1930s and 1940s The Blind Boys of Alabama first sang together in 1939 as part of the school
chorus at the
Alabama Institute for the Negro Deaf and Blind in
Talladega, Alabama. Early influences of the Blind Boys include the
Golden Gate Quartet,
The Soul Stirrers and The Heavenly Gospel Singers. While the boys were not allowed to sing
black gospel music at their school (which was run by an all-
white faculty), they were able to hear it on the radio. Hard gospel often involved a shrieking and screaming style of singing and during performances some audience members reportedly would get so excited that some would have to be sent to the hospital. Their success led to a series of recordings on various record labels. By 1953, each member made $100 per side and, as per Fountain, "That was good money in that day. We didn't know what we were worth." By the late 1960s, the term being used more commonly to describe all popular music by African Americans. In 1969, Fountain left the group in order to pursue a solo career. Carter sang with the Dixieland Blind Boys, as well as the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi, prior to his work with The Blind Boys of Alabama.
The Gospel at Colonus won an
Obie for Best Musical in 1984 and the production moved to
Broadway in 1988. McKinnie had actually met the Blind Boys when he was about five years old. The album was produced by
Booker T. Jones, and featured a version of
Bob Dylan's "I Believe In You." In 1994, the
National Endowment for the Arts awarded a
National Heritage Fellowship to Clarence Fountain and the Five Blind Boys of Alabama. The award was presented to the Blind Boys by
First Lady Hillary Clinton. In 1995, the Blind Boys became the first artists to be signed to the new House of Blues gospel label, for which they recorded their first live album
I Brought Him with Me. The Blind Boys continued experimenting with contemporary popular music on their 1997 release
Holding On, also released on the House of Blues label.
2000s The Blind Boys of Alabama enjoyed further exposure and success in the 2000s and 2010s, including collaborations with many high-profile musical artists. Their songs were featured on soundtracks of television series, such as
Boston Public,
Lost, and
Criminal Minds, as well as films, such as
Madea Goes to Jail,
Alpha and Omega, and
Hop. In 2001, the Blind Boys released
Spirit of the Century on
Peter Gabriel's
Real World Records. The album included a version of "
I Just Want to See His Face" by
The Rolling Stones as well as a version of the song "
Amazing Grace" arranged to the tune of "
The House of the Rising Sun". The Blind Boys also performed on the steps of the
Library of Congress in 2002. The album contains renditions of mostly Christmas-related gospel songs and features guest artists
Solomon Burke,
Tom Waits,
Michael Franti,
Chrissie Hynde,
Richard Thompson,
Aaron Neville,
Mavis Staples,
Shelby Lynne,
George Clinton,
Robert Randolph,
Meshell Ndegeocello, and
Les McCann. They also contributed to the soundtrack of the Disney animated film
Brother Bear, performing the song "Welcome" alongside
Phil Collins. The Blind Boys performed live twice with
Lou Reed: In 2004, they performed together at a private concert on the floor of the
UN General Assembly for the
Landmine Survivors Network and in 2010, they appeared on
Late Night with David Letterman and performed "Jesus", a song originally released by
The Velvet Underground on their
eponymous album. The Blind Boys collaborated several times with
Ben Harper: Harper played guitar on the Blind Boys' albums
Higher Ground and
Spirit of the Century. The Blind Boys again collaborated with Harper on his 2004 album
There Will Be a Light and toured with him throughout Europe that year. The following year, Harper and the Blind Boys released
Live at the Apollo, a recording of their live performance from the
Apollo Theater in October 2004. The Blind Boys released the album
Atom Bomb in 2005. The album features
cover versions of songs such as "
Demons" by
Fatboy Slim and
Macy Gray, (a track that also featured a guest appearance by rapper
Gift of Gab);
Blind Faith's "Presence of the Lord," featuring
soul musician
Billy Preston; and a cover of
Norman Greenbaum's "
Spirit in the Sky," featuring
David Hidalgo of
Los Lobos and blues musician
Charlie Musselwhite. In 2006, vocalist Ben Moore was invited to join the group by Carter. Moore had previously performed under the name "Bobby Purify" as part of the R&B duo
James & Bobby Purify and continued to use the name as a solo artist after the duo broke up in the 1980s. The album was recorded in New Orleans, which was a first for the group, and includes songs written by or made famous by New Orleans musicians along with updated gospel standards. Each song features a duet between the Blind Boys and another artist; some of these artists include
Susan Tedeschi,
Bonnie Raitt, and
John Hammond. in 2011. In 2011, the group appeared in the live-action/animated feature film
Hop. Vocalist Billy Bowers left the group in 2011 when he was injured and underwent back surgery. Bowers' role as vocalist was filled by Ricky McKinnie, who was also the groups' percussionist for many years. Bowers died July 2, 2013, of heart failure in
Montgomery, Alabama, at the age of 71. The album also features guest appearances by
Sam Amidon and Merrill Garbus of
Tune-Yards. In 2016, the Blind Boys contributed to ''
God Don't Never Change: The Songs of Blind Willie Johnson'', a
tribute album recorded in honor of gospel musician
Blind Willie Johnson. The Blind Boys performed the song "
Mother's Children Have a Hard Time", a performance that was nominated for
Best American Roots Performance at the
60th Annual Grammy Awards. The album was also nominated in the category of
Best Roots Gospel Album. Fountain also rejoined the group for the album's recording. The Blind Boys' manager,
Charles Driebe, recorded interviews with the members of the group then shared them with the songwriters who wrote songs reflecting the Blind Boys' personal stories. Written by Leventhal, the song is about Carter as a young boy at the Alabama Institute and "how scared I was, and that I wanted my mother to live until I got grown." His final performance with the Blind Boys of Alabama was on May 16, 2018, at the
Manship Theatre there. The Blind Boys, along with blues musician
Mike Farris, performed a cover of the song "
Respect Yourself." The performance was broadcast on the
PBS live music series
The Kate that spring. Over the summer of 2019, the Blind Boys toured Europe with blind Afro-pop duo
Amadou & Mariam. The album features Cohn and the Blind Boys performing new and older material by Cohn in addition to renditions of traditional gospel songs. Seven of the tracks are recordings from their performance on
The Kate earlier that same year, including Cohn's hit "
Walking in Memphis", as well the Blind Boys' version of "Amazing Grace" to the melody of "The House of the Rising Sun". Music blog UDiscoverMusic named Blind Boys the longest standing music group, as they are still touring and writing/recording music after being founded in 1939. In 2019,
Jason Isbell selected the Blind Boys to join him for his October residency at the
Ryman Auditorium. Shortly after, they were featured with Irish TV host
Hector Ó hEochagáin for his show
Hector USA. The Blind Boys' 2019 Christmas Tour earned the praise of
The New Yorker, which commented "The beloved gospel ensemble the Blind Boys of Alabama...remains perennially fresh, whether it's interjecting godliness into unexpected songs or, as in this case, saluting Christmas."
2020s In March 2020, the group toured Australia and New Zealand, performing at the
Womadelaide and
Womad NZ festivals. In May 2020,
Woodstock legend
Wavy Gravy included the Blind Boys in his virtual music festival celebrating his 84th birthday. To kick off 2021, the
Recording Academy featured the Blind Boys performing 'If I Had a Hammer' on their "Positive Vibes Only" series. Later that year, the Blind Boys teamed up with
Béla Fleck to release a new version of "I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free" for
Record Store Day. The song went on to be nominated for a
Grammy Award in the Best American Roots Performance category. Singer Ben Moore (Benjamin Moore, Jr.) died of natural causes on May 12, 2022. He was 80 years old. In September 2022, the Blind Boys released two collaborative tracks with
Black Violin titled "We Are One" and "The Message", the latter of which was nominated for a Grammy for
Best Americana Performance.
The View featured the Blind Boys on Martin Luther King Jr Day 2023, including an interview and multiple performances. Tenor Paul Beasley died on March 13, 2023, at the age of 78. Beasley was previously a member of such groups as Gospel Keynotes and the
Mighty Clouds of Joy. The album was named after the Birmingham radio program that hosted the group's first professional performance in 1944. Jimmy Carter retired from the Blind Boys after recording the album, at the age of 91. ==Awards and nominations==