SongVault Artist Profile

Vincent Gabriel , aka - Blind Albert, has been creating and performing his own brand of music for more than three decades. Influenced as a youth by the music of Elvis Presley and The Rolling Stones, Vincent soon developed a style rich in melody and emotion.--------- Born in South Amboy, New Jersey on September 16, 1947. Gabriel was first exposed to the music that his mother and father would play and sing in their living room as the family sat and listened back in the late fifties and early sixties. Vincent started playing guitar in 1964 and in 1965 formed his first band, performing at high school dances and local halls. After graduating from high school in 1966 he continued to perform in and around his home state of New Jersey until his musical career was interrupted in 1967 by a two year tour of duty in Viet Nam as a combat infantry soldier with the First Infantry Division. Upon his return in 1969, he performed for ten years in and around Connecticut working in blues,rock and country bands,(performing with Dick Curless) honing his skills in clubs in New London, Norwich, Hartford and New Haven until 1979.--------- Moving to Santa Barbara, California in 1979,he enjoyed five years writing and performing Latin influenced music with members of the "Flora Purim, Airto" backup band. Once again on the road, moving to Cape Cod in 1983, Vincent performed his original music in Cape clubs including TV appearances with his band "Illusion" until establishing a home base in mid-coast Maine 1989.-------- Forming the Blind Albert Band in the early 1990's,Vince established himself throughout Maine as a no-holds-barred blues, rock and original music performer and was one of the bands invited to participate in the original blues festival held outdoors at the Tradewinds in Rockland, which later came to be known as the "North Atlantic Blues Festival"and was the opening act at the 2004 North Atlantic Blues Festival. Vince Gabriel is currently stage manager for the North Atlantic Blues Festival and has been since 1999 and is a regular performer in NABF Club Crawl held every year in conjunction with the festival.---------- Vince has shared the stage with blues legend Jimmy Rogers as well as Eddie Shaw And The Wolf Gang (Howlin Wolfs Backup Band), Johnnie Rawls, Lucky Peterson, Philip Walker and others and has opened shows at the Tradewinds for blues artists Eddie Kirkland, Carey Bell, AC Reed, Philip Walker, Eddie Shaw, Sam Lay, Son Seals, Magic Slim, Jerry Portnoy and many more. Vince has also opened for rockers Leon Russell and Merl Saunders of Grateful Dead fame and has worked in conjunction with Koko Taylor, Junior Wells, Bernard Allison, Johnny Winter, Coco Montoya, Aztec Two Step and the list goes on and on.--------- Vincent Gabriel is currently performing in and around the state of Maine, garnering rave reviews as a solo artist and with the Blind Albert Band. -------