Poor Mouth Henry

Poor Mouth Henry isn’t playing the songs everyone else is playing. But they are playing the songs that take you back … songs that tug at your heartstrings. Whether they’re performing as their standard four-piece band, or as a duo, like at their 6 p.m. show Friday Dec. 8, at Mott’s Creek Inn, Poor Mouth Henry is breathing fresh air into the cover scene.

“We’re not playing the same songs that people beat to death,” says Charlie Zee, drummer and manager of Poor Mouth Henry.

“We’ll play ‘A Day in the Life’ by The Beatles,” adds Don Neville, bass guitarist and vocalist. “Bands just don’t play it, and people’s jowls just drop.”
The songs they choose to cover may not be typical, but they are recognizable and well-loved.

“A good amount of our material will take you back to where you first heard it,” adds Don Farrar, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist. “We’ll often hear, ‘No one plays this,’ from our audience, and it’s kind of refreshing to hear that response.”

Between “Dear Prudence” and “Tennessee Whiskey,” Poor Mouth Henry has a repertoire that gets people on the dance floor — they even hand out awards for the partiers that really stand out.

“We have little gold trophies,” says Farrar of the fun awards they’ll often give out at shows, “The Unofficial Official Poor Mouth Henry Dancers Trophies.”

It’s just one of the ways Poor Mouth Henry has fun at their shows, along with the music, of course, and their affable camaraderie.
“Most of the fun is how we interact when we’re not playing — it carries over on stage,” says Neville. “We have a lot of fun … it doesn’t make it feel like a job.”

The band, composed of four veteran musicians, each with their own musical preferences, has found a way to accommodate the sounds they each enjoy.

“We all like our own music, but it all seems to mesh,” says Farrar.
“It all comes together,” adds Bill Naples, lead guitarist and vocalist. “We have our own twist in anything we’re playing.”
While the band concentrates on covers from classic bands such as Jethro Tull, Grandfunk Railroad, The Beatles and The Eagles, they aren’t averse to penning their own songs.

“It’s been a long-standing goal to do original material,” says Farrar.

Currently, however, the band is poised to continue building their already steady fan base.

Keep your eyes and ears peeled. You won’t want to miss them. - Press of Atlantic City