| IF YOU GO |
| Aaron Neville and his quintet featuring Charles Neville |
| Where: The Birchmere, 3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria |
| When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday |
| Info: $49.50; at press time, the concert was sold out. Tickets may be available from various resellers. |
Aaron Neville just got married but the honeymoon is going to wait until January — he’s got holiday shows to do. Even before his release last year of “Holiday Party,” Neville’s shows have become traditions for many. Although he and his talented siblings — New Orleans’ first family of funk — tour throughout the year, these shows give Aaron a chance to put his gospel and holiday music in the spotlight.
“I have been doing this for a few years, so why not have a Christmas tour?” Neville said. “Now I have a new gospel album out, too, and we can put it all together and have a great show.”
The new album, “I Know I’ve Been Changed,” also marks Neville’s 50th year in recorded music and brings it full circle. On the album, which Neville said was recorded in just five days, he collaborates with New Orleans native and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Allen Toussaint, who plays piano on the album. Toussaint also played on Neville’s first album in 1960.
“Allen came in and everyone was following his lead,” Neville said of the latest collaboration. “He wasn’t the producer, but he was the leader.”
During the upcoming concert, Neville’s horn-playing brother Charles will be featured.
Listen for the brothers and other players to mix up sound a bit, even on such classic tunes as “White Christmas” and “Please Come Home for Christmas.”
“It makes it a little more exciting,” Neville said of the song variations. “We get a chance to try it out on different songs we [rarely] get to do.”
For a man whose voice has only become more textured in later years, it seems the constant singing could be a strain. Add to that Neville’s asthma and you wonder how his voice stays so vibrant.
“I just have to make sure I get enough air in my lungs,” he said. “It’s not as easy as it was when I was younger but it’s still just as much fun as ever. I will do this as long as the Lord allows.”
