MY MORNING JACKET HIT THE ROAD WITH PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND
 My Morning Jacket |
It’s been almost a full year, but the wait is finally over. My Morning Jacket is ready to bring its electrifying live show back on the road. The guys will make their way around the Southeastern United States this Spring, including a performance at this year’s Jazz Fest in New Orleans.
MMJ are also excited to try something new with their choice for an opening act, and bring some of the spirit of NOLA along with them. The band is honored that the historic Preservation Hall Jazz Band will be supporting them on the run.
The connection with the PHJB originated in the Spring of 2009 when MMJ front man Jim James was invited to sing with them at their home turf, New Orleans’ legendary Preservation Hall. James recorded two songs with the band: “St. James Infirmary” and “Louisiana Fairytale.” The tracks will appear on the bands forthcoming album, Preservation: An Album To Benefit Preservation Hall & The Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program, out February 16.
“When I got the invitation to go to the legendary Preservation Hall – where SO much of the music we now know and love on this earth found its early roots – I did not waste a minute,” James reminisces. “Getting to sing while the guys played with such glorious bursts of sound – all live in that holy room with the ghosts and garbage trucks crankin’ along – was an experience I’ll never forget.”
The PHJB’s leader Ben Jaffe shares his memory of playing with James: “I couldn’t have imagined Jim fitting in any better with the guys at Preservation Hall. Creating music is not a science. There is no tried and true formula. There is an unspoken bond amongst musicians. One that exists in the notes we choose. Jim’s like our long lost cousin coming home for the first time.”
My Morning Jacket & Preservation Hall Jazz Band Tour Dates
04/20/10 Birmingham, AL Alabama Theater
04/21/10 Nashville, TN Municipal Auditorium
04/23/10 Atlanta, GA Chastain Park
04/24/10 New Orleans, LA Jazzfest
04/27/10 St. Augustine, FL St. Augustine Amphitheater
04/28/10 Charleston, SC Family Circle
04/30/10 Raleigh, NC Koka Booth
05/01/10 Columbia, MD Merriweather Post Pavilion
05/02/10 Columbus, OH LC Outdoor Pavilion
For more on MMJ see our 2008 feature Band of the Year.
Sasquatch 2009 by Nelson