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The Blind Boys of Alabama in Sydney at Vivid LIVE
Five-time Grammy winners, The Blind Boys of Alabama, have spread the spirit and energy of gospel music for over 60 years, ever since the first version of the group formed at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind in 1939. They will perform with special guest Lou Reed at the Vivid LIVE Festival at Sydney Opera House on 5 June 2010.
When the Blind Boys of Alabama first started singing, it was never anticipated they would perform beyond a small circuit of Southern black-community churches. By the 1980s, however, the group’s breakthrough appearance in an Obie award-winning musical – “The Gospel At Colonus” starring Morgan Freeman, led to diverse popularity far beyond the Blind Boys’ original core following.
Since then they have released or reissued nearly 30 albums, five of which have garnered Grammy awards. The Recording Academy honored the Blind Boys with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.
The Blind Boys of Alabama will perform at Vivid LIVE, an artist curated festival, created and produced by Sydney Opera House. The 2010 Festival is led by Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson. Together they have assembled a program of music, theatre and visual art which offers bold visions of contemporary American life and celebrates fearless innovation and ambition.
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