Murphy excited to be back out on holiday tour

Dec. 15—Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. is back in the groove and doing one of the favorite parts of his job.

Murphy, the soul and Sinatra-singing season six (2011) winner of NBC TV's "America's Got Talent," and special guests are in the midst of the 2022 "Home for the Holidays" Christmas tour across West Virginia.

"It's been fun, very exciting," he said by phone Wednesday about the first few days of the holiday tour, which kicked off on Dec. 3 in Clarksburg. "We're having a good time.

"I'm definitely excited to be coming back. It's always good to come home for the holidays and spread holiday cheer. The two shows (thus far) have been fantastic."

Upcoming tour stops will include Saturday, Dec. 17, at the Rhema Christian Center in Lewisburg; Monday, Dec. 19, at the Granada Theater in Bluefield; and Thursday, Dec. 22, at the Historic Fayette Theater in Fayetteville. The latter concert, set for 7:30 p.m., will be the closing show of the 2022 run.

In 2019, the Murphy Christmas tour landed at the Historic Fayette Theater with a special guest, Larry Groce of "Mountain Stage," in tow. Joining Murphy this time around will be "The Cline Twins," the young Canadian brothers from the 2022 "America's Got Talent" season who will bring their hockey stick dynamics to entertain Mountain State audiences. Murphy says he's happy to have The Cline Twins on board this year.

"I love putting together a variety show," he said. "It's going to get better and better every year."

The Cline Twins said last week they are excited to be part of the show, with one of the twins saying that embracing the chance to entertain alongside Murphy was a "no-brainer."

Murphy will co-headline the "Joy To Lewisburg" show in Lewisburg with West Virginia Hall of Fame pianist Bob Thompson. Murphy will sing a handful of songs during the Lewisburg show, and he says he's happy to get the chance to play with Thompson again. "It's always a pleasure to work with Bob, and I love Lewisburg," he said.

Murphy pointed out that Lewisburg was chosen as America's "Coolest Small Town" (by Budget Travel magazine) in 2011, the same year he won "America's Got Talent."

The 2022 Christmas tour will feature Murphy crooning his way through an all-new show filled with Christmas classics and fan favorites from the Great American Songbook. "We'll throw in some Motown" (songs such as The Temptation's "Ain't Too Proud to Beg"), as well as popular Christmas staples and two of Murphy's original Christmas tunes, he said.

The "Home For The Holidays" 2022 tour is presented by West Virginia Adult Education and its "Never Too Late To Graduate" platform, for which Murphy is a spokesperson. He recently received his high school equivalency diploma in a graduation ceremony with other adult learners. "It's been great," he said of his affiliation with the Adult Education effort. "Over my whole journey, I've received so many accolades," he said. "The only thing that was missing was my high school diploma."

The key for those out of school who don't have a diploma but still want to proceed along that path, Murphy said, is to set aside any stigmas and pursue the goal. He thanked the West Virginia Department of Education for the program. WVAE staffers will be on hand at tour stops to assist those interested in earning their diplomas.

"Home For The Holidays" tour attendees are encouraged to bring a new, not-wrapped toy to the show of their choice to support Murphy's "Kids Joy Toy Drive" and receive a digital copy of his "Christmas Made For Two" full-length Christmas album. Toys are taken to hospitals across the state, he said.

Tickets for the shows are on sale now at https://landaumurphyjr.com/events/ or the individual venue's website. Fans can reserve tickets for those shows in advance now by emailing tickets@landaumurphyjr.com or by calling the "Landau Line" tour ticket box office at 304-578-5811.

The remaining shows for the tour are:

—Thursday, Dec. 15 — high school theater, Point Pleasant

—Friday, Dec. 16 — Delbarton Opry House, Delbarton

—Saturday, Dec. 17 — Rhema Christian Center, Lewisburg

—Monday, Dec. 19 — Granada Theater, Bluefield

—Tuesday, Dec. 20 — Strand Theater, Moundsville

—Wednesday, Dec. 21 — city hall auditorium, Huntington

—Thursday, Dec. 22 — Historic Fayette Theater, Fayetteville

Murphy's Columbia Records debut album, produced by Grammy winner Steve Tyrell, spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz chart. His follow-up holiday album "Christmas Made For Two" raised funds for the Children's Home Society of West Virginia and received nationwide airplay, including on Sirius/XM's "Holly" channel.

In 2017, Murphy released his third album, "Landau," which was recorded at Capitol Records in Los Angeles and produced by Grammy winner Jeff Weber. That was followed by 2021's "Landau-Live In Las Vegas," released on the prestigious Cellar Live label.

He has toured across the United States and internationally, performing hundreds of sold-out concerts in markets including Dubai, Shanghai, Stuttgart, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York City, Miami, Minneapolis and many other cities. Through all of that, he says in promotional material that his favorite shows of all are "when I come home to West Virginia for the holidays."

While the Christmas shows are the present-day focus, Murphy, who proudly says, "I still live in Logan, West 'By God' Virginia," is also looking ahead. He's in the process of compiling an album of all original material which he hopes to be out by next spring in time for a summer tour. "I've done enough covers," he said. It's time now to "solidify Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. in the Great American Songbook."

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