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TAJ MAHAL
With more than 40 albums and countless collaborations to his credit, Taj Mahal is one of the recording industrys most celebrated contemporary blues artists.
Now a legendary performer, songwriter, composer, and producer, Taj grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts in a home that cherished sounds from around the globe. Listening to various musical forms, including Caribbean, African, Latin, Cuban, gospel, and jazz, he developed his own distinctive blend of blues and world music.
A self-taught musician, Taj plays more than 20 instruments, including the National Steel and Dobro guitars. His remarkable voice, which ranges from gruff and gravelly to smooth and sultry, has been enrapturing audiences for more than 40 years.
To date, Taj Mahal has received nine Grammy nominations and two wins. He walked away with the trophy for Best Contemporary Blues Album for Señor Blues (1997) and again for Shoutin' in Key (2000), both recorded with The Phantom Blues Band.
Famous for his musical collaborations, Taj has played with innumerable other musicians, everyone from Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters to Sheryl Crow and Eric Clapton. His excitement for music and musicians of all kinds is infectious. He's just as likely to create an album with Malian kora master Toumani Diabate as he is to appear onstage with jazz innovator Randy Weston.
Taj's composing credits include the score to the Langston Hughes/Zora Neale Hurston play Mule Bone (1991) as well as the films Sounder (1972), Brothers (1977), and Zebrahead (1992). Numerous other films have featured his music, and he has appeared in Sounder, Once Upon a TimeWhen We Were Colored (1995), Six Days, Seven Nights (1998), and Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002), to name a few.
Tajs music resonates as true today as it did in 1969. "From my vantage point," says the master musician, "my music talks about individuals being responsible for their own happiness. A lot of people think that blues music is gonna bring you down. Well, my music will never do that.
For more information on Taj Mahal's career, merchandise, discography and tour schedule, please visit
www.TajBlues.com
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