Henry's Biography

Henry Farnam was born in Rochester, New York. He was named after his father, grandfather and great-grandfather, which makes him officially "Henry W. Farnam IV". Although he doesn't often use the W. or the IV in his name, he's very proud to be one of a long line of Henry's. "My namesake actually goes back to the early 1800's, to the original Henry Farnam (no middle initial) who was a railroad tycoon and one of the men responsible for building Yale University in New Haven, CT. There's a lot of history to the Farnam name and I've always felt a responsibility to carry it on and do something important to honor my family". Henry, of course, chose music and performing as his way to make his mark in the world.

He grew up in Rochester, New York, where his father, Henry III, worked at Eastman Kodak. "Dad was a corporate businessman by day, but when he wasn't in his suit, he was outside working on his true calling, which is photography." Henry's father has since retired from corporate life and is now a successful landscape photographer specializing in large format fine art prints. He's followed in the footsteps of his idol, Ansel Adams, and travels the country with Henry's mother, Bonnie, to photograph all the beauty that makes up the United States. According to Henry, his mother is "the quintessential all-american wife and mother...my very own Donna Reed". Henry's parents are happily married and in 2001 will celebrate their 38th year together. Henry has one sister, Katie, who is an editor living in the San Francisco bay area with her husband, Chris. According to Henry "Katie is my best friend in the entire world. She's the one person who knows all there is to know about me and because she's my sister AND best friend, she's the one person that I can always count in life. I dedicate every bit of success or happiness that I have in life to my sister, as she is truly my rock." Henry's parents have said that he and his sister have always been very close, and although Henry was the typical older brother who loved to pick on his sister as kids, she was always his favorite person and there was nothing he wouldn't do for her.

Henry is of English, Scottish and German descent. He grew up in Rochester, New York, but spent many summers in Madison, CT with his paternal grandmother. It was through her that he got his first taste of Hollywood, as many of her friends were old Hollywood legends, such as Claire Trevor and Charlie Hines. As a teenager, Charlie would tell Henry about being Errol Flynn's silent partner and regale him with stories of old Hollywood. It was then that Henry knew he wanted to someday make his way to Los Angeles and to be part of the world that Charlie and Claire would often talk about. Many of his grandmother's other friends had long since passed away and although he never met them, he grew up hearing stories about her times with legends such as Richard Rogers, Cole Porter, Noel Coward, the Gershwin brothers, and many other luminaries from the golden age of Hollywood and Broadway. As a young man, his grandmother's influence on his musical tastes were obvious, as he began to sing much of the music that had been written by her old friends. To this day, Henry still has a great love of the timeless music of Porter and Gershwin and others of that era.

Henry as an Actor and Dancer...

Henry's love of singing started as a young child and so it was an obvious choice that Henry would choose singing and acting as a career. His mother says that in kindergarten when the other kids would draw pictures of themselves as firemen or astronauts, Henry would draw pictures of himself on a stage. By age 10, he was producing full shows at his house with the neighborhood kids, using the automatic garage door as a curtain. Henry's started performing seriously at the age of 13 in a leading role in a production of "Li'l Abner" and continued on the next year in a principal role in the "Sound of Music". Other shows followed after that, including "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying", "Fiddler on the Roof", "Grease", "Girl Crazy" and "She Loves Me". By that point, he had graduated from High School, had moved to New York City and had gone on to perform professionally in many productions which included leads in "The Boyfriend" and the American Premiere of it's sequel, "Divorce Me Darling", "Damn Yankees", "The Taming of the Shrew", "A Midsummer Night's Dream", "Vladimir, the Dracula Musical", "A Chorus Line" and "West Side Story". Henry says "It was really exciting to work in the "Chorus Line" and "West Side Story" companies because both companies were productions using the Michael Bennett and Jerome Robbins choreography and were both choreographed and directed by people that worked directly with Bennett and Robbins on earlier productions of those shows on Broadway."

Henry as a Singer/Recording Artist....

It was while he was in New York that Henry got the recording bug. At a party in New York, he was telling someone how much he had always wanted to be a recording artist and to do concerts. This conversation was overheard by the Emmy Award winning producer and songwriter David Musial. David had been looking for a young artist to work with and to develop pop material for, and after a trial recording session, David and Henry decided to go forward on a musical venture. Henry says "I was like Helen Keller when it came to composing. The songs were in my head, but I was like a deaf and blind person when it came to putting that music on paper, or playing it on a piano. Working with David, I was finally able to create music that had, up to that point, been only in my head." Several songs from those recording sessions are on Henry's upcoming Rock/Pop album.

Those Great Standards....

Henry also had a great love of other genres of music beyond the dance/pop that he and David had been working on together. So Henry branched out and began working with other composers and arrangers. His love of big band music brought him to California to work with Joe Barnett, a San Francisco Bay Area award winning musical director and arranger. According to Henry, "I needed to have a chance to sing music other than the simplistic bubble gum pop/dance music that I had been previously working on, and so working with Joe Barnett really grew out of needing another musical outlet to express myself while I was recording pop music." Henry began travelling out to San Francisco to work with Joe, and although at first they weren't sure where they were headed with the music, a concert began to take shape. "Joe and I had literally taken over a hundred songs that we both loved and had rearranged them and worked them to fit well with my voice and my range. Over time, we started focusing on about 30 songs that we were really happy with and then started shaping them into a concert, which eventually took on a life of it's own and became a book show." To get the funding to produce this show, the decision was made to head into the studio and record 11 of the songs for the purposes of presenting the CD to producers. Although that CD was originally only created for the purpose of approaching producers, it has since become the successful "The Best Is Yet to Come" CD, which was released on a limited basis last year. Henry tells us that because of the overwhelming positive response to the limited release of "The Best Is Yet To Come", he has arranged to go back into the studio to add on more instrumentation to several of the songs. He says, "We originally only had the budget to produce the CD with piano, bass and drums. Yet some of this music is just begging for a full big band. After seeing the great response we got from the initial release, I feel that it's only right to finish certain songs with more players before we put out another release." Fans of "The Best Is Yet To Come" will be able to purchase the new updated version of the CD in late Spring 2001.

Henry's Current Recording Project....

Of course, Henry isn't the type to settle down to just one project. His great love of classic rock has brought him to where he is currently focusing, which is a new CD that includes acoustic rock and power ballads. He tells us "I had the great fortune of meeting one of the most talented young songwriters of our generation, Matt Davis. Matt's music has been compared to Eric Clapton and Matchbox 20. I approached Matt about singing a song or two of his, and the next thing I knew, we were in the studio in New York City recording five of his best songs, and within a few months, almost my entire current CD release was using Matt's music. I'm so incredibly honored to be working with someone that I think is one of the great new songwriters of the millenium. Matt's music fits my voice like a glove - and I have to admit that I love singing it as much, if not more, than any other music I've ever sung." There are five previews in streaming audio on this website of these songs. Henry and Matt are now currently hiring band members to join them in the studio to finish the recordings and to start a concert tour. They have a target date of Mid-March for the recording sessions and are now rehearsing for appearances at many of the famous LA Sunset Strip rock clubs, including The House of Blues, Whiskey a-Go-Go, The Key Club, The Roxy and several other well known venues.

Henry tells us that the new music is "a combination of the great classic rock sounds that Jim Steinman created for Meatloaf, with influences by Heart and Clapton, Tina Turner, Matchbox 20 and Creed. Many people think that those artists are very different, yet I feel that they all have underlying similarities. So we're calling our music "symphonic rock" because it encompasses the power of the classic rock sound, mixed with the sexiness of a Tina Turner sound, tied together with the sultry acoustic guitar. Between Matt and myself and our lead guitarist, Todd, we all bring such diverse musical influences to the table that the music we are creating is incredibly powerful and moving, yet fun and exciting at the same time."

Henry in Los Angeles....

On a personal front, Henry is now living in Los Angeles, which has been a life-long dream of his. Having always been a huge fan of old Hollywood, Henry is thrilled to be living within walking distance of the famed Sunset Strip and just minutes away from the homes of his musical and film idols. Since moving to LA, Henry has appeared on TV in episodes of Ally McBeal, CSI, Special Unit 2 and Looking Beyond. He recently was seen dancing with Debbie Reynolds and Joan Collins in the film "These Old Broads", also starring Shirley MacLaine and Elizabeth Taylor. He told us, "I grew up watching MGM musicals as a kid. Gene Kelly is one of my idols and the reason that I started dancing. So imagine my excitement to be there on a soundstage and dancing with Debbie Reynolds, Gene's co-star from "Singing in the Rain". It was a dream come true, to be dancing in a film with an MGM star. There aren't many left, so I feel like I had the chance to be part of film history. Working on that film was a great experience, and I'm here to tell you that I have nothing but absolute respect for Debbie, Joan, Shirley and Elizabeth. They were charming and nice and funny and everything you would hope they would be in person."

Henry still studies acting and plans on getting back to film work again once the new CD has been released and promoted internationally. He studies acting with the renowned Sharon Chatten, and also studies improvisational comedy with the well known comedic actor Donovan Scott. He recently told us, "I'm now actually in a performance level improv class, which trips me out. I always considered myself a serious actor and performer, and here I am doing Saturday Night Live/What's My Line sorts of improv comedy for an audience!! What a riot." Henry has also had the honor of studying with the highly respected Jeanne Hartman as well.

On a Personal Note....

When we asked Henry who is the one person you can totally count on beyond all others, he responded "There's three, actually...my Mom, my Dad and my Sister. I have different relationships with them all, but I always know they are there for me. The four of us have a family unit that is so strong and so special, I can't imagine being without them. We now have a great addition, with my new brother-in-law, Chris. He's like the missing link that we always needed. And for me, he's the brother that I always wanted. A special mention needs to go out to my sister, though. Without her, I'd be nothing. And that's no joke."

Henry is very athletic, focusing mainly on individual sports like roller blading, cycling, working out ("six times a week, I'm totally addicted to it!"). His greatest love, though, is his dog, Duke. "I used to have three dogs, Duke, Sadie and Blackie. I found Duke on the street in New York City abandoned, sickly and starving, so I took him in and he immediately got Sadie pregnant. They had four puppies. My mom took one, my sister took one, a friend took one, and I kept Blackie. Three dogs was a little insane, especially since I lived in THREE different cities with them. But they were my little immediate family." Sadly, both Sadie and Blackie passed away in 2000, so only Duke is left. Henry says, "I swear, I'm going to get Duke cloned, he is the most amazing dog - and after losing the other two, I can't imagine being without at least one of these guys". Henry is the first to admit, though, that it'll be easier to tour with one dog than with three.

Some Interesting & Random Facts about Henry....

Car: Henry loves his SUV's. "I know, they're hated by SO many people, but I love being able to drive up above everyone. And besides, it's a lot easier to transport the dog and equipment in an SUV than in a car. But now that I'm living in LA, I do want to look into a convertible. There's nothing like driving down the coast highway with the top down!"

Romance: "I'm trying to stay unattached right now because it's unfair to drag anyone into this crazy lifestyle that I have with my recording and performing projects. Besides, my heart still belongs to my ex - Kathy. Although she's married now, she still holds my heart." Hey, at least that gives Henry a great subject for songwriting!

Would like to meet: "Many of the people I want to meet are no longer with us, like Gene Kelly, Grace Kelly, Judy Garland, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison. The list goes on and on. But I will say that I dream of meeting and working with Jim Steinman, Carol Bayer Sager, Madonna and Ricky Martin. And of course, the greatest honor would be to sing with Barbra Streisand. My parents used to play Garland and Streisand albums when I was a kid, and I learned to sing by listening to them. I credit them both for making me the singer that I am today."

Favorite Food: Sushi, cookies and ANYTHING peanut butter

Favorite Fast Food: Pizza

Favorite Colors: Blue and Green

Favorite Movies: "This probably changes every month. I love so many films for so many reasons. But I have to say that "Imitation of Life" is one of my favorites." Other favorites include: Cinema Paradiso, Gone with the Wind, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World.

Favorite TV Shows: "My one guilty pleasure is the show "Passions". I have friends on the show and it's just SO much fun to watch." Other favorites: Friends, anything on MTV or VH-1 or Nick at Nite and the History Channel.

Favorite Animal: Whales (and oh yeah - DOGS!)

Favorite City: New York City and Los Angeles

Most Treasured Possession: "I'd rather not say publicly. Let's just say that it's something that was my grandfather's. I only knew him as a very young child, but I firmly believe that he's watching over me each and every day. Having something of his that he treasured and loved means a lot to me."

Bad Habits: Eating too much junk food ("that's all I really do that's bad - I'm way too devoted to my career and my health to do drugs or drink to excess. So I stay away from drugs altogether and only drink occasionally")