Henry Butler

Over the last decade, 6 time WC Handy Blues Award nominee, Henry Butler, has established himself as the finest all-around pianist in New Orleans. Butler's diverse style finds him equally at home in jazz, blues, R&B, and New Orleans funk and he plays each with masterful precision. The virtuosity pianist is also a schooled vocalist, an expressive composer and a fierce performer who can play with as much passion as a soloist as he can with a band. The piano genius continues to push himself in new directions as a musician, continually blending the old with the new. Born in the musical hotbed of New Orleans, Butler found himself attracted to the piano at a very young age. While attending the Louisiana School for the blind he began his formal education in music by taking piano lessons, as well as studying drums, baritone saxophone, and valve trombone. By the age of 14 he was playing professionally in Baton Rouge, and went on to study voice in high school before enrolling in Southern University. It was here that Butler fell under the spell of jazz giant Alvin Batiste, who quickly became his mentor. With Batistes help, Butler began adding the jazz legacy of Art Tatum, Bud Powell, Charlie Parker, and John Coltrane to the Crescent City R&B he'd absorbed from Eddie Bo, Tommy Ridgley, James Booker, and Professor Longhair. Butler has several albums to his credit, beginning with his debut on the MCA/Impulse! Label in 1986. Since that time he has produced albums with the now-defunct Windham Hill Jazz label, the Atlantic Jazz label and Black Top Records. In 2000 Butler collaborated with bluesman Corey Harris to release an album for Alligator Records. Butler's latest album is entitled Homeland and was released in 2004. Produced by Soul Asylu's Dave Pirner, this CD has been described as "a hoot and a joy all the way through" by Rick Anderson at All Music Guide. He also adds that "Henry Butler comes from a different time and place, and his music is R&B in the old sense it rocks, it rolls, it struts, it features the piano prominently, and it's very much based in the blues and the Creole musical traditions of his native New Orleans." Henry Butler signed to Basin Street Records and released The Game Has Just Begun, in early 2002. On this album, Butler gave us an all out electric and eclectic recording. Henry lost his home and all of his possessions in New Orleans and relocated to Boulder, Colorado after the flooding that ensued after Hurricane Katrina. He looks forward to being able to return to a rebuilt and better city.