Legendary singer and multi-instrumentalist Taj Mahal [ tickets ] has lined up a number of concert appearances for next spring.

The blues/folk/funk/worldbeat master will kick off his busy start to 2006 by participating in the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, a floating music festival aboard a cruise ship departing Fort Lauderdale, FL, Jan. 8 and bound for the Western Caribbean. Mahal will be part of a lineup including Bobby "Blue" Bland, Millie Jackson, Buckwheat Zydeco and others.

More information on the cruise can be found on Mahal's website

Back on dry land, Mahal and his band (collectively known as the Taj Mahal Trio, the band features guitarist Bill Rich and drummer Kester Smith) will kick off a two-month-plus stretch of shows with a March 7 appearance n Lebanon, NH. The tour will wind through the U.S. Northeast, take an excursion into Canada, and end up on the West Coast in late April before hitting a few Southwest cities.

A 36-song compilation CD of Mahal's eclectic studio work was released earlier this year by Sony. "The Essential Taj Mahal" features a broad cross-section of Mahal's career, including his recordings for Columbia, Warner, Gramavision Private Music and Hannibal.