TIME FOR RAGTIME

Blair Crimmins & The Hookers headline Nightfall

Blair Crimmins isn’t only a singer-songwriter, he’s practically a one-man band.

During his shows, he strums a guitar, sings, plays piano, banjo, ukulele and accordion before exiting the stage.

See for yourself Friday night, July 26, when Blair Crimmins & The Hookers headline Nightfall in Miller Plaza, 928 Market St. The free summer concert series will open at 7 p.m. with music by Sing Akadamie.

Crimmins began his music career in Atlanta, with a determination to bring ragtime and 1920s-style Dixieland jazz to new audiences. While playing small rock clubs around the Southeast, he developed a sound that is modern while being deeply rooted in the past.

He has toured the country playing large venues and opened for acts such as Mumford & Sons and Preservation Hall Jazz Band.

A multi-instrumentalist and music academic, Crimmins writes songs and arrangements for a classic New Orleans-style horn section consisting of trumpet, clarinet and trombone.

His debut 2010 release “The Musical Stylings Of” became a college radio sensation on WRAS Atlanta, making him the most-requested band on the air. In 2012, Crimmins showed his musical diversity by writing and recording the full score for the independent short film “Old Man Cabbage.”

The following year, Crimmins was the critics’ pick for Best Song Writer of 2013 in Creative Loafing’s Best of ATL issue. Album “Sing-a-longs” earned him a nomination at The Georgia Music Awards for Best Jazz Artist. Crimmins has now released his fourth studio album “You Gotta Sell Something.”