The first time that gospel singer Jimmy Carter (no relation to the peanut-farmer and former president) sang with the group that would become the Blind Boys of Alabama, was 1939. The Wizard of Oz came out that year. So did Gone With the Wind—and America had not yet entered the second World War. Seventy-four years later, Carter, along with vocalists Ben Moore and Ricky McKinnie, and a skin-tight backing band, have won five Grammys, played for President Obama twice, and collaborated with everyone from Tom Waits to Peter Gabriel to Lou Reed (see video below). For all of that, they're still best known for singing the Waits song "Way Down in the Hole" on the first season of The Wire. 

The Blind Boys of Alabama play Mississippi Studios this Sunday and we've got a pair of tickets to give away to some very lucky reader. Make no mistake, this group is the real deal. 

This contest is now closed.