Blind Boys Of Alabama Release Amazon Original As Capstone To Seven-Decade Career—New LP Almost Home Out August 18 Streaming Only On Amazon Music

The Blind Boys of Alabama will release their first album in three years, entitled Almost Home, on August 18. The album will be released on the band’s own BBOA Records label and was developed in collaboration with Amazon Music. The 12-song collection serves as a fitting capstone to a seven-decade career that has both defined the sound of the American South and pushed it forward from the 20th century and into the 21st. Starting August 18, Almost Home will be available to stream exclusively on Amazon Music – both Amazon Music Unlimited and Prime Music, in addition to its exclusive availability as a digital download and physical release. Almost Home is now available for pre-order at: http://amazon.com/almosthome. This morning NPR Music shared a playlist of four album tracks, calling them “a gorgeous rumination on the body's labor and soul's legacy,” listen here: http://n.pr/2tC5AN6 

Almost Home was recorded over four different sessions with four different GRAMMY-winning producers in four different cities. The album is composed primarily of original songs, which focus on the remarkable journey of the band’s two surviving original members, long-time leader Clarence Fountain, and current leader Jimmy Carter. It features songwriting contributions from an exceptional collection of artists including Valerie June, North Mississippi Allstars, Phil Cook, John Leventhal, Marc Cohn, Ruthie Foster, and more. Leventhal (Rosanne Cash, William Bell) recorded with the Blind Boys and their band in New York City, Vance Powell (Chris Stapleton, Jack White) in Nashville, Chris Goldsmith (Charlie Musselwhite, Ben Harper) in Seattle, and Los Lobos' Steve Berlin (Faith No More, Buckwheat Zydeco) at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals.

Almost Home succeeds in looking backwards, while still sounding as vital and modern as ever. From the propulsive, piano-pounding groove of “I Kept on Walking” to the album’s shining, soul-filled title track, the epic story of the struggles and triumphs of the octogenarian original members is revealed. A stripped-down, gorgeous cover of Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released" and an upbeat version of Billy Joe Shaver's "Live Forever," both of which fit the theme, help to round out the tracklist.

Since releasing their debut single in 1948, the Blind Boys have been hailed as "gospel titans" by Rolling Stone, received five GRAMMY Awards (plus one for Lifetime Achievement), entered the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, collaborated with everyone from Mavis Staples and Stevie Wonder to Prince and Lou Reed, and performed on some of the world's most prestigious stages. The New York Times said that they "came to epitomize what is known as jubilee singing, a livelier breed of gospel music," adding that "they made it zestier still by adding jazz and blues idioms and turning up the volume, creating a sound…like the rock 'n' roll that grew out of it." The New Yorker simply called them "legendary."

The Blind Boys will play select shows around the release date of Almost Home, and will then embark on a lengthy tour with Irma Thomas, “The Soul Queen of New Orleans,” in September.

Almost Home Tracklist (with songwriter info):

1. Stay on the Gospel Side (John Leventhal/Marc Cohn/Clarence Fountain)
2. Let My Mother Live (John Leventhal/Marc Cohn/Jimmy Carter)
3. God Knows Everything (John Leventhal/Marc Cohn)
4. Pray For Peace (Luther Dickinson/Cody Dickinson/Oteil Burbridge/Joey Williams/Ray Ladson/Charles Driebe)
5. Singing Brings Us Closer (Phil Cook)
6. Almost Home (Randall Bramblett/Clarence Fountain/Jimmy Carter)
7. Live Forever (Billy Joe Shaver)
8. I Shall Be Released (Bob Dylan)
9. Train Fare (Valerie June)
10. I Can See (Joey Williams/Ray Ladson/Jimmy Sloan)
11. I Kept on Walking (Cris Jacobs)
12. I Was Called (Ruthie Foster/Scottie Miller)

Production Notes:

Tracks 1-3 Produced by John Leventhal in New York City

Tracks 4-6 Produced by Vance Powell and Charles Driebe in Nashville

Tracks 7-9 Produced by Chris Goldsmith in Seattle

Tracks 10-12 Produced by Steve Berlin in Muscle Shoals, Alabama

To learn more about the band, visit http://www.blindboys.com/. See below for the band’s upcoming tour dates.

To learn more about Amazon Music, visit amazon.com/AmazonMusicUnlimited

2017- 2018 Blind Boys Tour Dates:

24-Jun Saskatoon, CAN at the Broadway Theatre

4-Jul Hoover, AL at the Freedom Festival

15-Jul Peer, Belgium at the Blues Festival

17-Jul London at Ronnie Scott's

18-Jul London at Ronnie Scott's

19-Jul Dublin at the National Concert Hall

21-Jul Edinburgh at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre

22-Jul Paris at New Morning

23-Jul Juan les Pins, FR at Pinede Gould

25-Jul Vannes, FR at the Jazz a Vannes Festival

29-Jul Colorado Springs, CO at the Blues Under Bridge

6-Aug Appleton, WI at the Mile of Music Fest

12-Aug Winnipeg, CAN at the Winnipeg BBQ & Blues

9-Sep Bowling Green, OH at the Black Swamp Arts Fest

15-Sep Lone Tree, CO at the Lone Tree Arts Center

17-Sep Telluride, CO at Telluride Blues & Brews Festival

23-Sep Vancouver, CAN at the Chan Centre

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With Irma Thomas and the Preservation Hall Legacy Quintet:

30-Sep Rohnert Park, CA at the Weill Hall Legacy

1-Oct Folsom, CA at the Harris Center for the Arts

2-Oct Berkeley, CA at Freight & Salvage

3-Oct Santa Cruz, CA at the Rio Theatre

5-Oct Solana Beach, CA at the Belly Up

7-Oct Phoenix, AZ at Musical Instrument Museum

8-Oct Tucson, AZ at the Fox Tucson Theatre

10-Oct Santa Fe, NM at the Lensic PAC

11-Oct Midland, TX at the Wagner Noel PAC

17-Oct Oklahoma City, OK Tower Theatre

20-Oct Fairfield, IA at the Fairfield Convention Center

23-Oct Minneapolis, MN at the Guthrie Theatre

25-Oct Findlay, OH at the Marathon Center

26-Oct Notre Dame, IN at the Leighton Concert Hall

27-Oct Chicago, IL at the Symphony Center

28-Oct Clinton Township, MI at the Macomb Center

29-Oct Detroit, MI at the Music Hall of Detroit

1-Nov Wilmington, DE at the Grand Opera House

2-Nov Binghampton, NY at the Osterhout Concert Theatre

3-Nov Boston, MA at the Berklee Performance Center

4-Nov Bloomsburg, PA at the Haas Center for the Arts

5-Nov Greenvale, NY at the Tilles Center

7-Nov Toms River, NJ at the Grunin Center

8-Nov Pittsburgh, PA at the Byham Theater

10-Nov Winchester, VA at the Armstrong Concert Hall

11-Nov Richmond, VA at the Camp Concert Hall

12-Nov North Bethesda, MD at the Music Center at Strathmore

13-Nov Durham, NC at the Carolina Theatre

16-Nov Atlanta, GA at the Emerson Concert Hall

17-Nov Irmo, SC at the Harbison Theater

19-Nov Daytona Beach, FL at the Peabody Auditorium

20-Nov The Villages, FL at the Morse Performing Arts Center

21-Nov St. Petersburg, FL at the Mahaffey Theater

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15-Dec Orange, CA Musco Center at Chapman

16-Dec Santa Barbara, CA UCSB Campbell Hall

17-Dec Los Angeles, CA Theatre At The Ace Hotel

19-Dec San Luis Obispo, CA Christopher Cohan Center

21-Dec Edmonds, WA Edmonds Center for the Arts

22-Dec Bremerton, WA Admiral Theatre

12-Jan Marion, IN Indiana Wesleyan University

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With Marc Cohn:

18-Jan Rohnert Park, CA at the Green Music Center

19-Jan Livermore, CA at the Bankhead Theater

20-Jan Redding, CA at the Cascade Theatre

21-Jan Bend, OR at the Tower Theatre

23-Jan Mount Vernon, WA at Lincoln Theatre

25-Jan Wenatchee, WA at the Numerica Performing Arts

26-Jan Kirkland, WA at the Kirkland Performance Center

27-Jan Tacoma, WA at Broadway Center

31-Jan Medicine Hat, CAN at the Esplanade Arts & Heritage

1-Feb Calgary, CAN at the Jack Singer Concert Hall

2-Feb Sherwood Park, CAN at the Festival Place

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4-Feb Salem, OR at the St. Paul's Episcopal Church

17-Feb Hampton, VA at the American Theatre

11-May Athens, GA at the Hodgson Concert Hall