Sunday, December 22, 2024
43.0°F

Blues rock sensation Albert Cummings performs in Whitefish

| November 8, 2023 12:00 AM


American guitarist, singer, and songwriter Albert Cummings and his three-piece blues band will perform one night only on Friday, Nov. 17 at the O’Shaughnessy Center in Whitefish.

The Whitefish Theatre Company hosts this music virtuoso is known for melding the chunky, rave-up R&B stylings of Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan to the boundary-less blues-rock improvisation of Jimi Hendrix and Freddie King, all while maintaining a distinct, genre-bending style and sound all his own. The show begins at 7:30 p.m.  

Cummings first began playing the five-string banjo at the age of 12, learning basic chords and progressions. Then inspired by the early recordings of Stevie Ray Vaughan, he switched to guitar in college where he founded the band Swamp Yankee and released the single “The Long Way.” In 2003, he released his solo debut, “From the Heart”, an album that saw Cummings play with Double Trouble, the late Stevie Ray Vaughan's rhythm section. Since then, Cummings has released ten albums and graced the stage with such esteemed luminaries as Buddy Guy, Johnny Winter, Susan Tedeschi, Sheryl Crow, and B.B. King, using his guitar wizardry to take audiences on a twisting, turning blues roller coaster. 

 “It’s so important to stay open to all possibilities and that’s the way I look at music,” says Cummings, reflecting on his career. “You can surprise yourself in so many ways with things that at one point seemed so far away. I have been playing a lot of years and still find new ways of expressing myself. It’s given me a new way of looking at my future and lets me believe that I’m still able to do whatever I can dream of. And that’s the real joy of it.” 

 A show not to miss, Cummings has built a renowned reputation for live performances that are “full of energy, powerful solos, and charisma”. 

Tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for students with reserved seating. Tickets can be purchased at the Box Office, 1 Central Ave., Whitefish, or by calling 406-862-5371.  

Box office hours are from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and one hour before a performance. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.whitefishtheatreco.org. 

This show is sponsored by an anonymous donor. It is also supported in part by a grant from the Western States Arts Federation.