ST. LOUIS, MO (March 16, 2022) – Blues and rock prodigy, Eric Gales, will join blues-rock icon Devon Allman for a special, live benefit concert, presented by Gibson Gives, at the National Blues Museum (NBM) in downtown St. Louis, MO on May 7th and 8th. The two-night concert series will also feature music by blues legend Albert King. Allman and Gales are generously donating all proceeds of this concert to the National Blues Museum to support the mission, music, and education programs. Tickets for the National Blues Museum benefit start at $139, with VIP packages available to purchase starting on March 25th. For concert tickets and more information, visit
nationalbluesmuseum.org/calendar/.
Devon Allman is a long-standing board member, and today, the National Blues Museum is pleased to announce the appointment of Eric Gales to the museum board, making this benefit even more meaningful.
“I am so honored and excited to be brought on as a board member of the National Blues Museum,” says Gales. “This is going to be a great event to honor the legendary Albert King.”
“I’m excited to have another active musician on the board and I know Eric will bring a lot to the table,” adds Allman. “We’ve been friends for years and I look forward to working with him side by side.”
“The National Blues Museum board members are a dedicated team of blues enthusiasts and community leaders committed to racial equity, inclusion, and accessibility,” says Erin Simon, Deputy Director of the National Blues Museum. “We are pleased to welcome the talent, expertise, and energy of Eric Gales into furthering our mission. The benefit concert is only the beginning of Devon Allman and Eric Gales’s ambitions for the museum!”
Both legends in their own right, Devon Allman and Eric Gales bring more than 30 years of professional experience including a performance resume that reads like a who’s who in both rock and the blues. Allman, a true American troubadour and son of Gregg Allman, is one of the most innovative musicians, record producers, and tour organizers of the last 20 years. In addition to his projects and performing countless shows worldwide, Allman has shared the stage with some of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, including Les Paul, Phil Lesh, ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Cornell Dupree, touring members of The Rolling Stones, George Porter Jr., and many others.
Eric Gales, whom Joe Bonamassa heralded as, “One of the best, if not the best, guitarist in the world today”, began as a childhood blues and rock prodigy and is one of the most influential guitarists of his generation. Gales has worked with many blues legends, including Keb’ Mo, and earned the admiration of guitarists such as Eric Johnson, Dave Navarro, Gary Clark Jr., and Zakk Wylde. Both performers represent two of the most unique and experienced voices in contemporary blues and rock music, demonstrating Blues’ evolution as a piece of living music.
Gibson, the iconic American instrument brand headquartered in Nashville, TN, has shaped the sounds of generations of musicians across the globe. Gibson has a strong focus on supporting the global music community through the philanthropic arm of Gibson Gives. The mission of Gibson Gives is to create, develop and support non-profit organizations in their efforts to advance musicians, youth-focused education, music, and wellness initiatives. 100% of all donations to and from Gibson Gives–a 501(c)(3) organization–go towards giving the gift of music. In the last three years, Gibson Gives has raised over $3 million dollars worldwide through its mission.
About the National Blues Museum:
The National Blues Museum (NBM) is a non-profit organization that preserves the blues’ historical significance as the foundation of modern music in the United States and celebrates the musicians that continue to advance the genre. Located in Downtown St. Louis, MO, NBM uses artifact-driven exhibits and interactive galleries to share the history of the blues with future generations and current lovers of the genre. NBM highlights the best in live blues both locally and nationally in their one-of-kind performance venue, the Legends Room.
www.nationalbluesmuseum.org
The blues is a United States cultural treasure and the foundation of 20th-century music genres formed, including jazz, rock and roll, and rhythm and blues. Blues originated in the deep south by the creative genius of African Americans and were inspired by work songs, field hollers, spirituals, and country string ballads more than a century ago.
About Gibson Gives:
Gibson Gives works extensively with other charities in a 360 degree way, to raise the funds they need the most right now. Gibson Gives partners include MusiCares, The Recording Academy (GRAMMY’s), Guitars For Vets (helping U.S. military veterans with PTSD), Let’s Stay (In) Together Apollo Theater Benefit, Women Who Rock (raising funds for breast cancer research at Magee Women’s Research Institute) Ryan Seacrest Foundation (placed Gibson instruments and KRK studio gear in all of their U.S. hospitals for pediatric patients and offering them music-making lessons to cope with illness), JoyRxMusic®
Children’s Cancer Association (arranged music lessons for hospitalized kids and teens facing cancer and serious illness) and the Do it for the Love’ Foundation (a wish-granting non-profit organization for people living with life-threatening illnesses). Gibson Gives became the exclusive stringed instrument provider for the Nashville based non-profit Musicians On Call (who arrange in-room and virtual performances by superstar artists with hospital patients) and donated high-value guitars for auction to support the Teenage Cancer Trust (London, U.K.). Gibson Gives partnered with the NAMM Foundation for their Believe In Music 2021 program–NAMM attendees both donated and selected the non-profit they wanted to receive their donation—raising $20,000 in three days. Since re-launching in 2019, Gibson Gives has raised over $3 million dollars worldwide through its mission to create, develop and support non-profit organizations in their efforts to advance musicians, youth-focused education, and wellness initiatives. 100% of all donations to and from Gibson Gives–a 501(c)(3) organization–go towards giving the gift of music. Gibson Gives is changing lives…one guitar at a time. For more information, visit:
www.gibsongives.org.