Keller Williams’ Grateful Gospel will gather the Crescent City Deadhead congregation for a soul-cleansing performance at New Orleans, LA’s The Howlin’ Wolf on Sunday, May 1st, 2022 [get your tickets here].
Grateful Gospel has been a fan-favorite Keller Williams Sunday festival tradition since it was devised for the 2013 installment of LOCKN’ in Arrington, VA. This special New Orleans edition will coincide with the first Sunday of Jazz Fest.
Both the Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia live catalogs were significantly influenced by the gospel tradition, from set-closing staples like “Samson and Delilah” and “We Bid You Goodnight” to sing-alongs like “My Sisters and Brothers”. While these songs were performed from a secular perspective—and often augmented with these bands’ distinct approaches—the spirituality inherent to that music has long permeated the world of the Dead.
Keller Williams brings that influence full-circle with Grateful Gospel, resurrecting the spiritual side of Garcia and the Dead and recreating their catalogs in the style of traditional Black gospel music with a full gospel band. Like a magnet for the spiritual power of live music, Grateful Gospel heightens those elements in the songs the Dead created and celebrates the origins of the psalms they adopted.
As Keller explains, simply, “It’s the Gospel of Jerry.”
This Grateful Gospel gathering was initially slated to coincide with the 2020 edition of Jazz Fest in New Orleans. The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is due to return this spring after rolling through various postponements in 2020 and 2021, and Keller’s rescheduled performance will once again coincide with the event’s first Sunday. All tickets purchased for the postponed dates will be honored at the May 1st, 2022 show.
Tickets for Keller Williams’ Grateful Gospel at The Howlin’ Wolf during Jazz Fest 2022 are now on sale here. Scroll down for full details about the Sunday, May 1st, 2022 performance. RSVP to the Facebook Event page for more updates.
This show joins a growing list of Live For Live Music late-night shows during Jazz Fest. Other previously announced shows include Poppa Funk & The Night Tripper: A Tribute to Art Neville and Dr. John with Trouble No More (Saturday, May 7th, at The Fillmore New Orleans); The Daze Between Band featuring members of Lettuce, The Meters, Trey Anastasio Band, and more (Wednesday, May 4th at Tipitina’s); and a tribute to Steely Dan featuring members of Lotus, The Motet, The Nth Power, and more (Thursday, May 5th at The Howlin’ Wolf). Follow Live For Live Music on social media for more exciting Fest by Nite announcements in the coming weeks.
Keller Williams’ Grateful Gospel – “I Need A Miracle”, “We Bid You Goodnight”, “Mighty High”, “Greatest Story Ever Told” – LOCKN’ 2019
**SHOW INFO**
Date: Sunday, May 1st, 2022
Time: Doors: 8:00 p.m. CT / Show: 9:00 p.m. CT
Show: Live For Live Music Presents: Keller Williams’ Grateful Gospel
Venue: The Howlin’ Wolf – 907 S Peters St, New Orleans, LA 70130
Tickets: (on sale now): $39.95 Advance / $45.00 Day of Show
