The Five Blind Boys of Alabama: Biography

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• The Five Blind Boys of Mississippi
• The Fairfield Four
• Pilgrim Travelers
• The Soul Stirrers
• George Washington Phillips
• Pilgrim Jubilees*
• The Harmonizing Four

• The Jive Five
• The Swan Silvertones
• The Dixie Hummingbirds
• The Soul Stirrers
• Lee Williams
• Walter "Wolfman" Washington
• Pilgrim Travelers

• Joey Williams

Formed:

Jan 1, 1937 in Talladega, AL

Genres:

Gospel & Religious Music, Contemporary Christian Music, Gospel Music, Southern Gospel Music

Decades Active:

1940's|1950's|1960's|1970's|1980's|1990's|2000's

Artistic Quality

High

Cultural Impact

High

Popularity

High

Ratings Guide

Evolving out of the Happyland Jubilee Singers, this traditional Black gospel quartet was formed in 1937 at the Talladega Institute for the Deaf and Blind in Alabama. By the '40s they became "The Blind Boys" and recorded for Specialty, Vee Jay, Savoy, Elektra, and other labels. Their first hit was "I Can See Everybody's Mother but Mine" in 1949. Current lineup: Joe Watson, Jimmy Carter, Sam Bobby Butler, Curtis Foster, Johnny Fields, and Clarence Fountain. They appeared on Broadway in +Gospel at Colonus, but gained much more fame during the late '90s and early '00s while recording for Peter Gabriel's Real World label a series of albums beginning with the collaboration-heavy Spirit of the Century. The group also appeared on Gabriel's 2002 album Up.

- Bil Carpenter, All Music Guide