News
TEN ALLIGATOR ARTISTS RECEIVE 19 W.C. HANDY BLUES AWARD NOMINATIONS!
1/20/2003
SHEMEKIA COPELAND LEADS ALL NOMINEES WITH FIVE, W.C. CLARK FOLLOWS WITH FOUR! ------------ The Blues Foundation today announced the nominees for the 24th Annual W.C. Handy Blues Awards. Ten Alligator recording artists received a total of 19 nominations. Singing sensation Shemekia Copeland leads the field with five nominations, followed by the Austin, TX-based "Godfather of Austin Blues," W.C. Clark, with four. Other nominees include Little Charlie and the Nightcats, Marcia Ball, Koko Taylor, Cephas & Wiggins, Lil' Ed and the Blues Imperials, The Holmes Brothers, and the newest members of the Alligator family, Roomful of Blues. The Handy Awards ceremony and concert will be held May 22, 2003 in Memphis, TN, at the Orpheum Theatre.
ALLIGATOR RECORDS SIGNS ROOMFUL OF BLUES
1/20/2003
Alligator Records is pleased to announce the signing of four-time Grammy Award nominees Roomful of Blues. Now celebrating its 35th Anniversary, Roomful of Blues is a band that has always boasted great musicianship featuring a stellar horn section (the band just received a W.C. Handy Blues Award nomination for Best Instrumentalist – Horns). DownBeat says the band "is in a class by itself." The San Francisco Chronicle calls them "the hottest, most solid and wonderfully entertaining band around." Currently an eight-piece unit led by guitarist Chris Vachon, the band has never sounded fresher, tougher, or more focused. With newest members vocalist/harpist Mark DuFresne, bassist Brad Hallen, drummer Jason Corbiere, keyboardist Mark Stevens and baritone and tenor saxophonist Mark Earley joining long time members tenor and alto saxophonist Rich Lataille (the longest standing member of the group) and trumpeter Bob Enos, the band will make their Alligator Records debut on March 11 with THAT'S RIGHT!.
LISTEN TO CEPHAS & WIGGINS APPEAR ON NPR's WEEKEND EDITION!
1/6/2003
Acoustic guitar and harmonica duo Cephas & Wiggins appeared and performed on National Public Radio's "Weekend Edition" Saturday, January 4, 2003. Host Scott Simon interviewed both "Bowling Green" John Cephas and "Harmonica" Phil Wiggins and invited them to perform songs from their latest Alligator release, SOMEBODY TOLD THE TRUTH.
Shemekia Copeland Live From Nashville
12/4/2002
Catch a live concert exclusive of Shemekia Copeland this Sunday Night on the web. Shemekia and her band will be performing live for WRLT "Lightning 100" at 3rd & Lindley in downtown Nashville. The broadcast will start at 9 PM ET this Sunday, December 8th.
Shemekia Copeland-Live Concert Exclusive!
11/5/2002
Shemekia Copeland will be broadcasting her entire live performance on 11/7 at the Orange Peel in Asheville, NC this Thursday, November 7th! This live radio exclusive will air at 10:15 PM EST on WNCW-FM in the North Carolina area and it will be available live on the web at www.wncw.org. Shemekia will be performing tracks from her critically acclaimed new release, TALKING TO STRANGERS. Join her live on WNCW or on the web this Thursday!
Shemekia Copeland on House Of Blues Radio Hour
10/22/2002
Shemekia Copeland will be the featured artist on the nationally syndicated program, The House of Blues Radio Hour, with host Dan "Elwood Blues" Aykroyd. The show will air the weekend of December 7th & 8th. Shemekia will discuss the making of her exciting new release, Talking To Strangers, and lots more. The House Of Blues Radio Hour appears weekly on over 175 stations in the US and Canada!
Shemekia Copeland Live on World Cafe
10/3/2002
Shemekia Copeland will be the featured artist on the nationally syndicated, Public Radio Internation (PRI) program, World Cafe. She'll be performing songs with her band from her new release, Talking To Strangers. Join Shemekia, her band and World Cafe's host David Dye for a rousing live set and interview on Thursday, October 10th. World Cafe airs at 2 PM EST from its homebase at WXPN in Philadelphia but it also airs at various times across the country. Look for the link below to check your local listings or listen on the web. Don't miss this exclusive live performance!
SHEMEKIA COPELAND'S TALKING TO STRANGERS DEBUTS AT #1 ON THE BILLBOARD BLUES CHART!
9/25/2002
Shemekia Copeland's new, Dr. John-produced CD, Talking To Strangers, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues Chart for the week ending September 22, 2002. Since its September 17 release, Talking To Strangers has been featured and/or reviewed in The New York Times, Ebony, Time Out New York, CDNow, Amazon.com, The Chicaqo Sun-Times the Associated Press (review) and Billboard. Stories and/or reviews are slated to run in Vibe, USA Today, DownBeat, the Associated Press (feature), The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Women Who Rock, Honey, Black Beat, OffBeat, Blues Review, Living Blues and many other publications
Shemekia Copeland's Talking To Strangers Reviewed in Billboard
9/18/2002
Shemekia Copeland's new Dr. John-produced CD, Talking To Strangers, received a rave review in the 21 September issue of Billboard. On September 16, Shemekia, along with Dr. John, opened for The Rolling Stones at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom.
ALLIGATOR RECORDS SIGNS CANADIAN DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT WITH DISTRIBUTION FUSION III
7/9/2002
Alligator Records has announced a new exclusive Canadian distribution agreement with Distribution Fusion III. Based in Montreal, Distribution Fusion III began carrying the entire Alligator catalog as of July 2, 2002. The first new release for Distribution Fusion III will be HEADS UP!, the house-rocking new album from Chicago's Lil' Ed And The Blues Imperials.
ALLIGATOR TO RELEASE BUDGET SAMPLER
7/9/2002
Alligator Records will release LET THERE BE...BLUES, a 12 track sampler with a budget price of $3.99, on August 20. The CD will be available exclusively at over 500 Transworld retail record stores (Coconuts, FYE, Planet Music, Spec's and Strawberries) across the country.
LITTLE CHARLIE AND THE NIGHTCATS FEATURED ON HOUSE OF BLUES RADIO HOUR
7/9/2002
Alligator's Little Charlie And The Nightcats will be the featured artists on the nationally syndicated program, The House of Blues Radio Hour, with host Dan "Elwood Blues" Aykroyd, the weekend of July 20-21. The program will run on nearly 200 stations across the U.S. Since the March 12, 2002 release of THAT'S BIG!, Little Charlie And The Nightcats have toured relentlessly and have been featured on National Public Radio's Weekend Edition, in Guitar Player magazine, and in many other national and regional publications and radio programs.
