Solid Blues to Perform as Part of Jazz & Blues Series

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The Center for the Arts at the University at Buffalo will present Solid Blues with Mavis Staples, Charlie Musselwhite, North Mississippi Allstars & Joe Krown at 8 p.m. on Nov. 7 in the Mainstage Theatre in the Center for the Arts on the UB North (Amherst) Campus.

Tickets for the performance go on sale at 10 a.m. on May 18.

Solid Blues brings together Mavis Staples, Charlie Musselwhite, North Mississippi Allstars and Joe Krown in their first-ever tour together. From early days sharing lead vocals with her groundbreaking gospel group The Staple Singers -- with hits including "Respect Yourself" and "I'll Take You There" -- to acclaimed solo recordings, Mavis Staples has become an inspirational force in modern popular culture and music. Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, she received three Grammy nominations in 2004, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, 3 W.C. Handy Awards in 2005 and the NEA's National Heritage Fellowship Award in 2006.

Charlie Musselwhite has been called "The world's greatest living blues harmonica player" by the New York Press. Eight-time Grammy-nominee and eighteen-time W. C. Handy Award-winner, Musselwhite also has won Lifetime Achievement Awards from The Monterey Blues Festival and the San Javier Jazz Festival in Spain, and the Mississippi Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts. His latest CD, Delta Hardware, was called "an early candidate for blues record of the year" by All Music Guide.

North Mississippi Allstars won three Grammy nominations for Best Contemporary Blues Album for their debut recording, Shake Hands with Shorty in 2001, Phantom 51 in 2003 and their latest recording, Electric Blue Watermelon, in 2005. Electric Blue Watermelon also reached No. 1 on the 2005 Billboard Top Blues Album Chart.

New Orleans styled piano and Hammond B-3 player, Joe Krown is a favorite of the Crescent City and has won numerous awards there for his recordings and performances. He held the keyboard chair with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown & Gate's Express from 1992 until Gatemouth's passing in 2005 and has performed and recorded with innumerable other artists including: Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Dr. John and B.B. King.

Tickets for Solid Blues are $30, students $15. Tickets are available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday in the Center for the Arts Box Office and all Ticketmaster locations, including Kaufmann's. To charge tickets, call 852-5000; in Canada, call 1-416-870-8000. For group sales, call 645-6771. For more information, call 645-ARTS. The Center for the Arts is a Ticketfast location. Students (of any school) must present valid student ID at the Center Box Office to receive discount.