The Tennessee Hennessees

Bio:

The Tennessee Hennessees This new band made up of five veterans of the Bluegrass music scene are set to light a fire under the Acoustic music scene in Ireland with their fiery blend of Bluegrass, Rockabilly and Traditional Country music. Taking their inspiration from the Pioneers of the 1950s such as Bill Monroe, Flatt and Scruggs, Hank Williams, Jimmy Martin, Carl Perkins and Lefty Frizzell, “The Hennessees” don’t look on their music as a cultural expression but rather a tribute to the hell raising lifestyles and pure entertainment of these great musical innovators. Sean Mckerr has been playing Mandolin for 20 years and is widely regarded as a Bill Monroe stylist. His driving rhythms give a distinctive edge to the band. He has played with such diverse bands as the Dusty Millers, The Mean Eyed Cats, The Freightliners, and has recently completed a British Tour with Nashville based Sharon Cort and New River Ranch featuring banjo legend Butch Robins. Sean recently featured as the bass player in the World International Bluegrass band at the IBMA convention in Nashville. Mel Corry is also a veteran of the Dusty Millers Bluegrass Band and the Mean Eyed Cats, and earlier this year toured with New York based Buddy Merriam and Backroads. Mel plays the 5–string Banjo in the hard driving style of Earl Scruggs and JD Crowe; he also shares the lead singing duties with bassist Bill Johnston. Bill Johnston plays the doghouse stand up Bass in an aggressive rockabilly style. Bill’s repertoire includes extended slap bass solos and a range of songs covering Bluegrass, Rockabilly, Honky Tonk and Swing. He has played with The Black Mountain String Band, Ten Wheels for Jesus, The Soundhogs and the Rockabilly combo The Sabre Jets, among others. Gerry Thompson, although still a young man, is a veteran of the acoustic music scene for many years. At age 14 he played with the Lurgan based Traditional band Stone the Crows and played bass with the Dusty Millers. Gerry is renowned in Irish Traditional music as a driving innovative rhythm guitar player. He brings a contemporary twist to the Tennessee Hennessee groove. Ace dobro player Colin Henry adds a touch of real class to this outfit, he has played on many recordings over the years with a wide variety of artists including the eclectic roots band Birdog and most recently as part of singer songwriter Janet Holme's band. Colin is at home with all the sub-genres that the band dabbles with. The band emphasis is in giving people a show as well as good music. These guys like the audience to have as much fun as they do

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Carl Perkins
Del McCoury Band - Rawhide

Member Since:

March 20, 2008

Members:

Sean Mckerr - Mandolin/vocals Mel Corry - Banjo/vocals Gerry Thompson - Guitar Bill Johnston - Double Bass/vocals Colin Henry - Dobro

Influences:

Bill Monroe, Jimmy Martin, Carl Perkins, Flatt+Scruggs, Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Louis Prima, The Stanley Brothers, Hank Williams, Lefty Frizzell, Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent, Greg Cahill and The Special Consensus, Buddy Merrriam and Back Roads, Four Men and a Dog, Arty McGlynn, Cathal Hayden, Tim O'Brien, Tony Rice, JD Crowe and the New South, Jerry Douglas, Dale Watson, The Hillbilly Boogiemen, Ernie Sykes Jr, Dan Paisley, The Del McCoury Band, Big Sandy+The Fly Right Boys, David Grisman, Stephane Grapelli, Mike Bub, Wayne Hancock, George Jones, Keith Whitley, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Josh Williams, Clem O'Brien, Frankie Robinson, etc etc etc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbmtaewbjEA

Sounds Like:

Nothin you’ve ever heard, Bill Monroe might say " It Ain’t no part o nothin"

Record Label:

Unsigned