Christone "Kingfish" Ingram celebrates new album with live performances in San Juan Capistrano on Sept. 10 and Los Angeles on Sept. 15

Great to see rising blues great Christone "Kingfish" Ingram will be coming to Southern California later this summer in support of his latest album. I'll be reviewing "662" in my next column as well..Robert Kinsler 

CHRISTONE “KINGFISH” INGRAM CELEBRATES NEW ALBUM WITH LIVE PERFORMANCES IN SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO AND LOS ANGELES!

 

“Christone "Kingfish" Ingram represents the next generation of great American blues artists.” --PBS NewsHour 

 

“Ingram plays guitar with dramatic, searing tone and sure-handed authority. And that's just in the studio; he's even scarier live.” --NPR Music

“Christone "Kingfish" Ingram is the future of the blues, singing and playing with edge, verve and vitality. Stinging guitar...sweet and melodic vocals.” --Guitar World

 

Christone “Kingfish” Ingram will celebrate the release of his dynamic new Alligator Records album, 662, with live performances at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano on Friday, September 10 and the El Rey Theater in Los Angeles on­­­­ Wednesday, September 15, 2021. Ingram’s new headlining tour, entitled, “Christone “Kingfish” Ingram Presents 662: Juke Joint Live,” will take the 22-year-old guitarist, vocalist and songwriter across the U.S. and Europe beginning July 2021 and going into February 2022. 

 

662 is the next chapter in the still-unfolding story of the Clarksdale, Mississippi native. Ingram describes 662  (the number is northern Mississippi's telephone area code) as “a presentation of my life in and away from the Delta.” The album overflows with hard-hitting original songs, jaw-dropping guitar work and deep, soul-possessed vocals. Ingram recently won the 2021 Living Blues Award for Most Outstanding Musician (Guitar). He also won two 2021 Blues Music Awards (for Guitarist Of The Year and Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year) in addition to the five he won last year. In February 2021, Ingram guest hosted Spotify’s popular In The Name Of The Blues playlist, which featured him talking about and sharing some of his favorite songs. Rolling Stone declared, “Kingfish is one of the most exciting young guitarists in years, with a sound that encompasses B.B. King, Jimi Hendrix and Prince.”

 

Concert information is as follows:

 

Date: Friday, September 10, 2021

Venue: The Coach House

Address: 33157 Camino Capistrano

City: San Juan Capistrano, CA

Phone: 949-496-8930

Showtime: 8:00pm

Ticket price: $33

Website: www.thecoachhouse.com

 

Date: Wednesday, September 15, 2021

Venue: El Rey Theatre

Address: 5515 Wilshire Blvd.

City: Los Angeles, CA

Phone: 888-929-7849 (tickets)

Showtime: 9:00pm

Ticket price: $30

Website: www.theelrey.com

 

 

“The world was introduced to me with Kingfish,” Ingram says of his chart-topping 2019 debut. “Now with 662 , I want the world to hear and meet a different, more personal side of me. My sophomore album is a direct reflection of my growth as a young man. This album is very personal to me as it was conceptualized, created and co-written during the Covid-19 pandemic when I returned home to the 662 after a truly whirlwind year of change and growth. Coming home to write this album offered a remarkable history for me to draw upon. 662 is an album that sits upon the legacy and influence my blues music elders have instilled in me, but is also my unique, personal story."

662 was co-written and produced (as was Kingfish) by Grammy-winner Tom Hambridge. It features 13 songs displaying many sides of Ingram’s dynamic personality, as well as his one-of-a-kind guitar and vocal skills. The first single,  662’s title track, made its worldwide premiere on SiriusXM’s B.B. King's Bluesville channel on May 10. The song immediately became the #1 Most Added Single on the influential BDS AAA (Adult Album Alternative) Indicator Radio Chart.  Guitar World, who in 2020 named Kingfish one of the top 30 guitarists in the world, said, “On 662 , Ingram takes things all the way back to the place that shaped him, his hometown of Clarksdale, Mississippi. Anchoring the song with a hot-rodded, Delta–by-way- of-Chuck Berry riff, and punctuating the proceedings with sweet touches of high-gain, fleet-fingered blues guitar glory, Ingram gives a perfect tribute to the birthplace of the blues, showing all the while that the genre is still incredibly vital.”

Since the release of Kingfish , Ingram has quickly become the defining blues voice of his generation. From Clarksdale, Mississippi to stages around the world, the young musician has already headlined two national tours (Fish Grease I & II) and performed with friends including Vampire Weekend, Jason Isbell and Buddy Guy (with whom he appeared on Austin City Limits ). He was interviewed by Sir Elton John on his Apple Music podcast Rocket Hour, and recently released a duet with Bootsy Collins. In January 2021, Ingram was simultaneously on the covers of both Guitar World and  DownBeat magazines, and graced the cover of Living Blues in late 2020. NPR Music  says Ingram’s playing is “astounding…it’s almost like he's singing through the guitar.”

On 662, Ingram creates contemporary blues that speaks to his generation and beyond, delivering the full healing power of the music. No Depression  calls Ingram, “a young bluesman with an ancient soul and a large presence in the here-and-now.” Living Blues says, “By any measure, Kingfish is one of the brightest new stars of his generation.”