Biker Ben Sollee makes special appearance Thursday at Preservation Hall

Ben Sollee appears at Preservation Hall on Thursday, October 27.

Editor’s Note: Ben Sollee will not be joined by Pres Hall Jazz Band as initially indicated. Maybe next time!?

This Thursday in the Vieux Carre, an extra special show will be going down at 10:30 p.m. when singer-songwriter and cellist extraordinaire Ben Sollee will be appearing for an hour-and-a-half set in the hallowed Preservation Hall. The show will be an up-close-and-personal, intimate affair featuring Ben and his percussionist Jordon Ellis, as well as some possible special guests with Tao Seeger and Preservation Hall Jazz Band creative director / tuba player Ben Jaffe playing two earlier sets that evening (separate tickets required for those).

The performance serves as the kickoff to Sollee’s 4th-ever bike tour, in which the musician will ditch the comforts of the tour van and travel between tour stops on a two-wheeler, hitting Gulfport, Mobile, Pensacola, Panama City and wrapping the fall cruise through the Southland all the way down in Orlando. According to his web site, Sollee embarks on these epic journeys periodically to temper the “the escalating pace of touring,” seeing them as “an unparalleled opportunity to slow things down and take in the scenery, meet new people, and experience the vastness of culture and environs most travelers bypass completely.”

Sollee’s connection to Preservation Hall likely came about through his connection to Yim Yames of My Morning Jacket fame, who produced Sollee’s excellent latest album, Inclusions. Yames’ connections to Pres Hall have been well-documented, ever since MMJ invited Preservation Hall Jazz Band along for its 2010 Spring Tour and most recently on-stage as guests at this year’s Bonnaroo and Austin City Limits festivals.

Now it’s only fitting that Sollee follows in Yames’ footsteps and links up for a memorable evening in the Hall. Sollee really has made a name for himself, and for more than just his bike tours — his stunning, classically-hued pop arrangements are akin to those of an artist like Andrew Bird, and the new LP has been enjoying a great deal of critical acclaim.

For tickets to the show, click here. If you want to attend but haven’t pulled the trigger, I’d get to it; chances are tickets will be gone well before the show.

For more information on Preservation Hall, visit the Band or Hall page here.

Wesley Hodges writes about music for NolaVie and Live Music Blog: NOLA.