'It's been a great ride': Blues great Delbert McClinton retires; Aug. 27 MPAC show canceled

After 63 years in music, blues singer and songwriter Delbert McClinton is calling it a career. Unfortunately, that also means McClinton's scheduled Aug. 27 show at the Montgomery Performing Arts Centre has been canceled. 

"I’ve known Mr. Delbert for 25 plus years and he always gave it 100 percent every time he performed, and always had a story to tell," said Allen Sanders, MPAC's general manager.

For the first time in six decades, the Lubbock, Texas native has been off the road and off stage for more than a year because of the pandemic.  McClinton broke the retirement news to his band Self-Made Men  and organization this week.

“Here I sit, 80 years old, in the middle of a pandemic. This is not how I envisioned playing out my final years as an entertainer. Music has been my total being for my whole life,” said McClinton on Thursday in an announcement on his social media. “I had been considering finishing this year with a modest number of shows. But the more I thought about it, and the more obstacles that have been placed in front of me, the less my heart was in it.”

McClinton's last Montgomery show at the MPAC was on May 12, 2018. 

“I don't want to get up in front of audiences who might be the cause of my incapacity or death just because I want to play music," McClinton wrote. "I don't want to listen to anyone who won't wear a mask or get a vaccine.  We all have different values and they are inarguable.”

McClinton released major hits like “Giving It Up for Your Love,” “Every Time I Roll the Dice,” “Standing on Shaky Ground,” and many more. 

His songs have also found their way into others’ hands to record like The Ron-Dels (“If You Really Want Me To, I’ll Go” - 1965), Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown (“Better Off with the Blues” - 1992), Tracy Nelson (“I need all the Help I Can Get” - 1995), and Wynonna (“Somebody to Love You” - 1996). 

McClinton is a four time Grammy winner (Traditional Blues Album in 2020 for "Tall, Dark, and Handsome", Contemporary Blues Album in 2006 for "Cost of Living" and 2002 for "Nothing Personal", and Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 1992 for "Good Man Good Woman"), and received the Americana Lifetime Achievement Award.

“I have had a decent career, and I have accomplished more than I ever dreamed I would," McClinton wrote. "With that in mind, this is a good time to retire.” 

A longing to get off the road was already building in McClinton before the pandemic. Speaking to the Advertiser in 2018, McClinton said then he'd like to spend more time at home. 

"I’ve been on the road for months at a time," McClinton said. "I’ve stayed in every kind of hotel you can think of. I’d rather be home, but I play enough to satisfy the jones. The jones is always there.”

Th years later, McClinton said he's leaving the stage with no regrets.

“I’ve done all that I set out to do and more," McClinton wrote. "Retirement will allow me to enjoy my family and travel a bit as it becomes safer. It's been a great ride."

"I’ll never forget the memories he gave me and the fun times we had," Sanders said. "Enjoy your retirement sir, you deserve it."  

All ticket refunds for the MPAC show will be given at the point of purchase for the August 27 show. For more information, visit mpaconline.org.