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Venue

Dakota

1010 Nicollet Mall, 55403, Minneapolis, MN, US

dakotacooks.com/

Capacity: 250

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Doors open: 17:30

If anyone knows where to find the blues, it’s Taj Mahal, a brilliant artist with a musicologist’s mind. Here, he has pursued and elevated the roots of beloved sounds with boundless devotion and skill. Then, as he traced origins to the American South, the Caribbean, Africa, and elsewhere, he created entirely new sounds. As a result, rock-and-roll icons such as Eric Clapton and the Rolling Stones revere him. Also, ambitious artists toiling in obscurity who are determined to combine sounds in new ways view him as a hero. No one combines tradition and avant-garde approaches as seamlessly. Come hear hits such as “Lovin’ in My Baby’s Eyes”, Queen Bee”, & “Everybody is Somebody”.

Mahal remains an active force in roots music across a career spanning more than six decades. In 2025, he received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Also, he won Best Traditional Blues Album for his collaboration with Keb’ Mo’ on Get On Board.

Taj Mahal and the Phantom Blues Band form a collaboration between the blues legend and a top-tier backing band. The Phantom Blues Band formed in the 1990s to back Taj Mahal on his album Dancing the Blues. Then, they embarked on a successful career in their own right while continuing to tour and record with Mahal. Moreover, they blend various genres like blues, jazz, R&B, and rock. Additionally, the band members themselves are accomplished studio musicians who have worked with many famous artists.

Concert in your area for Folk & Blues, Funk & Soul, Rock, Jazz, and Indie & Alt.

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Taj Mahal biography

Taj Mahal (born May 17, 1942) is the stage and recording name of American Grammy Award-winning blues musician Henry Saint Clair Fredericks, hailing from Harlem, New York, U.S.

Strongly influenced by his gospel singing mother and jazz musician and composing father – who Ella Fitzgerald had referred to as “The Genius” – Fredericks was exposed to a genre-spanning collection of music from a young age. Despite being a talented and devoted farmer the bluesman decided to pursue his music career and moved to Santa Monica, California, U.S. and formed the band Rising Sons alongside Ry Cooder and Jessie Lee Kincaid. The band signed with Columbia Records however proved to be commercially unviable so Fredericks went solo. In 1968 Taj Mahal released his eponymous debut album, introducing the musician’s stripped back traditional brand of blues.

It wasn’t long before the album became a classic and paved the way for “Natch’l Blues” also in 1968 and “Giant Step/De Ole Folks at Home” in 1969. With these successes Fredericks was afforded the luxuries of working with some of the most prominent rock and blues artists, including the Rolling Stones. The ’70s represented Mahal experimenting with Caribbean themes and rhythms with “Happy Just to Be Like I Am” in 1971 and the brass-induced double live album “The Real Thing” in 1972.

After moving to Warner Bros. in 1976 and releasing the albums “Music Fuh Ya’” (1976), the soundtrack album “Brothers” (1977), and “Evolution” (1977), Fredericks moved to Hawaii to explore the island's musical tradition. After a ten-year hiatus from recording, the iconic bluesman returned with the album “Taj” in 1987, and a string of acclaimed children’s albums alongside Shake Sugaree followed. After earning a Grammy nomination in 1991 for scoring the play “Mule Bone”, Fredericks returned to his extensive recording and touring schedule on the Private Music label.

Throughout the ‘90s the blues musician covered more musical ground drifting into rock, pop, and R&B with the albums “Like Never Before” in 1991, “Dancing the Blues” in 1993, “Phantom Blues” in 1996, and the Grammy Award-winning “Señor Blues” in 1997. Fredericks subsequently collaborated with classical indian musicians to craft “Mumtaz Mahal” in 1995, and released the Hawaiian themed album “Kulunjan” in 1999. With an all-star list of guest including Ziggy Marley, Jack Johnson and Ben Harper, “Maestro” was issued in 2008, followed by the Christmas album, "Talkin' Christmas" with the Blind Boys of Alabama in 2014.

Live reviews

When I was a young boy, my father was really into old blues music. One day when I was still a young child he introduce me to a blues musician called Taj Mahal. I didnt know it then, but as I got older into my teenage years Taj Mahal become one of my favorite musicians and greatly influenced how I approached life.

So it only made sense that I could honor my father and Taj by seeing him live in concert right? My buddy helped me find his tour dates and we split the tickets to go see him. Well the day finally arrived and we got to the House of Blues where he was performing. It wasn't too crowded and the stage was nicely light. He took the stage and began playing songs off his 1991 album Mule Bones.

Seeing him live I discovered he played a wide array of instruments including guitar, banjo, piano and harmonica, and increased my respect for him more. The man is so talented on a guitar, he makes playing it look so effortless and has such a wonderful voice as well. It was definitely a treat to see him live and really understand how talented this man is.

Anonymous