Bobby Rush

Vocalist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Bobby Rush originated a distinctive approach he labeled “folk-funk,” establishing himself as one of the most vivid and persistent presences on the present-day chitlin circuit through a singular blend of off-kilter lyrics and strands of blues, soul, and funk. For many years he commanded attention on the Southern club scene that sustains soul-blues and retro-soul performers yet registered only modestly with broader audiences until 2003, when The Road to Memphis—an installment of the PBS documentary series The Blues—spotlighted interviews with him and captured his stage command over audiences. Although his initial singles delivered direct, unadorned blues, by the 1970s his recordings had evolved into a marshy fusion of blues, soul, and funk infused with pronounced Southern character and his brash vocal delivery, most clearly illustrated by the 1971 hit “Chicken Heads.” Rush issued singles for fourteen years before unveiling his debut album, the comparatively refined yet still earthy Rush Hour in 1978, shaped by producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. The leaner sound of 1980s releases such as Gotta Have Money and A Man Can Give It But He Can't Take It proved most congenial to him, and after founding his own label he produced some of his most compelling work in the 2000s on Folkfunk and Raw. At eighty-three, Rush captured his first Grammy when 2016’s Porcupine Meat received Best Traditional Blues Album; he repeated the feat in 2021 with Rawer Than Raw, paving the way for the 2023 appearance of All My Love for You, another Grammy recipient.

Born Emmit Ellis, Jr. in Homer, Louisiana on November 10, 1933, Rush moved with his family to Chicago in 1953 and surfaced on the West Side blues circuit during the 1960s, leading groups whose alumni included Luther Allison and Freddie King. He entered the studio in 1967 with the Checker Records single “Sock Boo Ga Loo” b/w “Much Too Much.” As his personal style matured, he shifted away from the blues market—then courting rock listeners—toward the chitlin circuit, whose audiences proved more receptive to his increasingly risqué material. His first hit arrived in 1971 via the Galaxy single “Chicken Heads,” followed by “Bow-Legged Woman” on Jewel; throughout the decade he appeared on numerous imprints, culminating in the 1979 full-length Rush Hour, issued on Philadelphia International and produced by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff.

In the early 1980s Rush joined the La Jam roster, remaining for several years while his music grew funkier and more comically offbeat; titles such as 1984’s Gotta Have Money and 1985’s What’s Good for the Goose Is Good for the Gander contained material so suggestive he declined to perform it during his relentless club schedule. Mid-decade he relocated to Jackson, Mississippi, and aligned with Waldoxy Records, signaling a return to soul-blues on 1995’s One Monkey Don't Stop No Show, 1997’s Lovin' a Big Fat Woman, and 2000’s Hoochie Man.

In April 2001, while traveling by tour bus to a Pensacola, Florida engagement, Rush and his band suffered a crash that injured several members and claimed the life of Latisha Brown; after brief hospitalization he recovered at home. The indefatigable performer resurfaced in 2003 with the studio album Undercover Lover and the live set Live at Ground Zero—issued as both CD and DVD—on his own Deep Rush imprint. Another Deep Rush studio effort, Folkfunk, appeared in 2004. Two further albums arrived in 2005—Hen Pecked and Night Fishin’—before 2008’s Look at What You Gettin’, which mixed ballads, soul, and blues-inflected double entendres.

From 2009 through 2014 the prolific artist issued four albums while gradually attracting mainstream listeners among contemporary soul and blues enthusiasts. Omnivore Recordings presented the four-disc retrospective Chicken Heads: A 50-Year History of Bobby Rush in 2015, surveying highlights from his career as one of the most tireless figures in the field. Signing with Rounder Records in 2016, Rush delivered the eclectic, funk-tinged Porcupine Meat, which featured guest contributions from Joe Bonamassa, Dave Alvin, and Keb’ Mo’ and earned both critical acclaim and the Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album. He reactivated Deep Rush (now distributed by Thirty Tigers) in 2019 with Sitting on Top of the Blues, foregrounding his fervent vocals and piercing harmonica playing; that same year he portrayed himself in the Eddie Murphy Netflix feature Dolomite Is My Name. Rawer Than Raw, positioned as a follow-up to 2007’s Raw, surfaced in August 2020 and secured his second Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album in 2021. Rush adopted a contemplative stance on the 2023 album All My Love for You, highlighted by the semi-autobiographical single “I'm the One,” which received Best Traditional Blues Album at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards in 2024.