Album Notes

This is an album of songs from the critically acclaimed music-theater extravaganza ‘Must Don’t Whip ‘Um’, Part II of ‘The Accidental Trilogy’ created by Cynthia Hopkins and her ensemble group Accinosco (www.accinosco.com). ‘Must Don’t Whip ‘Um’ is a live documentary about the 1979 “farewell concert” of Cameron Seymour, who mysteriously disappeared during the concert, with the possible intention of joining a Sufi brotherhood in Morocco. The album ripples with the ecstatic energy of this last-waltz style concert. These uplifting songs of defiance and celebration feature ebullient horns, soaring strings, upright piano, and a chorus of folks (including one Bonnie Prince Billy) singing like there's no tomorrow. 'Must Don’t Whip ‘Um' will make you want to dance, sing, and let it all out!

“Hopkins' ethereal, demanding, exuberant rock, well, rocks. Backed by her genre-spanning, elastic band Gloria Deluxe, Hopkins pulls off the impossible: She makes postmodernism danceable once again.” (Time Out New York)