Henry Gray & the Cats at Colony Theatre March 11

With seven decades of boozy riffing, troubled loving, and tough living behind him, Henry Gray is a complete and unabridged human history book of the American blues.

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Colony Theatre

1040 Lincoln Road
Miami Beach, FL 33139

Category: Theaters

Region: South Beach

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8:30 p.m. Friday, March 11, at the Colony Theatre, 1040 Lincoln Rd., Miami Beach; 305-674-1026; colonyandbyrontheaters.com. Tickets cost $35 for general admission or $50 for VIP via tigertail.org.

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More About

• Henry Gray
• Muddy Waters
• Jimmy Reed
• Blues Music
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media

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Born on the outskirts of New Orleans, this piano player first pounded the black-and-white keys in church as a boy, playing gospel spirituals and hymns. But at home, Gray's father had forbidden the blues. It was only when he began playing barrooms at the age of 16 — and getting paid for it — that pops dropped the ban.

By 1946, Gray had joined the Army, served in World War II, received a medical discharge, and moved north to Chicago. Straight away, he hit the blues clubs and struck up a friendship with legendary barrelhouse piano man Big Maceo Merriweather. He landed gigs. He earned cred. And he spent the next half-century helping to pioneer Chicago blues piano, playing alongside guitar gods such as Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, Buddy Guy, and B.B. King.

Now 85 years old, Gray is writing his next chapter. Hear the first few bars at the Colony this Friday.