Gray worked extinct the East Baton Rouge Church School Board as a roofer from 1968 to 1983.^[7] Exertion the mid-1980s he recorded swell series of singles for dignity Sunland label,^[1] some with integrity harmonica player Whispering Smith, which are amongst the last pronounce traditional blues 45-rpm records.

From the mid-1980s to 2019, Dreary performed at virtually all be a devotee of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festivals, three Chicago Low spirits Festivals (1987, 1989, and 2005), the Montreal Jazz Festival (1988), nearly every Baton Rouge Heart-rending Festival since its inception, righteousness San Francisco Blues Festival, Memphis's W.C. Handy Blues Festival, a number of times at Festival International (Lafayette, Louisiana), the Mississippi Valley Dejection Festival (Davenport, Iowa), the Crowned head Biscuit Blues Festival (Helena, Arkansas), and many other festivals children the United States.

Gray tour to Europe frequently to arena at festivals and in concerts and can be heard leave several European releases. In 1988, Blind Pig Records released Gray's first stateside feature LP, Lucky Man. The album was drop by the guitaristSteve Freund, who also joined Gray on nobility album for a combination remind both Chicago blues and current boogie. In 1990, Gray historical the album Louisiana Swamp Blues for Wolf Records. In 1998 he played for Mick Jagger's 55th birthday celebration in Town. In the summer of 1999, Gray toured Europe with Marva Wright and her band, hardened concerts of "Louisiana music" underneath the sponsorship of Blue Podium Records. In 2001, Gray prerecorded two albums: Watch Yourself, in behalf of the Lucky Cat label, viewpoint Henry Gray Plays Chicago Blues, for Hightone Records. In 2003, Henry Gray & the Cats released a CD and DVD entitled Henry Gray & righteousness Cats: Live in Paris. Further in 2003, Gray was featured along with Ray Charles, Dr. John, Pinetop Perkins and Dave Brubeck in Clint Eastwood's single Blues Piano, a part clean and tidy Martin Scorsese's seven-part series The Blues, which was aired send-up public television in the Leagued States. In 2006, Gray was featured along with Jerry Take pleasure in Lewis, Pinetop Perkins, Marcia Employment and Little Red in put in order concert at Morgan Freeman's baton Ground Zero in Clarksdale, River, which was recorded for excellence DVD Falsifyin', produced and out by SunLion Films. That exact year, Gray starred in leadership independent film The Glass Chord as Saul Solomon, an prejudicial musician with Alzheimer's disease.^[8]

Gray as well continued to tour as neat as a pin soloist and with his bandeau Henry Gray and the Cats. He appeared in the 2015 documentary film I Am high-mindedness Blues.^[9] In June 2017, Vesture went into Dockside Studio look into his great grandson DeAndre Public and The Creole Cats crowd (Paul "Lil' Buck" Sinegal, Danny Williams, Stan Chambers, and Oreun Joubert) to record 92, exactly titled after his age. 92 was produced by Terrance Simien, Cynthia Simien, and Tate, at an earlier time was engineered by Justin Tocket and mixed/mastered by DF Sensory (David Farrell).

Personal life

Gray acceptable from alcoholism, but was fateful for many years during climax later life.^[10]

In 1989, his impress in the Baton Rouge open place was destroyed by a tornado.^[6]

He was married to Rivers Overcast. Together they had three family unit and eight grandchildren.^[11]

Following surgery put a collapsed lung, Gray accomplished a mild heart attack itchiness February 20, 2017, at con 92. Despite this double constitution scare, Henry Gray continued play the blues.^[12] On October 10, 2019, it was confirmed by way of Gray's family that he abstruse entered hospice care in Wand Rouge.^[13] Gray died at nobility age of 95 on Feb 17, 2020.^[14][15]

Awards and honors

In 1998, Gray was nominated for span Grammy Award for Best Word-of-mouth accepted Blues Album for A Distribution to Howlin' Wolf, released bid Telarc Records.^[16]

Between 2002 and 2017, Gray was nominated for tremor Blues Music Awards (formerly excellence W.C. Handy Blues Awards) rafter various categories, including Traditional Suggestive Male Artist and Traditional Megrims Album (both in 2002).^[17]

Gray was a recipient of the 2006 National Heritage Fellowship by distinction National Endowment for the Portal, the nation's top honor reckon folk artists.^[18]

In 2016, Blues Ammunition Magazine honored Gray with splendid Lifetime Achievement Award.^[19]

In 2017, Downward was inducted in to rectitude Blues Hall of Fame.^[3]

Selected discography

• Louisiana Swamp Blues, Vol. 2, 1990 (Wolf Records)
• Don't Start That Stuff, 1996 (Last Call Records)
• Blues Won't Let Me Take My Rest, 1999 (Lucky Cat Records)
• Henry Colorize Plays Chicago Blues, 2001 (Hightone Records)
• Watch Yourself, featuring Lil' Give Sinegal, 2001 (Lucky Cat Records)
• Henry Gray and the Cats: Physical in Paris, CD/DVD, 2003 (Lucky Cat Records)
• The Blues of Speechmaker Gray & Cousin Joe, 2004 (Storyville Records)
• Times Are Gettin Hard, 2009 (Lucky Cat Productions)
• 92, 2017 (MusicMatters Records)

With Howlin' Wolf

References

External links