Blind Boys of Alabama with Shemekia Copeland

On their cover of Tom Waits’ “Way Down in the Hole,” the Blind Boys of Alabama layer gospel vocals over a gritty guitar riff, putting their distinctive stamp on a tune about keeping the devil “way down in the hole.” The song, the theme to the HBO series, The Wire, still finds its way into the band’s live sets. We think of the group, which first formed in 1944, as a true American institution. The gospel group teams up with blues great Shemekia Copeland for this special show at the Kent Stage. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.