Corey Henry came of age in the historic Treme neighborhood, surrounded by street parades, brass bands, and a family that includes some of New Orleans’ most treasured musicians. Amidst that village, it’s no surprise that Henry has matured into one of the city’s more dynamic trombonists.
Henry was born in 1975, at a time when legendary performers populated the neighborhood and brass bands and second line parades wound past the family home on a weekly basis. Henry’s grandfather, Chester Jones, played drums at Preservation Hall and with the Eureka, Onward, and Tuxedo brass bands, among others. His uncle, Benny Jones, is an equally legendary snare drummer and founder of the Treme Brass Band, the Dirty Dozen, and others. Folks like Tuba Fats, Revert Andrews, Keith “Wolf” Anderson, and Freddie Kemp of Fats Domino’s band lived down the street and around the corner, and were willing to coach a youngster coming up.
Not surprisingly, Henry began playing drums as a youngster, but switched to trombone when he was ten. He started with the Treme Brass Band at age 16, blowing alongside the likes of Kermit Ruffins and Phil Frazier. In the late 1990s Henry broke out on his own, launching the Lil Rascals Brass Band. Their second album, the 2001 “Buck It Like a Horse,” included the enduring singles “Rascals Got Fire” and the Glen David Andrews-driven “Knock With Me - Rock With Me.”
The Lil Rascals disbanded a few years later. After Hurricane Katrina, Corey Henry played for a bit with the Rebirth Brass Band –accompanying the band on their Grammy-winning “Rebirth of New Orleans” CD - then joined funk-jazz band Galactic.
In 2012 he formed Corey Henry’s Treme Funktet, which won instant acclaim with their energetic live performances and their CD release “Lapeitah.” The Funktet plays regularly at clubs around New Orleans. Members have included the monster guitarist June Yamagichi, Manus Tilton on bass, Walter Lundy on drums, Antonio Gambrell on trumpet, Beck Burger on keyboard, and Donald Surtain on violin.
In addition to the Grammy, Henry has garnered an armload of honors, including Best Emerging Artist and Best Trombonist awards from Offbeat magazine. Corey Henry ‘s Treme Funktet were named Gambit Magazine’s 2019 Big Easy Award winners for Best Funk Band, and were tapped by the New York Times as a standout set at the 2019 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Henry was also presented with the Spirit of Satchmo Music Award at the 2019 Satchmo Summerfest for his commitment to preserving and honoring Louis Armstrong’s legacy through performance.
