The Blarney Tomes – Biography

Henry Koretzky

Henry Koretzky, a native of Harrisburg, PA, came to playing music late in life and has spent the past few decades trying to make up for lost time. First picking up the guitar seriously at age seventeen, he began playing and listening to an eclectic mix of folk, bluegrass, rock, jazz, and blues. Making his stage debut in 1979 with a garage band whose repertoire ranged from traditional blues to Dave Brubeck to the Allman Brothers set the tone for what can be generously termed as a variegated musical career. In the early ’90s, Henry began playing for contradances, beginning with the quintet Medicinal Purpose, led by fiddler Ryck Kaiser. MP released one cassette-only recording, and continues to regroup for occasional dances and concerts. Henry’s principal contradance outlet is with York County fiddler Todd Clewell, with whom he performs as The Contra Rebels. In addition to concentrating his energies on ROOTBOUND and The Contra Rebels, Henry also performs as an accompanist for contemporary singer-songwriter KJ, both as part of a duo and as the trio Sweet Nothings, as well as with Celtic singer/guitarist Jamie O’Brien and Emmy Truckenmiller in the Celtic/Americana trio Shades of Green and Blue, and the swing band Sink Or Swing.

Jamie O’Brien

Jamie O’Brien was exposed to traditional Irish and music hall songs by his London-Irish family as he grew up in the Brixton area of South London. Youth was a rich time for him as he experienced the rock music he heard in London clubs, such as the Marquee, the Pink Flamingo and the Crawdaddy.  But along with friends, he discovered the world of traditional English folk song and dance.  A decade in Europe made its mark, as he added German and French songs to his repertoire; living in the US, he discovered Americana; and frequent visits to Hawaii saw him introduce a tropical element to his approach.