Tom Henry Shares ‘Silverlake Song’ from New Album ‘What’s Left’
Tom Henry has shared ‘Silverlake Song’, a new single from his second album ‘What’s Left’, due November 20 through Royal Oakie Records.
The song features Charles Lloyd on sitar and takes a rather less romantic view of life in Los Angeles. We featured ‘Bella’ back in January 2025, ahead of Henry’s debut album ‘Songs to Sing and Dance To’. Since then, he’s moved back to his native Chicago after spending four years in Los Angeles. ‘Silverlake Song’ looks back at that time, particularly the promises of a place like Silver Lake, where everything can seem possible until reality gets in the way. Henry puts it rather nicely in his own notes: “The Angelic city of the west possesses a silver lake.” He goes on to describe a young dreamer who falls for the place and almost ends up being ruined by it. The sitar gives the song something of an early Donovan feel, while the subject is a little closer to Henry’s own experiences than the romantic fantasies of some of his earlier material.
‘What’s Left’ was produced by Henry and David Glasebrook, with sessions taking place at Shirk Studios in Chicago and The Garden Shed in Oakland. Henry plays guitar, bass and keyboards throughout the record, with contributions from several other musicians.
There’s also a wonderful bit of mischief in the album’s liner notes, written by Ian F. Svenonius. He adopts the character of Johnny Sincere, a fictional manager determined to turn Henry into a star. Various disguises are proposed, including a space suit, an old-fashioned railway worker and a weary nightclub pianist. Henry isn’t interested in any of them. He just wants to play rock ‘n’ roll.
‘What’s Left’ will be released November 20 on vinyl, CD and digitally through Royal Oakie Records. Pre-orders are available on Bandcamp.
Headline credit: Tom Henry by Austin Warshawsky
Tom Henry Bandcamp / Instagram
Royal Oakie Records Website / Bandcamp / Instagram
