The Blind Boys of Alabama

The historic musical heritage of New Orleans is on tour this fall through the collaboration of gospel legends, The Blind Boys of Alabama, and the titans of trad, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Launching in Fort Collins, CO on September 16th, the joint tour will travel to New York and Washington, DC, then swing through the Midwest and south through November (see tour dates and venues below), continuing through spring 2009.

The original Blind Boys came together at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind in 1939, having initially performed as the Happyland Jubilee Singers. Original lead vocalist Jimmy Lee Carter continues to lead the group in releasing acclaimed recordings, including four consecutive Grammys (2002-2005); in 2007 the band was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, and they were awarded the NEA Heritage Fellowship for Lifetime Achievement. The Blind Boys have been featured on 60 Minutes, Regis & Kelly, The Tonight Show, The Late Show With David Letterman,  and Late Night with Conan O’Brien; performed on the 2005 Grammy Awards telecast; appeared in the 2003 movie, The Fighting Temptations, alongside Beyonce and Cuba Gooding, Jr.; and served as  inspiration for the Steven Bochco TV series, Blind Justice.

Down in New Orleans

Dedicated to preserving and perpetuating New Orleans Jazz, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band is named for the famous venue founded in 1961 by Allan and Sandra Jaffe. In the heart of the French Quarter, Preservation Hall presents classic jazz nightly, and post Katrina, has assumed a greater mission of preserving New Orleans culture. The band’s response to the destruction was the release of Made in New Orleans: The Hurricane Sessions, a scrapbook of Preservation Hall memorabilia, new recordings and tracks recovered from the flooded Seasaint Studios, as well as a DVD of historic Preservation Hall performances.  In 2006, the NEA awarded the Preservation Hall Jazz Band its National Medal of Arts, the highest level of recognition by the federal government.  Today, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band includes all New Orleans natives, many of whom have performed together for over 40 years. 

Preservation Hall Jazz Band

Catch the Blind Boys of Alabama and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band on this historic tour:

• 9/16-21, Fort Collins, CO at Lincoln Center
• 9/23, New York City at B.B. Kings Blues Club
• 9/26, Schenectady, NY at Proctor’s  Theatre
• 9/27, Utica, NY at Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute
• 9/28, Washington, DC at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
• 9/30, Buies Creek, NC at Campbell University – Turner Auditorium
• 10/1, Knoxville, TN  at the Tennessee Theatre
• 10/7, Urbana, IL  at the University of Illinois, Krannert Arts Center
• 10/8, Columbus, OH at the Ohio Theater
• 10/9, Milwaukee, Northern Lights Theater
• 10/10, Glen Ellyn, IL at the College of DuPage, McAninch Arts Center
• 10/12, Minneapolis at  Orchestra Hall
• 10/16, Gainesville, FL at the University of Florida – Phillips Center for the Performing Arts
• 10/18, Birmingham, AL at the University of Alabama – Alys Stephens Center      
• 10/20, Opelika, AL at the Opelika Center for the Performing Arts
• 10/21, Spindale, NC at the Isothermal  Community College Foundation Performing Arts Center
• 11/9, Cerritos, CA at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
• 11/21, Dallas at the McFarlin Memorial Auditorium
• 11/22, San Antonio at the Majestic Theater
• 11/23, Austin at The Long Center

For ticket information and winter and spring tour dates, visit www.blindboys.com