Bobby Rush with Blinddog Smokin’

Decisions

Silver Talon 

By Bill Dahl

          Nobody blends downhome blues and get-down funk quite like Bobby Rush.

       After working around Arkansas with slide guitar legend Elmore James in his youth, Rush arrived in Chicago during its 1950s blues heyday and did his best to break into the competitive local circuit. His career didn’t take off until he ventured into funkier climes during the late ‘60s, unleashing the eminently cooking “Gotta Have Money,” his 1971 hit “Chicken Heads,” and a series of churning workouts on Stan Lewis’ Jewel imprint. Bobby subsequently landed at Philadelphia International Records to work with producer Leon Huff (Rush Hour, Bobby’s ‘79 LP for the label, was an artistic success on all fronts).

       Over the ensuing decades, blues fans of all stripes have grown increasingly aware of the strutting, extroverted harpist and his splendidly bawdy stage shows, once limited to chitlin’ circuit consumption. With that exponentially higher profile came an avalanche of recording opportunities. At last year’s Blues Music Awards ceremonies in Memphis, Rush gleefully claimed to be 80 years old, but nothing about his energetic onstage persona or up-to-the-minute studio activities even hints at that many birthdays gone by for the Homer, Louisiana native. 

          This time Rush has teamed up with Blinddog Smokin’, a Southern California aggregation that’s in tune with Bobby’s mindset throughout Decisions. Songwriting duties were split largely between Rush on his own and Blinddog Smokin’ vocalist Carl Gustafson, sometimes with various band members. Most of the best and funkiest stuff on the set emanates from Bobby’s fertile pen, from the wry title track (its lyrics loaded with inarguable home truths) and a highly infectious “If That’s The Way You Like It I Like It” to the grinding blues shuffles “Love Of A Woman” and “Skinny Little Women,” both spiced by Rush’s fluid harmonica.

          The ominous opener “Another Murder In New Orleans,” one of Gustafson’s contributions, is full of drama and danger; Rush splits mic time here with Mac “Dr. John” Rebennack, seemingly the Crescent City’s unofficial musical ambassador at this juncture. The Latin-tinged anthem “Stand Back” is soaked in Santana-style rock guitar and finds Bobby rapping as much as singing. Our own master harpist Billy Branch and guitarist Carl Weathersby and Houston-bred guitarist Sherman Robertson cameo on the lightweight “Bobby Rush’s Bus,” but after individual spoken introductions, their solos are limited to one brief chorus apiece. “Dr. Rush” is basically a throwaway, a rap scenario casting Bobby as a phone-in radio sex therapist.

          Seemingly the set’s closer, “Too Much Weekend,” another of Rush’s own creations, is also one of its highlights,  opening with expertly picked acoustic guitar and Bobby’s understated harp as Rush borrows the first lyrical stanza from Detroit Jr.’s classic “Call My Job” before taking the slothful story in fresh directions. But there’s a hidden bonus track after that, “Sittin’ Here Waitin’,” that’s in a similar mode and every bit as satisfying; taken at a more aggressive pace, it’s also anchored by acoustic guitar, spiky slide licks arcing around Rush’s vocal. 

          An accompanying DVD contains a music video of “Another Murder In New Orleans,” four minutes of interviews with Rush and Dr. John talking about the song (with a brief solo blues number from Bobby inserted halfway through), and a batch of stills from the film shoot that roll while the tune plays.

       In Bobby Rush’s world, the connection between blues and funk renders no decision necessary. 

~~~

Bill Dahl has been writing about blues, postwar R&B, and soul music for 35 years. He specializes in     producing, compiling, and annotating CD reissue collections and has written for numerous newspapers and magazines. His website, www.billdahl.com, contains features and reviews covering a wide range of vintage music genres.  

 ###