Friday 6 June 2008

Patti LaBelle tours ahead of reunion project

Patti LaBelle [ tickets ] has a busy summer ahead of her between a handful North American tour dates and a long-awaited reunion with her R&B trio, LaBelle.The Grammy-winning soul diva currently has more than a dozen shows on the books, taking her from coast to coast and into Canada for a two-night stand in Windsor, Ontario. Her next stop is June 21 in Peekskill, NY. Details are listed below.Meanwhile, LaBelle has been in the studio with her former groupmates, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash, working on their first full-length album in more than 33 years. The LaBelle trio enlisted the help of Philadelphia soul pioneers Gable & Huff and funk-rocker Lenny Kravitz to bring a mix of old-school and new-school grooves to the project. The record is expected to hit the streets this fall, according to Patti LaBelle [ tickets ]'s official fan club website.The singer's most recent release is "Miss Patti's Christmas," which surfaced last October. The set mixes soulful versions of traditional holiday songs with a few originals.In 2006, LaBelle put out her first all-gospel offering, "The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle," which reached the Top 20 on Billboard's R&B/hip-hop albums chart. The record features guests including Mary-Mary, Yolanda Adams, CeCe Winans, The Soul Seekers, Jay Moss, Tye Tribett and Wynona Judd. LaBelle has donated all the proceeds from the gospel set to a variety of cancer organizations in honor of her longtime musical director, Budd Ellison, who passed away from prostate cancer before the album was complete, according to her bio.