Thursday, October 16, 2003

WILMINGTON, NC – The Blind Boys of Alabama will perform their unique brand of soulful gospel in the University of North Carolina at Wilmington’s Kenan Auditorium at 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18. Blind Boys of Alabama are two-time Grammy winners, Gospel Hall of Fame inductees and were an opening act on Peter Gabriel’s latest tour. This is the second performance of UNCW’s eight-part Arts in Action Series.

Since forming their group at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind in 1939, founding members Clarence Fountain, Jimmy Carter, and George Scott have drawn upon gospel’s reflections on life’s trials, mastering its falsettos and harmonies.



Over the years Blind Boys began to experiment. They started singing old-fashioned gospel in new ways. Taking an old gospel standard, “Amazing Grace,” and reworking it to the melody of Bob Dylan’s “House of the Rising Sun” is only one of the most interesting features that this group provides. Fountain says the risk of mixing traditional gospel with contemporary music isn’t as dangerous as it once was.

With 2001’s Spirit of the Century and 2002’s Higher Ground, The Blind Boys of Alabama have become one of the biggest genre-crossing success stories in recent memory. This fall they will cover a Phil Collins-penned song in the upcoming Disney animated feature, Brother Bear and are currently appearing on-screen in the Cuba Gooding Jr. feature film, Fighting Temptations, released to movie theaters on Sept.19.

They appeared at The New Yorker Literary Festival in New York City on Sept. 20. Their national appearances have included Late Night with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with Conan O'Brien, CBS’ The Saturday Early Show, NPR's Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and many more.

Tickets are $6 for UNCW students and children 12 and under, $12 for UNCW faculty/staff and seniors and $18 for all others. For tickets, call the Kenan Auditorium Box Office at 910/962-3500 or 800/732-3643, outside of the Wilmington area. Box office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. For more details visit www.uncw.edu/arts.

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NOTE TO MEDIA: For additional information contact Shannon Hooker, assistant director of the UNCW Campus Activities and Involvement Center at 910/962-7600 or visit www.uncw.edu/arts.