We all know notable musicians that come from New Jersey – Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, Frank Sinatra, Paul Simon, Queen Latifah. To that list you should add Katie Henry, this album is a belter.
Henry has been around for a couple of years and her last album was rated in the top 20 of the year by Blues Rock Review. She is a singer and multi-instrumentalist, primarily playing Blues and with a low and sultry vocal style – close to Joanne Shaw Taylor in style. She plays guitar and keyboards as well, and very well too. She is accompanied here by a fine set of musicians – George Moy on bass, Matt Kimathi on drums, Eric Cannavaro on organ, Richard Pappik on percussion and Michael Murauer on guitar – basically Bernard Allison’s band, the same Bernard Allison that produced the album and supplied a pair of songs to it as well. “Working with Bernard Allison and his band was a blessing,” beams Henry as she recalls the chemistry she felt at the recording sessions in the autumn of 2023. “Not only are they amazing top notch players, they are also good people with big hearts. They really support and believe in me, which means so much to me and my growth as an artist. I was inspired by them throughout the whole process.”
The album has a laid back and funky Blues groove to it. It is clear to me that she was learning and developing but it sounds like a happy record, an album where the artists were having a good time together. I played the album through a couple of times before picking out particular tracks that stand out: ‘The Lion’s Den’ burns with a smoky intensity, ‘A Doll’s Heart’ is a slow ballad with fragile beauty, ‘Get Goin’ Get Gone’ is a terrific old-style Blues with a soul groove to it. But there really isn’t any obvious filler and its an album that is easy to listen all the way through.
Katie Henry is a class act and very well worth a listen.
