American Gospel group the Blind Boys Of Alabama and Rival Sons frontman and singer-songwriter Jay Buchanan team up for a heartfelt collaboration this holiday season, delivering to you their version of the Christmas epic 'I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.'
“To have the opportunity to sing with the Blind Boys Of Alabama on a Christmas song, especially one that doesn’t exploit the commercial aspects of the holiday but so beautifully embraces the ethos of good will to all is nothing short of an honor for me,” states Jay Buchanan.
Complete with ringing bells and luscious harmonies, this is a Christmas song that focuses on the deeper meaning of the season. 'I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day' is based on a 19th century poem by the American writer Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. "Peace on earth, good will to men" Buchanan and the Blind Boys sing, a message that’s never out of date.
The track will be released to all streaming platforms Friday 29th November and is available to pre-save here: https://orcd.co/ihtbocd
Listen to a sample of the track available now HERE
Blind Boys' singer Ricky McKinnie: "We loved singing this song with Jay Buchanan. It's not a well-known song, even though it's based on a poem that's over 150 years old. And producer Shane Theriot came up with a great new arrangement that suits the singers. We hope that the message of 'peace on earth' gets through to everyone this holiday season."
Vocalist Jay Buchanan continues: “Christmas songs can be daunting, right? One minute you’re singing along about loved ones gathering or a cozy fireside hang and next thing you know you’re in the weeds with elves, flying reindeer or an eerily omniscient Santa Claus character breaking into your house in the middle of the night. Not this song. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was coming from an almost broken, timeless place when he wrote the original poem in 1863 amidst the fractured ideology of the American Civil War. Will our better angels prevail through this dark time? It’s a message that never gets old and this is without a doubt my favorite Christmas carol of all time.”
Bio: The Blind Boys of Alabama
The Blind Boys of Alabama are recognized worldwide as living legends of gospel music. Celebrated by The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and The Recording Academy/GRAMMYs with Lifetime Achievement Awards, inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, and winners of six GRAMMY® Awards, they have attained the highest levels of achievement in a career that spans over 70 years. The Blind Boys are known for crossing multiple musical boundaries with their remarkable interpretations of everything from traditional gospel favorites to contemporary spiritual material by songwriters such as Eric Clapton, Prince, and Tom Waits. They have appeared on recordings with many artists, including Lou Reed, Peter Gabriel, Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Aaron Neville, Susan Tedeschi, Ben Harper, Patty Griffin, and Taj Mahal.
The Blind Boys released their latest album, 'Echoes Of The South,’ in August of 2023. It found the Gospel Music Hall of Fame inductees coming home to Alabama to record in Muscle Shoals. The eleven-song collection is a portrait of perseverance from a group well-versed in overcoming incredible odds - from singing for pocket change in the Jim Crow South to performing for three different American presidents, soundtracking the Civil Rights movement, and helping define modern gospel music as we know it. The album garnered three GRAMMY® Award nominations, and won for Best Roots Gospel Album.
In March 2024, the definitive book on the Blind Boys of Alabama, titled Spirit of the Century, was released. It’s an insider history of America’s longest-running group and the untold story of their world, written with band members and key musical colleagues. Appearances on The View tv show and other major media outlets followed. After all these years, the Blind Boys show no signs of slowing down!
Bio: Jay Buchanan;
Solo artist, songwriter and frontman of American rock band Rival Sons, Jay Buchanan;
Known for his towering vocals and preacher-like presence coupled with a lyrical quest for simplicity and truth, the singer is one of the breakthrough vocalists of the last decade. Buchanan is as much at home singing with The Bee Gees’ Barry Gibb or David Crosby, The Bloody Beetroots or Brandi Carlile and writing with his friend Dave Cobb for soundtracks, as he is fronting one of the top American rock bands of today. Jay’s swaggering style yet humble approach has won him fans the world over with Rival Sons, but anyone who has met him knows that Jay has always been a singer-songwriter at heart, that he is often uncomfortable with the bombastic rockstar role. Buchanan really enjoys collaborative projects and was very happy to work with the Blind Boys of Alabama on this Christmas song. “Everyone loves the Blind Boys of Alabama. Everyone. My former manager hit me up about the song and before he could finish the sentence I just said, “I’m in.”
Blind boys of Alabama & Jay Buchanan - I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
Available Friday 29th November through Thirty Tigers pre-save here: https://orcd.co/ihtbocd
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