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Al Hill is a soul singer, a rhythm & blues piano master, and an outstanding guitarist.
His music is rooted in the blues, but pulls freely from soul,
country, and jazz. On his debut CD “Willie Mae”, Al blends shuffling blues, rhythm thumpers,
and some expert boogie-woogie on eight rootsy originals and four reworked
classics.
“Willie Mae” was voted “Best CD” at the Motor Cities Blues Awards, 1999.
Al and his band won the “Best Unsigned Band” competition, held at Buddy
Guy’s Legends in Chicago in 2000.
Al was voted “Outstanding Blues Artist” at Motor City Music Awards in 2005.
Al stays busy both as a front man, sideman, and collaborator. Since 2002,
he has been keyboard player and musical director for international soul diva
Bettye
Lavette, with whom he has played the New Orleans Jazz Fest, Chicago Blues
Fest, Bonaroo, the North Sea Jazz Festival, and concert venues throughout the
United States, Canada, Europe and Japan. The Lavette band has also performed
on Austin City Limits, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Mountain Stage Radio, Later…with Jools Holland, and BBC Radio.
Al also collaborates with his wife Whit
Hill in her alt-folk-country band
The Postcards, releasing "We Are Here" in 2003, and "Farsighted"
in 2006.
Al has toured extensively with Detroit blues luminaries Johnnie Bassett and Alberta Adams,
and performed with Luther Allison, Buddy Guy, Sir Mack Rice, Lazy Lester, Delbert McClinton, Marva Wright,
Raul Malo, Rick Holmstrom, Carl Weathersby, Johnny Rawls, Sleepy LaBeef, and piano great Johnny Johnson.
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