Henry Gray – Shake A Hand

Henry Gray was a blues piano player and singer. He played for more than seven decades. Henry performed with many artists, including Robert Lockwood Jr., Billy Boy Arnold, the Rolling Stones, Muddy Waters, and Howlin’ Wolf. He has more than 54 albums to his credit. He is credited as helping to create the sound of the Chicago blues piano.

Track Listing:
1. The Baron's Introduction - 0:19   2. Shake A Hand - 4:34   3. How Long - 3:06   4. Sweet Home Chicago - 3:03   5. All In My Sleep - 3:35   6. Downhome blues - 4:26   7. It Hurts Me Too - 4:17   8. I'm A Lucky Man - 2:42   9. Sinners Prayer - 3:30   10. How Can You Do It? - 2:20   11. Little Red Rooster - 4:46   12. Boogie In The Dark - 2:03   13. Tutti Frutti - 2:22   14. Everybody s Fishing - 3:09   15. What I'd Say - 2:34   16. Howling For My Darling - 3:12   17. My Girl Josephine - 3:00   18. Good Bye baby - 1:98

Reviews:

1. La Hora del Blues. May Newsletter 2022

Austrian record label Wolf Records always bets for rescuing old recordings by legendary figures of Afroamerican blues.

This is the case of this album coming from piano player and singer Henry Gray, a man born in Kenner, Louisiana in 1925, who soon moved to Baton Rouge and later on to Chicago. His first recordings were backing Jimmy Rogers in 1954 at Chess Studios and, in 1956, he joined Howlin’ Wolf’s band. In 1968 Henry came back to Baton Rouge, where he settled for the rest of his life. In 1998 he played on Mick Jagger’s 55th birthday party. People say Henry was a stoic man who had never missed a gig, he even played piano with a broken finger for more than a month during a tour, which was really painful, but nobody noticed it. He faced life problems with a great sense of humor. Despite suffering a heart attack when he was 92 years old, he followed on playing until he entered to a hospice care, where he died at 95.

Henry Gray had a long wide musical career both in terms of recordings, as well as touring and playing countless gigs. This album includes eighteen songs coming from some of his best recordings he did between 1995 and 1996, both solo and backed by some good musicians who perfectly know the secrets of swamp blues and Chicago blues, developing a repertoire that includes well known songs as “It Hurts Me Too”, “Sweet Home Chicago”, “Downhome Blues”, “How Long”, “Little Red Rooster” or “Fanny Mae”, he displays with the most genuine feeling, backed by Steve Coleridge, Andrea Curbelo, Shakey Vick, Colin John, Jolly Jumper or The Baron, among others.

Thanks to the collaboration between Steve Coleridge and Hannes Folterbauer, we can now have on hands and savor all these restrained priceless Henry Gray’s songs, that will contribute to expand the historical legacy of this impressive bluesman.