Taj Mahal on Resurrecting a Lost Bill Withers Song as Title Track of New Album, ‘Time,’ More Than 60 Releases Into His Career: ‘I’m in It for the Duration’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Mar 20, 2026 11:15am PT Taj Mahal on Resurrecting a Lost Bill Withers Song as Title Track of New Album, ‘Time,’ More Than 60 Releases Into His Career: ‘I’m in It for the Duration’ (EXCLUSIVE)

By Chris Willman

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Chris Willman

Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic

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The title of Taj Mahal‘s just-announced album, due out May 1, is “Time,” a simple concept that the blues-folk-soul-reggae artist is better equipped to address than most musicians, in part because of just how much of it he’s got under his belt.

“It’s an ongoing freight train, my career,” the 84-year-old singer-guitarist tells Variety. “The type of musician I am, it harks back to the 10th, 11th, 12th century, where you are part of a musical clan and you come onto the planet and do your job with these gifts you’ve been given. I’ve been playing music probably about 76, 77 years, at this particular point.” He notes that the Phantom Blues Band, which backs him on the new album, “has been really amazing. We’ve now ended our 30th year playing together.” And his legacy extends to “north of 60 albums,” by his count.

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