{{short description|American guitarist and banjo player (born 1955)}} {{for|the Canadian ice hockey player|Carl LeBlanc (ice hockey)}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = Carl LeBlanc | image = Lebjr.JPG | caption = | birth_name = Carl LeBlanc, Jr. | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1955|5|26}} | origin = [[New Orleans]], [[Louisiana]], United States | instrument = Guitar, banjo, vocals | genre = [[Jazz]], [[Avant-garde jazz]], [[Bebop]], [[R&B]] | occupation = Musician, educator | years_active = 1967-present | label = }}
'''Carl LeBlanc''' (born May 26, 1955) is an American guitarist and [[Banjo#Four-string_banjos|four-string banjo]] player. LeBlanc is most striking for his work in both [[Avant-garde jazz|avant garde jazz]] and traditional jazz—being the only musician to work with famed afrofuturist keyboardist/bandleader [[Sun Ra]] and [[Preservation Hall]].
LeBlanc has recorded seven solo albums during his career blending the varying styles of traditional jazz, avant garde jazz, bebop, and New Orleans tradition, namely [[Mardi Gras Indians|Mardi Gras Indian]] and [[Second line (parades)|Second line]] style.<ref>Szwed, John F. ''Space Is the Place: The Lives and times of Sun Ra''. New York: Da Capo, 1998. Print.</ref> He has also served as banjo player at Preservation Hall, following in the footsteps of his predecessor [[Narvin Kimball]], and directed the Preservation Hall Junior Jazz and Heritage Band.<ref>Guillot, Lydia. ''My New Orleans''. United States: Lulu.com, 2009. Print.</ref><ref>Rawls, Alex. "Local Heros." ''SPIN'' May–June 2008: 126. Print.</ref>
==Biography== LeBlanc was born in New Orleans, Louisiana in the Seventh Ward. He heard the city's brass band parades in his neighborhood when he was a child, but it was [[The Beatles]]'s famous [[Ed Sullivan Show]] appearance which inspired him to play the guitar. At the early age of 12 he began performing with a high school-aged band ''The Sonics'' at The Wonderful Boys Club, a social and pleasure hall, and served as apprentice to many of the neighborhood's musicians.
LeBlanc received a scholarship to [[Columbia University]] where he studied Music Education after being recruited by former Jesuit High School classmates. He would later graduate from [[Southern University at New Orleans|Southern University of New Orleans]], studying under the tutelage of [[Kidd Jordan]], and move to Philadelphia to play with renowned jazz musician Sun Ra.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://scholarworks.uno.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1026&context=wavelength|title=Wavelength|date=January 1983|website=Scholarworks.uno.edu|author=Connie Atkinson|access-date=July 28, 2025}}</ref>
During his career, LeBlanc has also performed with [[Fats Domino]], [[Screamin' Jay Hawkins]], the [[Dirty Dozen Brass Band|Dirty Dozen]], [[Allen Toussaint]], [[Bo Diddley]], [[Ellis Marsalis, Jr.|Ellis Marsalis Jr.]], James Rivers, [[Blind Boys of Alabama]], and [[Irvin Mayfield]] & the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra. LeBlanc continues preserving the legacy of New Orleans music tradition through education and performing.<ref>Kennedy, Al. ''Chord Changes on the Chalkboard: How Public School Teachers Shaped Jazz and the Music of New Orleans''. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow, 2002. Print.</ref><ref>{{cite interview |last=LeBlanc |first=Carl |subject-link=Carl LeBlanc |interviewer=[[Nick Spitzer]] |title=Modern Traditions: Ben Harper and Carl LeBlanc |work=[[American Routes]] |publisher=PRX |location=New Orleans |date=November 11, 2015 |url=http://americanroutes.wwno.org/archives/artist/1331/carl-leblanc |access-date=February 23, 2020 |archive-date=February 23, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223043938/http://americanroutes.wwno.org/archives/artist/1331/carl-leblanc |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Discography== ===As leader=== * ''Sidewalk Serenade'' (Independent, 1975) * ''Bebop'' (Independent, 1979) * ''Gazebo Afternoon'' (Independent, 2004) * ''New Orleans’ Seventh Ward Griot'' ([[Preservation Hall]], 2008) * ''Partners'' (Independent, 2009) * ''Those Who Have Ears'' (Independent, 2011) * ''Justin Case'' (Independent, 2012)
===As sideman=== '''with [[Sun Ra]]:''' * ''[[Reflections in Blue (Sun Ra album)|Reflections in Blue]]'' ([[Black Saint]], 1986) * ''[[Hours After]]'' ([[Black Saint]], 1986) * ''[[Blue Delight]]'' ([[A&M Records]], 1988) * ''[[Mayan Temples]]'' ([[Black Saint]], 1990) * ''[[Somewhere Else (Sun Ra album)|Somewhere Else]]'' ([[Rounder Records]], 1993) * ''The Complete Remastered Recordings on Black Saint & Soul Note '' (CAM Jazz, 2015) * ''Lights on a Satellite '' (IN + OUT, 2024)
'''with [[Preservation Hall Jazz Band]]:''' * ''The Hurricane Sessions'' ([[Preservation Hall]], 2008) * ''Preservation: An Album to Benefit Preservation Hall & The Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program'' ([[Preservation Hall]], 2010) * ''The 50th Anniversary Collection'' ([[Preservation Hall]], 2012)
'''with [[The Del McCoury Band]] and [[Preservation Hall Jazz Band]]:''' * ''American Legacies'' ([[Preservation Hall]], 2011)
'''with [[The Blind Boys of Alabama]]:''' * ''[[Down in New Orleans]]'' ([[Time-Life]], 2008)
'''with [[Fats Domino]]:''' * ''Alive and Kickin' '' (Independent, 2006) * ''Legends of New Orleans: Fats Domino Live!'' (Shout! Factory, 2003)
'''with [[Treme Brass Band]]:''' * ''New Orleans Music'' (Mardi Gras Records, 2008)
'''with [[Lucien Barbarin]]:''' * ''It's Good To Be Home'' (Independent, 2007)
'''with [[Johnny Adams]]:''' * ''The Verdict'' (Rounder, 1995)
'''with [[Eddie Bo]]:''' * ''Eddie Bo and Friends'' (Bo-Sound, 1995) * ''Back Up This Train'' (Bo-Sound, 1996) * ''Nine Yards of Funk'' (Bo-Sound, 1998) * ''We Come To Party'' (Bo-Sound, 2001)
'''with [[Kermit Ruffins]]:''' * ''Livin’ a Treme Life'' (Basin Street, 2009)
'''with [[Pretty Lights]]:''' * ''[[A Color Map of the Sun]]'' ([[Preservation Hall]], 2013)
'''other works:''' *''[[Dick Tracy (soundtrack)|Dick Tracy Original Soundtrack]]'' ([[Sire Records|Sire]]/[[Warner Bros. Records]], 1990) *''Louisiana Spice'' (Independent, 1995) *''Promenades en Louisiana'' (Independent, 1999) *''[[Our New Orleans: A Benefit Album for the Gulf Coast]]'' ([[Nonesuch Records]], 2005) *''Goin’ Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino'' (Independent, 2007)
==Awards and nominations== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- !| Year !| Nominee / work !| Category !| Award !| Result |- | 2009 | ''Down in New Orleans '' as a sideman with the Blind Boys of Alabama | [[Grammy Award for Best Traditional Gospel Album|Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album]] | Grammy Awards | {{win}} |- | 2026 | ''Lights on a Satellite '' as a sideman with Sun Ra Arkestra | [[Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album]] | Grammy Awards | {{nom}} |}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Carl LeBlanc}} *[http://www.carlleblanc.com/ Carl LeBlanc, Official site] *[http://sites.duke.edu/banjology/banjo-and-jazz/ Jazz Banjoists of New Orleans] *[http://www.radio-canada.ca/widgets/mediaconsole/medianet/7347282 2013 Carl LeBlanc interview, Acadie black et blanc. Directed by Monique LeBlanc. CinImages Productions. ]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:LeBlanc, Carl, Jr.}} [[Category:1955 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:20th-century American musicians]] [[Category:Jazz musicians from New Orleans]] [[Category:Sun Ra Arkestra members]] [[Category:African-American guitarists]] [[Category:American avant-garde musicians]] [[Category:Avant-garde jazz singers]] [[Category:Avant-garde jazz guitarists]] [[Category:American jazz banjoists]] [[Category:American banjoists]] [[Category:African-American banjoists]] [[Category:20th-century American banjoists]] [[Category:Guitarists from Louisiana]] [[Category:American male guitarists]] [[Category:20th-century American guitarists]] [[Category:American male jazz musicians]] [[Category:Musicians from New Orleans]] [[Category:Preservation Hall Jazz Band members]]