One Year Later.......

A year ago this week, Friday Blues Fix, the blog, was launched.  It's hard to believe, but sure enough, this is our 53rd post.  Thanks to everyone who's been with us from the beginning for their support, as well as those who stopped by and stuck around since we got started.  I've been amazed at the response the blog has gotten....not just locally, but from all over the world.  I've made some interesting new friends from all over the globe who love the blues just as much as I do.

There's so much more that I would like to do, such as check out some live music, go to a few festivals, visit some historical sites, etc.......  Unfortunately, it's hard to get away to do that like I used to.  Most of the places and events are several hours away and when they are close by, it seems like other things come up that make it hard to do.  Maybe some day.....  In the meantime, I will continue to look at some great recordings from the past and present, treat you to some nice audio and video clips, look at legendary artists and blues record labels of the past, and anything else related to the blues that catches my eye that particular week.  I hope you will continue to stop by and see what's going on every Friday.

Coming attractions include a few tributes to legendary blues artists (some you know, some you might not know), more albums that you might have missed first time around, some cool Ten Questions With.....subjects, a look at blues labels past and present, new releases, and anything else I can think of in between.  If there's anything blues-related you'd like to see or hear, drop me a line and I'll do my best to get it done.

I don't know if you're familiar with the disc pictured on the left or not.  It was released about fifteen years ago by a tiny label out of Oxford, MS called Midnight Creeper Records.  Midnight Creeper was the brainchild of Peter Lee, the former editor of Living Blues magazine and also the founder of Fat Possum Records.  The label only released three discs before shutting down operations, beginning with a gritty Blues/R&B disc from former Bobby Bland guitarist Ray Drew and a downhome Delta blues disc from John Weston.  Both of these releases were excellent and well-done (though the Ray Drew release had some controversial songwriting credits), but their third release was arguably their best.

The Lost American Bluesmen consisted of five bluesmen (drummer Bill Warren, guitarists Frank "Little Sonny" Scott, Jimmie Lee Robinson, and Willie Hudson, and harmonica player Sleepy Otis Hunt), all of whom were hardworking sidemen in Chicago blues bands during the glory days of  1950's era Chicago Blues.  Eventually, each of them soured on the music scene during the lean years for one reason or another, and walked away, seeking greener pastures.  Scott and Robinson (who never really left the music scene, often assisting journalists and fans in tracking down hard-to-find musicians of the past)became cab drivers, Hunt and Warren became truck drivers, and Hudson took up painting and paper hanging.

Sleepy Otis Hunt brings a downhome vibe to the proceedings with his four tracks.  During his earlier career in the 50's, he played harmonica for Freddy King, Eddie Taylor, and Elmore James.  I really like the downhome vibe from his tracks.  The opening cut, "Pick No More Cotton," benefits from drummer Bill Warren's lively playing, but Hunt also emulates Jimmy Reed very well on "Love's A Hurting Game."



Bill Warren was nearing 80 at the time of these recordings, but you would never have guessed it, based on his work on the skins.  During his career, he made several recordings with Buddy Guy and Junior Wells (including their classic Hoodoo Man Blues), and also with Jimmy Reed.  He also shows a nice gravelly vocal style on three tracks, including a remake of a tune he originally recorded in the early 60's, called "Riding In My New Jaguar."




Frank "Little Sonny" Scott

Frank "Little Sonny" Scott was a mainstay of the Chicago scene in the 50's, playing with Freddy King, among others, before moving back to his native Texas and eventually recording a young Albert Collins on his Great Scott record label.  His songs range from the autobiographical "American Bluesmen," to an adaptation of Donnie Hathaway's "The Ghetto," to a pair of slow blues tunes, "Double Trouble" and this track, "Reap What You Sow."



The youngster of the bunch, then in his mid 50's, guitarist Willie Hudson cut his musical teeth playing with Willie Mabon and, later, Buddy Guy.  Hudson left Guy to play with his brothers in the Hudson Brothers Band, but soon fell on hard times and quit music to support his family.  He fronts the group on two tracks, "Cry For Me" and "Fat Meat."  These two tracks have more of a modern feel than the rest of the tracks.





Jimmie Lee Robinson

Robinson had restarted his career in the early 90's, with a recording for Delmark Records called Lonely Traveller.  He had gotten his start in the early 50's, playing with Freddy King, and recorded behind Elmore James, Little Walter and others, even making two or three singles himself before retiring from the business to drive a cab.  He was the driving force behind The Lost American Bluesmen project, serving as co-producer and backing musician, selflessly relegated himself to the background for the most part and letting the others have their time in the spotlight, though he steps up for a couple of songs, the instrumental, "Jumping In Chicago," and the John Lee Hooker-styled "I Was Wrong."




It was a nice comeback for all of these artists, and they were able to receive some attention that they never got during their earlier stint in the business.  Robinson and Scott became heavily involved in the Save Maxwell Street coalition at the turn of the century, Robinson even contributing a theme song of sorts to the campaign.  A couple of these artists have passed on in the waning years, and Robinson sadly took his own life in 2002, after a long, painful bout with cancer, but The Lost American Bluesmen stands as a strong testament to their musical abilities.

Midnight Creeper Records closed up shop soon after this release, but there are still copies of the disc out there.  If you like your blues on the traditional side, this is an excellent choice.

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue #2

It's past time to revisit this theme, one of FBF's oldest, dating back to the pre-blog days when I used to email the occasional song to my friends.  This week, we will look at four artists, one that hails back to days of yore (Something Old), a relative newcomer to the scene (Something New), a blues artists taking on a song from another genre (Something Borrowed), and finally, an artist who, to me, is the essence of the blues (Something Blue).  Let's get started, shall we?




Skip James

First up today.......Something Old.  Let's go back to the mid 60's and check out an artist who first recorded in the 1930's,  Nehemiah "Skip" James.  A native of Bentonia, Ms (and considered the founder of the Bentonia School of Delta blues), James recorded for Paramount Records in the early 30's, on the recommendation of a talent scout named Henry Spier, who owned a record store in Jackson, MS, and had heard James play the blues.  He traveled up to Grafton, Wisconsin and recorded 26 sides, 18 of which were released.  Paramount, a subsidiary of a furniture company, basically did everything on the cheap, recording on cheap shellac, which allowed them to sell for less, but resulted in an inferior product.  Although dozens of other great blues artists recorded for Paramount, including Charley Patton, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Son House, and others, the records that have survived are in bad to horrible shape.  James' sides are no exception, and when recorded in 1931, they hardly sold at all.  For his efforts, Paramount paid him the huge sum of $40 and a train ticket. 


Skip James

Frustrated, James turned from the blues to the church, singing in a gospel group and becoming a Baptist minister (and later a Methodist one as well).  He eventually gave all of that up and returned to Mississippi and became a laborer and supervisor of plantation workers.  James was rediscovered in 1964 by a trio of white record collectors and guitarists who had heard his scratchy Paramount recordings.  To their surprise, his talents were nearly intact and they coerced him into appearing at the Newport Folk Festival, where he became a sensation.  Eventually, he recorded for the folk label, Vanguard, where he made two epic albums that recaptured his sound perfectly.  The sound on these two albums (Today! and Devil Got My Woman) is nearly perfect, almost crystal clear....so clear it sounds like James is in the room with you when he plays his guitar.  My favorite track of James' is the very first one I heard, from one of these Vanguard albums.  It's called "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues.  A few months back, we heard the 1931 version of the song, but here we have the pristine version he recorded for Vanguard.  As stated a few months back, you may be familiar with it, as it was performed by Chris Thomas King (playing another bluesman, Tommy Johnson) on the movie, O, Brother Where Art Thou?  James was able to record and perform at various festivals to many appreciative audiences for a couple of years (even collecting some royalties from Cream's version of his song, "I'm So Glad"), but was suffering from cancer when he was initially rediscovered (in a Tunica hospital), so his time back was all too brief.  He passed away in 1968.

For Something New, we'll look at a new release from a relatively new face to the blues.  Though he's been around since the mid 90's or so, British bluesman Todd Sharpville was absent for roughly half of the last decade, dealing with personal issues, such as a bitter divorce, separation from his children, a nervous breakdown, and the death of his father, The Viscount St. Davids (yes, Sharpville is a genuine blueblood....coming from an aristocratic background).  His latest release, Porchlight, is a double-disc set that allows Sharpville to bare his soul as he addresses these issues.  It's probably one of the most personal blues records you'll hear, but Sharpville is a compelling vocalist and a sensational guitarist (he won "Best Guitarist" at the 1995 British Blues Awards, outpolling Eric Clapton and Peter Green that year), so it's well worth a listen.  Joe Louis Walker, who took Sharpville under his wing when the Brit was a teenager and taught him the ropes, Duke Robillard (who also produced the disc), and Fabulous T-Bird harp wizard Kim Wilson also appear on the disc.  Walker contributes guitar on one of my favorite tracks on Porchlight, "When The Blues Comes Calling," a future slow blues classic.  Give it a listen below and see what you think.

This time around, we're taking liberties with the Something Borrowed theme.  Previously, we presented it as an old song being done by a newer artist.  This time around, we're looking a song from another genre "borrowed" by a blues artist.  To do that, let's go back to the late 90's, when the House of Blues had a record label.  One of their more interesting projects was a five-volume set of "tribute" discs that featured blues artists covering songs by famous rock performers Eric Clapton, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, and Led Zeppelin.  I was only brave enough to check out two of these sets, the Clapton set and the Rolling Stones set, and both were impressive.  The blues artists involved took familiar songs from each artists and performed blues versions of the songs with mostly satisfying results. 



Luther Allison

 The Rolling Stones tribute was sort of unusual though, because it featured the final recorded performances of three blues legends, Junior Wells, Johnny Copeland, and Luther Allison, whose song was recorded just a few days before he was diagnosed with cancer.  Within six months of the October, 1997 release of Paint It, Blue - Songs of the Rolling Stones, all three were gone.....Allison and Copeland actually died before the release and Wells passed in early 1998.  Allison often closed his marathon three to four-hour shows with a variation of "You Can't Always Get What You Want," but had never previously recorded it.  What I like the most about this track is that like every other recording Allison ever did, he gives it 110 percent.  It's absolutely stunning to realize that in just over four weeks, he would be gone because as long as he was able to perform, he gave the same 110 percent.



Eddie Boyd

And now.....Something Blue.  The name Eddie Boyd may not ring a bell to many blues fans, but most of them are familiar with at least one of his songs.  Born in Clarksdale, MS in 1914, Boyd was a piano player who specialized in "after hours" blues songs.  He's responsible for songs like "Third Degree" and "24 Hours" and, most famously, "Five Long Years."  The latter song has been covered by scores of blues artists, including B.B. King, Jimmy Reed, Muddy Waters, Eric Clapton, and Buddy Guy.  First recorded for J.O.B. Records in 1951, the song topped the R&B charts in 1952.  Boyd also recorded for Parrot Records and for Chess, where he recorded the other two tracks listed above.  His relationship was Leonard Chess was tempestuous and best and he ended up at Bea & Baby, where he recorded some fine sides with Robert Lockwood Jr. on guitar.  He also went on the 1965 American Folk Blues Festival tour in Europe, and while there he decided to stay because he was frustrated by the racial discrimination of the times in the U.S.  He relocating to Belgium and was able to record frequently.....one of the sessions resulting in this 1965 remake of "Five Long Years," recorded in London with Buddy Guy backing on guitar, Jimmy Lee Robinson on bass, and Fred Below on drums. 


Boyd eventually settled in Helsinki, Finland, where he married, continued to record prolifically, and lived comfortably until his death in 1994.

Five More Albums You Might Have Missed

Today, Friday Blues Fix looks at five more "under the radar" albums picked up over the years that you might have missed.  Most of my favorite purchases over the years were either impulse purchases by artists I'd never heard before, or CDs that I found while looking for something else...."happy accidents," if you will.  These five fall under one of those categories. 

While going through these, I got a sad feeling, remembering how cool it used to be to hit those record stores and thumb through their Blues sections, looking for something new to listen to.  Most of the stores I used to frequent are shut down now, and the ones that are left rarely update their Blues section.....if they even have one.

Jimmy Rogers - Sloppy Drunk (Evidence):  This is one of that great batch of releases originally recorded in Europe that Evidence Records picked up and released domestically in the early 90's.  Rogers took a long sabbatical through most of the 1960's.  This effort was one of his first sessions upon returning to the scene, recorded in 1973, and featured an absolute all-star line-up of 1950's era Chicago legends (Willie Mabon - piano, Louis Myers - guitar, Dave Myers - bass, and Fred Below - drums).  Rogers sounds wonderful and the entire session has a smooth, relaxed feel, mixing remakes of his classic Chess sides along with a few new selections.  The Evidence release includes five extra live tracks recorded with the same group.  Jimmy Rogers has always been one of my favorites and I plan to devote an entire post to him in the near future.  In the meantime, check out this track from Sloppy Drunk, "Slick Chick." 

Bobby Radcliff - Dresses Too Short (Black Top):  In the 80's through the mid-90's, some of the coolest blues sounds around were coming from the folks at the New Orleans-based Black Top Records (another subject for a future post).  When I started listening to blues, nearly every purchase I made included at least one Black Top recording.  After I transitioned to CDs, Black Top had shut down operations, so I turned Ebay upside down trying to re-purchase them on CD.  This recording, by the DC-based guitarist and disciple of the great Magic Sam, was very high on my list, and one listen will prove why.  It's a non-stop thrill from start to finish as Radcliff plays with such ferocity that you're sure his strings will ignite.  Also a great singer, he deftly handles everything thrown his way on this set.  He recorded three more discs for Black Top, including a live one, but this one is my favorite.  Check out the funky opener from Dresses Too Short, Dyke & the Blazers' "Ugh!"

The Butanes Soul Revue - One Night... (Atomic Theory):  Strictly an impulse buy at the time, I had no idea who the Butanes were, but doesn't that cover look cool?  Throughout the 80's and 90's, the Butanes were one of the hottest R&B backing bands in the business, serving Crescent City legend Earl King for ten years and zydeco artists Al Rapone for five.  When playing at their homebase, Minneapolis, the group added a vocalist, Maurice Jacox, some female vocalists, and a few extra horns to form the Butanes Soul Revue.  This live set, recorded at the Cabooze Bar in Minneapolis, captures the group at their very best, tearing through an incredible set of soul and blues standards, including the Otis Clay classic, "A Nickel and a Nail."  What's unusual about this live recording is that the audience noise is way back in the mix, almost inaudible.  The result is what appears to be a studio recording with the high energy of a live performance that's sometimes lacking in the studio.

Eugene "Hideaway" Bridges - Born To Be Blue (Blueside):  What I first thought upon hearing this disc in the late 90's was "sings like Sam Cooke, plays guitar like B.B. King," which should be enough incentive in itself to encourage listeners to give this one a shot.  There's a third influence present as well, Bridges' father, Othineil, who was known throughout SE Louisiana as Hideaway Slim, in tribute to his masterful playing of the Freddy King instrumental.  This track, "Aching Heart," was written by Bridges and inspired by B.B. King.  Bridges has continued to develop and impress blues fans overseas, but still has not recorded for a U.S. label.

John "So Blue" Weston & Blues Force - So Doggone Blue (Evidence):  Originally one of Fat Possum's initial releases (along with R.L. Burnside's Bad Luck City and Junior Kimbrough's All Night Long), Arkansan John Weston's debut release was just as good as those two, but destined to linger in the background, largely unnoticed.  When Fat Possum initially folded in the mid 90's, Evidence scooped this one up and reissued it on their label.  Weston, who won the Blues Foundation's Lucille Award in 1989, was a more-than-capable harmonica player and has a warm, burnished vocal style, but his strength was his songwriting, where he addressed lost love, loneliness, and growing old in words that we can all relate to.  On So Doggone Blue, he's backed by a crack band of local musicians, which includes the highly underrated Tony Broussard on guitar, who really shines on this disc and on many of Weston's subsequent recordings.

Blues Legends - Otis Rush

Longtime readers of Friday Blues Fix hopefully will remember one of my early posts about how I got into the blues.  I listened to lots of different styles of music.....rock, jazz, R&B, soul, funk, etc....  While I enjoyed all of it, I really wanted something else that captured the best elements of all those styles.  The first few blues records I found put me on the trail, as they incorporated all of these elements.  As I started finding more blues records, I was getting closer and closer to what I was looking for....then, I found it, amazingly, from a source who actually originated less than 25 miles from where I lived.

For me, Otis Rush was the total package.  He had everything I was looking for.....a unique guitar sound, an incredibly soulful voice, and some great songs.  I had never heard him before I picked up a cassette of his Right Place, Wrong Time album from the early 70's, but I knew after I listened to it that I wanted to hear more.  As a newcomer to the blues, I didn't realize what a part of blues history he was, or how big a part of blues history he could have been, had things worked out a little differently.

Several years ago, just before Rush was awarded a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail at his birthplace, Philadelphia, MS (which is about 25 miles from where I live), I wrote an article for the local newspaper, The Union Appeal.  I am reprinting it. with a few edits, as this week's post:


Most knowledgeable music fans consider Mississippi to be the home of the Blues. The state played a key role in the creation of Rock & Roll. In fact, most modern music, especially Rock & Roll, R&B, Country, and Pop, was influenced in some way by the Blues.


Even though Blues music is most often associated with the Delta region of the Magnolia State, one of the genre’s living legends, Otis Rush, was actually born and raised in Neshoba County. An extremely expressive guitarist, specializing in slow-burning, minor-key blues, Rush also possesses one of the most soulful voices in the blues. Artists such as the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimmy Page, Carlos Santana, and Eric Clapton count Rush as a huge influence on their music.

The stereotypical image of a bluesman is of a down-on-his-luck musician who can’t seem to catch a break whether pursuing his craft or living his life. Otis Rush’s story fits that image pretty closely.


Rush was born Otis Boyd (he took the name Rush when he started performing) in 1934, near Philadelphia, and was raised on a plantation-style farm. In the late 1940’s, while in his teens, Rush paid his sister a visit in Chicago. During his visit, she took him to see Muddy Waters at a local club and Rush decided where his future lay. He purchased a cheap Kay guitar and taught himself to play, sometimes listening to records of his favorites and slowing the turntable down. A left-handed guitarist, Rush learned to play a guitar strung for a right-hander, but flipped over with the bass strings closest to the floor.

By 1953, he was playing in local clubs and by 1956, celebrated producer/composer/musician Willie Dixon arranged a recording session for Rush at Cobra Records. Rush’s sessions for Cobra produced some of the finest music of his career, including several songs that are now considered blues classics, such as “My Love Will Never Die,” “I Can’t Quit You Baby,” “Double Trouble,” and “All Your Love (I Miss Loving).” Though Dixon wrote several songs for these sessions, the songs penned by Rush are much stronger and have stood the test of time. Rush eventually persuaded Cobra to give two future blues legends, Mississippi native Magic Sam Maghett and a young Buddy Guy, their first shot at recording, even playing lead guitar on Guy’s recording, “Sit And Cry The Blues.”

The Cobra label folded up after its owner, a notorious gambler, disappeared under mysterious circumstances, and Rush signed with the Chess label, which boasted most of the cream of the Chicago Blues crop, including Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Sonny Boy Williamson, and Little Walter Jacobs. However, Rush’s stint with the label proved to be a frustrating one, as he only saw two singles issued during his brief stay, one of which proved to be another classic (“So Many Roads”).

Hoping for better things elsewhere, Rush fled Chess to sign with the Houston, TX-based Duke Records, but his situation worsened. He recorded only one four-song session for Duke, which generated only one single, albeit a good one, "Homework.” During this time, although Rush wasn't recording, he was working, continuing to improve his already impressive skills and absorb influences, from artists as wide-ranging as guitarists Albert King, Wes Montgomery, and Kenny Burrell, and organist Jimmy Smith.


Rush’s hard work eventually paid off as he managed to get a few tracks on a Chicago Blues anthology for Vanguard Records in the mid 60’s (Chicago! The Blues! Today!).

Finally, Atlantic Records signed him to record an album in 1968 for their Cotillion subsidiary. Traveling to Muscle Shoals, Rush recorded his first full-length record, Mourning In The Morning. He was backed by the legendary Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and even enjoyed the support of up-and-coming guitarist Duane Allman on a few tracks.

Based on the Atlantic release, Rush signed with Capitol Records and produced one of his best recordings, recorded at San Francisco in 1971. Unfortunately, Capitol never released the album and it sat on the shelf for five years until a tiny independent label released it in 1978. Appropriately entitled Right Place, Wrong Time, it was eventually released to a larger audience, but not until the 1980’s.

Rush also released two albums, including a live one from Japan, where he has a huge following, for the Chicago-based Delmark label, but the blues industry fell upon hard times in the late 70’s due to the disco craze and it became difficult to record a blues record domestically. Rush was able to tour overseas and even made some recordings for European record labels, most of which are now available stateside, but was unable to release any new material in his home country for a number of years.

Frustrated and reluctant to trust many record companies, Rush actually passed up on a couple of opportunities to record in the late 70’s and 80’s, including a session with Carlos Santana and a recording contract with Johnny Winter’s Blue Sky label. He recorded a couple of sessions with the Clarksdale, MS-based Rooster Blues record label, but they were never completed. He did release a live album in the late 80’s, but an album reissue from a 70’s session in Europe became highly controversial due to the producer adding instrumentation to the album without Rush’s approval. 

Finally, in 1994, he was able to release Ain’t Enough Comin’ In. He followed that recording with his 1998 album called Any Place I’m Going, which won him a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album in 1999.

Rush continued playing and touring until 2004, when he suffered a stroke. Confined to a wheelchair and unable to perform, he has not been able to resume his career. Currently, he is living in Chicago with his wife and is surrounded by his two daughters and five grandchildren.


Though Rush is unable to perform these days, there’s a lot of product out there for those who are interested. Most of his studio recordings are in print or can be found on the internet. He also recorded several live albums, which are all still available, including a wonderful session taped in January, 1976 originally recorded for radio broadcast, called All Your Love I Miss Loving - Live At The Wise Fool’s Pub, Chicago. Many fans agree that his live CDs are his best recordings. There are also several DVD’s as well, including one from a 1986 appearance at the Montreux Jazz Festival which features Eric Clapton.

Soon, as part of the Mississippi Blues Trail, a marker will be placed in Philadelphia honoring Rush.

Though Otis Rush has enjoyed a resurgence of sorts over the past decade, it was a long time coming. For years, he was better known in Europe and Japan than he was in his own country. Hopefully, he will be able to enjoy some measure of success and recognition for his contributions to modern music in his later years.

A few comments to add to the article.....it had to have been extremely frustrating for Rush during those years with Chess and Duke Records, as it was obvious he was signed by them to basically prevent him from recording elsewhere.  He watched as contemporaries like Magic Sam and Buddy Guy continued to record successfully in the 60's, while he was basically hamstrung. 

Unfortunately, as a result of this mistreatment, he was reluctant to really trust anyone, and probably denied himself of a couple of other opportunities, such as the ones mentioned above, in the 70's and 80's.  One such opportunity was to actually tour with the Rolling Stones in the early 70's, similar to a couple of years earlier, when Buddy Guy and Junior Wells opened for them.  Rush declined, saying the timing wasn't right, to the consternation of those who were trying to help him at the time.

Things finally did work out for him in a way.  In the 90's, Evidence Records reissued a pair of his recordings made in Europe during the 70's, one studio album (Screamin' and Cryin') and one of his better live sets (Live In Europe).  Prior to those releases, there were only a couple of Otis Rush albums on the market in the U.S....the Hightone release, Right Place, Wrong Time, and Blind Pig's live release, Tops.  Paula Records, out of Shreveport, LA, repackaged Rush's Cobra recordings around 1992, putting them back in U.S. print for the first time in many years.  Both of his 90's releases are good, but his final studio recording on the House of Blues label (Any Place I'm Going) was very well received and Rush had a lot of input in the final product (which was co-produced by Willie Mitchell and Rush).  Sadly, the label folded within a couple of years and the album went out of print.

I attended the unveiling of Rush's blues marker in Philadelphia with my brother in late 2007, and we did get to see Rush, who was in attendance for the event with his wife and daughters.  Rush didn't speak at the event, but you could tell that he was deeply moved and appreciative of the honor and seemed to enjoy interacting with his fans afterward, even rising from his wheelchair long enough to pose for a picture with his wife and daughter in front of the marker.

Before signing off for the weekend, I wanted to share my favorite Otis Rush live track.  This is from  the Antones' 10th Anniversary celebration album, and was recorded in 1986.  This is a brief, but absolutely chilling version of "Double Trouble," the song by which Otis Rush will always be remembered, in my opinion.

Essential Recordings - There is actually no such thing as a bad Otis Rush album.  All of them have some remarkable moments and are worth seeking out.  These are just some of my favorites.

The Essential Otis Rush: The Classic Cobra Recordings 1956-1958 - These sides are an indispensible piece to the 1950's Chicago scene.  With songs by Rush and Willie Dixon (who had left Chess to work for Cobra in the same capacity), and with musicians that included Rush, Wayne Bennett, and Ike Turner (who played guitar on the original "Double Trouble"), this set is as essential as you can get.  If Rush had never recorded again, these tracks earned him a place in blues history.

All Your Love I Miss Loving: Live At The Wise Fool's Pub Chicago - Rush made several outstanding live recordings, but this one is the best because it captures him in his natural element, playing for a familiar audience in Chicago.  Don't let this be the only live disc you get of Otis Rush's, but make it the first one you get.

Right Place, Wrong Time - This is the set originally recorded by Capitol, but left to gather dust in their vaults until Hightone Records released it.  It ranks with Rush's best albums, featuring a nice mix of blues and soul.  Rush's version of "Rainy Night In Georgia" shows that he could have easily been a part of the Stax/Atlantic record scene.

Lost in the Blues - This is the controversial reissue of tracks originally recorded by Rush in the 70's.  Alligator Records reissued it and added keyboards to selected tracks, which ticked Rush off.  Personally, I don't see the problem myself.  It was a good, not great disc before modification and it remains a good, not great disc afterward.  Rush himself does a fine job, but the song selection, all cover tunes, is average.

Ain't Enough Comin' In - Rush's first comeback disc of the 90's, released in 1993.  Despite the fact that there's only one new tune written by Rush (the title track), this features some nice moments, and I think he really shows the influence of Albert King on his fretwork more on this release than any others.

So Many Roads:  Live In Concert - Rush is a major star in Japan and this performance (which features Jimmy Johnson on second guitar) proves why they can't get enough of him.

Any Place I'm Going - Rush's last studio album, from the now defunct House of Blues label.  Unbelievably, this is out of print and has been for years, which is a shame.  Some great new songs mixed with choice cover tunes.....and Rush never sounded better vocally or on guitar.  I'm glad he
finally able to turn one out like he really wanted.  If you can find a copy of this one, make it yours.

Live at Montreux 1986 - This is the live set with Clapton and Luther Allison.  The DVD features more tracks with Rush playing solo with his band, and they sound great.  Clapton graciously cedes the spotlight to Rush on their songs together, showing Rush's influence on his guitar work when he does step forward, and Allison joins the pair for a rousing closer.  The CD is good, but the DVD is better.