They started in 1939 in Talladega, Alabama: A quintet of little boys with big voices and a passion for Gospel music.
In the Deep South of the 30’s and 40’s, Gospel quartets and quintets were a dime a dozen, but the boys from Talledega weren’t like the others. By 1950 they were touring from one gospel “hoe-down, get up and testify” tent-revival to another under the name “The Five Blind Boys of Alabama,” because not a single member of the group, who met at the Talladega School for the Blind – could see. They’re the real deal, as much a part of Gospel history as Mahalia Jackson or the Soul Stirrers.
They’re the grand-daddies of Gospel, the septuagenarians of spirituals, and on their new album, their 22nd, they’ve added new songs by Tom Waits and Ben Harper. They’re here, in our studios. It’s the Blind Boys of Alabama.
(Hosted by Jack Beatty)
Guests:
The Blind Boys of Alabama: Clarence Fountain, Joey Williams, Jimmy Carter, and George Scott.