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Rockin' with the Baby

Baby Harry fuses funk, rock, soul and hip hop into knock-out show at Bill's
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"We filled a dream by playing music and also being partly business minded." Baby Harry, photo submitted

Who: Baby Harry

When: Thursday, Aug. 24

Where: Buffalo Bill’s

He opened for Ben Harper last month and over the years shared stages with big name acts such as 54-40, The Trews, Queens of the Stone Age and the Sam Roberts band. So what is Baby Harry’s secret? His music? His marketing? Maybe a bit of both.

See for yourself at Baby Harry’s inaugural Whistler concert Thursday, Aug. 24 at Buffalo Bill’s.

"I met him through being persistent," Baby Harry, otherwise known as Antoine Calaway, said of Ben Harper. "Ben is down to earth. He started out very much like myself. We filled a dream by playing music and also being partly business minded. He really likes my music and likes the fact that I am original… I am a great musician, but better at marketing I think."

Baby Harry laughs at the comment, but like all good jokes, there is some truth in the ridiculous.

It’s been six years since Baby Harry first decided to dedicate himself to a career in music. The birth of his son sparked a long forgotten dream abandoned in the daily grind of working for an airline company. However, music plays a large role in Baby Harry’s son’s life, just as it did for Baby Harry.

The self-taught musician grew up in a household where there was always a radio turned on or a record playing. His mom took him to see live concerts, including James Brown and Prince. Their full-out shows taught Baby Harry the value of not just playing music, but performing it.

"The reason why they are such legends is because they put on a show people will never forget," Baby Harry said. "That is the way I look at it. You want to leave people with something."

And Baby Harry leaves audiences with his soulful music pumped up with a hard rock edge. Sometimes originals, sometimes covers make up his sets, however, covers are played in what he calls Baby Harry style.

"I like to perform Folsom Prison country blues," he said. "I’ll start country and then stop the band and say, ‘Let’s do this the Baby Harry way’ and line it up with hard rock with funky riffs. I’ll do my version of Johnny Cash. I like to shock people and do things different than the norm."

Everything from Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin to BB King and Sly and the Family Stone; Baby Harry puts his own spin on the classics.

Baby Harry, whose stage name honours his deceased father, has three albums to his credit, selling more than 70,000 copies from the trunk of his car. The term dedication doesn’t even begin to touch on the passion Baby Harry brings to his music and his shows.

His passion led to the police shutting down Granville Street in Vancouver where he played at Oh My Goddard club last month, Baby Harry and his fans were rocking it so hard.

"It’s going to be a hell of a party, so be prepared to dance all night," he warns of the Whistler show. "I am going to put the hard rock, funk and soul on them."

Check out his music at www.babyharryrocks.com.