New Orleans piano great
MARCIA BALL

Rollicking, playful, good time blues and intimate, reflective balladry...her songs ring with emotional depth.
—Rolling Stone

Singer-pianist Marcia Ball knows how to raise roofs and tear down walls with her infectious, intelligent and deeply emotional brand of southern boogie, rollicking, roadhouse blues, and heartfelt ballads. Over 30 years, she's earned a huge and intensely loyal worldwide following. Her exquisite, raucous piano playing and passionate, playful vocals fuse New Orleans and Gulf Coast R&B with Austin's deep songwriting tradition. Ball honed her powerful singing and deft, rollicking keyboard chops while growing up in the small town of Vinton, Louisiana, the same region that produced Gatemouth Brown, George Jones, Janis Joplin, and Clifton Chenier. It was and still is a hotbed of country, blues, gospel, Cajun, zydeco, rockabilly and Gulf Coast swamp pop—and young Marcia absorbed it all.

After attending Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Marcia hit Austin in the early 1970s, just as the Texas capital's progressive country movement was sprouting. Ball was an important and popular figure on the Austin scene, first as the leader of the beloved Freda & the Firedogs, and later as a solo artist signed to Capitol Records, where she recorded her debut Circuit Queen. By the early '80s Ball was focusing on Gulf Coast rhythm & blues, and she's never looked back. She's recorded a long line of critically acclaimed discs for Rounder and Alligator Records.

Marcia Ball will also be appearing at Albuquerque's El Rey Theater on Oct. 25. Call 800-585-3737 for info.