Recordings as a Leader
“The visceral energy of drummer Henry Cole in his compositions and performances is one of the most vivid examples breaking out of the morass of formulaic treacle that has made it almost impossible to be aroused [into action] by much of today’s music. Like that other deeply committed musician of Puerto Rican descent, Miguel Zenón, Mr Cole mines his heritage like an old alchemist would to extract its cultural truth like a rare and precious metal, shimmering atop a totem pole, drawing listeners into a sound world that is all but lost in the clutter and instant gratification of today’s digital culture.
The music on this album comes from a world of glinting lights; an exuberant outpouring of youthful lyricism based on the frenetic dancing folkloric rhythms of Puerto Rico, which have left a lasting impression on the language of Afro-Caribbean musical literature. The vivid, occasionally strident sound of the music of Buscando la Vida has a wide dynamic range – so, sit near the volume control as this music can get quite explosive.”
“Henry has taken the tradition he grew up in and greatly expanded it's meaning. His recording "Roots Before Branches" is a beautiful demonstration of this expansion.”
-Chick Corea
“There’s rock, bebop, poetic recitation, floating Ornette coleman-style melodies, elegiac string-quartet writing, ambient electronics.”
-New York Times - Ben Ratliff
“In bringing stylized traditions of Puerto Rico and Afro-beat together, Cole has made something entirely new".
-Nextbop
Along the way, Henry Cole & The Afro Beat Collective will have made you smile, made you think, surprised you, and – most of all – made you want to dance. You tell me: what more can you ask of an album?.
-Jam Bands
One Of Five New Directions in Jazz Evolution.
-NPR
SINGLES
(2020)
(2020)
(2019)
(2018)
(2019)
Donde Vas Maria - Henry Cole & Villa Locura feat Ricky Villanueva (2019)
Selected Recordings as a Sideman
Campechada 2012
El Camino
Henry Cole
Oller in Campechada. Puerto Rican musician and artist Henry Cole composed the theme song El Camino, inspired by the life of Francisco Oller. This theme was commissioned as the official theme of the event. The piece unites flamenco from Spain, classical music from France and jazz from America, and uses all its colors to enhance a Caribbean and totally Puerto Rican framework represented by the Bomba
Cantanto En La Ciudad
Composed by Fernandito Ferrer. Arranged and produced by Henry Cole
Defendiendo Lo Intangible
Composer: Henry Cole
Ensemble: Realm of Possibilities
The SWR NEWJazz Meeting - a legendary institution
The aim of the SWR NEWJazz Meeting is to make musical encounters possible that are difficult to realize under normal conditions. The idea: completely different musicians, who had never come together before, develop a joint program in a multi-day process in the broadcasting studios of the Südwestrundfunk, which they then present in public concerts in the broadcasting area.
“ Musicians from Puerto Rico, Malaysia, Canada, Cuba and the USA. It is a band that has not yet played together in this form, consisting of very different musicians, but who all have something in common: they all live in New York. And they all belong to the spearhead of young, forward-moving Big Apple Jazz” - GÜNTHER HUESMANN