Taj Mahal

media release: Born Henry St. Claire Fredericks Jr., Taj Mahal landed his first record deal in the mid-1960s with Rising Sons—an early band he formed with Ry Cooder and Jessie Lee Kincaid—before going solo under the name Taj Mahal in 1968. While his early work was thoroughly entrenched in the Mississippi Delta, he soon began blending an intoxicating mix of sounds from throughout the African Diaspora into his records, touching on everything from rock and roll and R&B to reggae and jazz to West Indian and Caribbean music as he quickly became known as one of the most influential and progressive roots musicians of the modern era. Over the course of more than six decades and nearly 50 albums, Taj would go on to win five Grammy Awards (plus the Recording Academy’s coveted Lifetime Achievement honor); perform everywhere from The White House to Carnegie Hall; be inducted into the Blues Music Hall of Fame; receive the Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award; and collaborate with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Bob Marley, Eric Clapton, Angelique Kidjo, and countless other luminaries.

In 2025, TajMo - the historic collaboration between two generations of American music masters - has shared a new single “Junkyard Dog” from their forthcoming full-length album Room On The Porch - out May 23 on Concord Records. Keb’ Mo’ and Taj Mahal showcase their “strong chemistry” (Wall Street Journal) - and a blues prowess that’s earned them ten combined GRAMMY Awards - on “Junkyard Dog,” which was originally written by Nashville-based songwriter Maia Sharp for her album Mercy Rising (2021). “This track is where this TajMo album began,” says Keb’ Mo’. “I heard Maia Sharp’s version of ‘Junkyard Dog’ and I knew we could put some dirt on it and make it ours. It has the bones of a blues anthem.”

The ten-song collection finds the duo reuniting for their first release together since 2017 and their debut collaboration, TajMo.

“The two of us collaborating has always been a very organic thing,” Taj reflects. “We have different skill sets that go well together, and even though it’d been a while since we’d played together, it was easy to get back to that same creative place we landed with the first album.”