BAND SPOTLIGHT | Pimpin Henry

Fresh from a refreshing outing at last weekend’s Crowe Fest, Brad Jamison (vocals, bass), Doug Shannon (drums), Dustin Strother (guitar, vocals) and newest member Mike Tash (keys) are on a roll. From origins in 2001 as an “avant garde psychedelic trio,” the band played for a while, took five years off and then revved up the funk-rock jams again in 2011. Chris Miller often guested on the keyboards and band pal Roger Whitsell jammed on the congas during those formative years. The recipe for Pimpin Henry goes like this, according to band sources: “One part funk slap bass – One part hard rock drums – One part wailing blues guitar – And some soulful vocals and original songs.” Mostly doing original jams until adding familiar, fun and genre-leaping covers like Billie Jean, Big River and Boogie on Reggae Woman, the band’s main influences range from Phish to the Beatles, Talking Heads to Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley to Umphrey’s McGee. Plans are to continue playing wherever and whenever, spreading out from Springfield into the Midwest, doing that Pimpin Henry thing.