Al Copley

Lore

Copley's career is packed with specific, high-profile moments. In 1978, he shared the stage with the original Blues Brothers—John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd—a rare early brush with blues-rock stardom. Fifteen years later, in 1993, he opened for Eric Clapton at the Royal Albert Hall in London for a full 12 concerts, performing alongside Jimmie Vaughan. That same year, he opened the Blues Summit at the Montreux Jazz Festival with Etta James and B. B. King.

Montreux became a recurring highlight: in 1997 he opened for Eric Clapton's Legends and also did a duo of 'Jazz-Hot' with Jeff Healey; in 1998 he opened for Bob Dylan on the main stage. He even traveled to Japan for the first Montreux Jazz Festival there in 1998, playing with George Duke and McCoy Tyner. Beyond festivals, Copley brought his piano to symphonic settings: in June 2002 and again in 2009, he performed four of his own full symphonic orchestrations with the Boston Festival Orchestra at Summer Pops, in front of crowds exceeding 25,000.

And in 2016, he took the lead in reuniting the 1970s lineup of Roomful of Blues for a new recording, with co-founder Duke Robillard setting the bar: 'make a record equal to or better than our first record.'

Career highlights

Copley has twice been nominated for a Grammy Award (1983 and 1984) in the category Best Traditional Blues Album. In 1978 he performed with the original Blues Brothers, John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, and in 1993 he opened for Eric Clapton at the Royal Albert Hall in London for 12 concerts, performing with Jimmie Vaughan. His performances on the main stage at the Montreux Jazz Festival include opening for Bob Dylan in 1998, opening for Eric Clapton's Legends in 1997, doing a duo of "Jazz-Hot" with Jeff Healey in 1997, and opening the Blues Summit with Etta James and B. B. King in 1993.

Copley also performed at the first Montreux Jazz Festival in Japan with George Duke and McCoy Tyner in 1998. In June 2002 and 2009, Copley performed four of his own full symphonic orchestrations before an audience of more than 25,000 with the Boston Festival Orchestra at Summer Pops. In 2016, Copley instigated a reunion recording of the 1970s version of Roomful of Blues, due to be released in 2021. The goal, according to co-founder Duke Robillard, was to 'make a record equal to or better than our first record.'