The Carleton is very pleased to host the CD release party for legendary East Coast musician Jim Henman – along with his band, The Project – on Thursday, June 23rd. Show time is 9 PM and advanced tickets are only $10.
Somewhere between the rythmicc yodeling of The Singing Brakeman‚ Jimmie Rodgers, and the flavourful grooves of ragtime guitarist/singer Blind Blake lies the roots of Jim Henman’s musical beginnings. Writing his first tune at age 12, Jim spent much of his youth strumming a Stella acoustic guitar on the sandy shores of Clam Harbour, Nova Scotia. By the mid-60s, Jim, with high school friends Myles Goodwyn, Greg Stephen, Dave Dodsworth and Doug Grace, started the top 40 band, Woodies Termites. Jim and Myles went on to co-found the Canadian rock band April Wine in the fall of 1969 with Jim’s cousins David and Ritchie Henman. April Wine moved to Montreal in 1970, signing with Aquarius Records.
Shortly after the release of their debut album in 1971, Jim decided to leave the band, moving back to the East Coast to start a family and pursue a career in Medical Technology. While his career as a professional musician may have been put on hiatus, Jim remained connected to the musical community in Halifax, continuing to write music and performing locally.
Jim officially re-emerged in the 90s, co-writing and co-producing the album More Than My Share for Cape Breton singer Jeannie Beks. He also co-wrote the music for The Musical‚ a stage production performed both at Halifax’s Neptune Theatre. This musical score was later released on CD. In addition to writing and producing, Jim also began performing in songwriters’ circles throughout Nova Scotia alongside artists such as Terry Kelly, Laura Smith and Cheryl Gaudet.
Over the past thirty years, Jim has dedicated his passion, enthusiasm and expertise to numerous projects, much of which hold special meaning in his life. One such project, A Night to Remember‚ was a musical event (held annually for four years) that Jim co-produced along with Halifax entrepreneur Joe Graves, in support of recovery homes for men and women in Halifax.
In keeping a promise to his late friend, Canadian blues artist Rick Jeffery, Jim completed and produced Rick’s final album, 13 Vultures in 2009. The CD/DVD was released at the Dutch Mason Blues Festival in July 2009 with a twenty member tribute band that performed select tracks from the album. The tribute band included various artists from the Maritime Blues scene, including Joe Murphy, Theresa Melenfant, Pam Marsh, Wayne Nicholson, Carter Chaplin, A. Jardine, Charlie Phillips, Mike Legget and Shirley Jackson.
In 2009 Jim was inducted, along with his April Wine bandmates, into the Canadian Music Industry Hall Of Fame and in April 2010 Jim had the great honour of receiving a Juno award commemorating April Wine’s inclusion in the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
Jim has just released his second solo CD House Plants, a collection of songs started at various house concerts in Eastern Canada. He also recorded a single, Shame, Shame Boogie released in 2015 featuring fellow April Wine co-founder Myles Goodwyn on guitar and harmony. Jim will be playing shows this summer around the Maritimes with his band‚ The Project, including this special show at The Carleton.
Jim is sponsored by Karen Phytoplankton