Come Sing Along With Patty Griffin’s Downtown Church

This is a big week for Patty Griffin, from the release of her new album to her live studio broadcast to today’s big news – the folk singer/songwriter’s new 2010 North American tour dates.

The tour kicks off March 26 at The Pageant in St. Louis with dates through Griffin’s April 17 performance at Old Settler’s Music Festival at Salt Lick Pavilion in Driftwood, Texas.

Additional shows include Paramount Theatre in Denver (March 29), Kingsbury Hall in Salt Lake City (March 30), Moore Theatre in Seattle (April 1), Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver (April 2) and The Wiltern in Los Angeles (April 10).

More gigs will be added soon as this round of dates is just the first leg of several tours planned for the U.S. this year.

Photo: Doug Seymour

Keswick Theatre, Glenside, Pa.

Tuesday marks the release of Griffin’s seventh studio album, Downtown Church. The album, which was produced by Buddy Miller, was recorded last January at The Downtown Presbyterian Church in Nashville with Griffin singing from the pulpit. Downtown Church features guest vocals from Emmylou Harris, Raul Malo, Jim Lauderdale, Shawn Colvin, Mike Farris, Buddy & Julie Miller and Regina and Ann McCrary, whose father cofounded the gospel group the Fairfield Four.

Photo: AP Photo

Performing at the Americana Music Association awards, Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn.

Downtown Church is Griffin’s first album of hymns and includes traditional standards such as “Wade in The Water” and “Move Up,” as well as country and blues spirituals and original songs penned by Griffin, Miller and others. The Associated Press writes that the album, “is a stunningly powerful and compassionate work addressing homelessness, kindness, deceit and finding the strength to persevere through troubled tides.”

The Detroit Free Press raves that Downtown Church deserves its four-star rating for songs that are “spine-tingling” and “utterly majestic,” describing Griffin as “blessed with one of the most expressive voices in popular music.” Birmingham Magazine adds that the album is “stunning” and Griffin’s “voice and lyrics piece the listener’s heart.”

On Wednesday Griffin will perform a few songs and take questions from fans during a live broadcast via Livestream. The fun begins at 7 p.m. CST. A link to the broadcast will be posted at www.pattygriffin.com.

Click here for Patty Griffin’s site.

Click here for the AP article.