SISTER ROSETTA THARPE TRIBUTE SHOWS SET FOR BOTTOM LINE/OCTOBER 1 CONCERTS TO FEATURE ODETTA, MARIA MULDAUR, THE HOLMES BROTHERS & MARIE KNIGHT, WITH SPECIAL GUESTS, THE DIXIE HUMMINGBIRDS

NEW YORK, NY – Good news this morning, The Bottom Line will stay open through October and hopefully much longer than that. Sirius Satellite radiohas paid the back rent for the Bottom Line. M.C. Records has announced a special night of music at The Bottom Line on Wednesday, October 1st as a
tribute to gospel legend Sister Rosetta Tharpe, with Odetta, Maria Muldaur, The Holmes Brothers, long-time Tharpe singing partner Marie Knight and special guests, The Dixie Hummingbirds, scheduled to perform shows at 7:30 PM and 10:30 PM call (212) 228-6300. Come see this special show at one of the true historical landmarks for music in the United States.

Odetta, Maria Muldaur, The Holmes Brothers and Marie Knight all perform on the label's August 12 release of Shout, Sister, Shout: a Tribute To Sister Rosetta Tharpe, which features an all-star cast performing some of the best songs associated with the ground- breaking artist who blurred the lines between gospel and secular music. Other artists on the new album include Joan Osborne, Michelle Shocked, Bonnie Raitt (who performs on guitar), Sweet Honey In The Rock, Phoebe Snow, Janis Ian, Marcia Ball, Victoria Williams, Tracy Nelson, Angela Strehli, Toshi Reagon, Rory Block and Joanna Connor. While not on the tribute album, the seminal gospel group The Dixie Hummingbirds, who are celebrating their 75th anniversary, were musical contemporaries with Tharpe and performed on many shows together.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe will be featured in two segments of the upcoming PBS-TV series, "The Blues," which debuts September 28 with Martin Scorsese as executive producer: "Warming By The Devil's Fire," directed by Charles Burnett, airing on October 1; and "Red, White And Blues," directed by Mike Figgis, airing on October 3.

Since its release, the tribute album has generated universal critical acclaim, with Billboard magazine calling it "a spirited and sincere tribute," and Women Who Rock magazine proclaiming it "a heavenly homage to gospel's forgotten goddess that'll have even atheists shouting Hallelujah!'"

Some of the many highlights on Shout, Sister, Shout: a Tribute To Sister Rosetta Tharpe include Joan Osborne (accompanied by The Holmes Brothers) singing "Nobody's Fault But Mine," Maria Muldaur with Bonnie Raitt on guitar performing "My Journey To the Sky," Michelle Shocked singing "Strange Things Happening Every Day,' Maria Muldaur, Marcia Ball, Tracy Nelson and Angela Strehli teaming up on "Shout, Sister, Shout," Phoebe Snow (also accompanied by The Holmes Brothers) performing "Beams Of Heaven," Sweet Honey In The Rock singing "Precious Memories" and Marcia Ball performing "I Want a Tall Skinny Papa." The music ends with an amazing performance from Marie Knight of "Didn't It Rain," a song she originally recorded with Tharpe. Knight recorded and toured with Sister Rosetta Tharpe for more than a decade and is still very active in her Harlem church as a preacher.

In addition to the audio tracks, the enhanced CD includes a special video clip of Sister Rosetta Tharpe performing "Down By The Riverside" from "TV Gospel Time," recorded in the 1960s. The video track can only be viewed on computer. The album packaging of Shout, Sister, Shout: A Tribute To Sister Rosetta Tharpe includes an extensive essay on the artist by author Gayle Wald, a professor at American University, who is compiling a book on Sister Rosetta Tharpe's life.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe (1915-1973) has been hailed as one of the greatest sanctified gospel singers of her generation. A charismatic performer who accompanied herself on guitar, Sister Rosetta Tharpe combined spirituals with blues and swing music of the 1930s and '40s to become one of the most popular artists of the time. She pushed the envelope of gospel music, inspiring both acclaim and controversy. Sister Rosetta was one of the artists on the legendary "Spirituals To Swing" concert at Carnegie Hall in 1938, performing on the same bill with Sidney Bechet, Count Basie and Benny Goodman. She also played many of the landmark venues of the day, including Café Society and the Cotton Club. As an African-American woman musician, she faced and overcame a myriad of hardships and obstacles placed in her way during her ascent as arguably the first gospel/pop star.