ESSENTIALLY, THE ROOT OF ALL MODERN POPULAR MUSIC, BE IT JAZZ, ROCK, SOUL, HIP HOP, AND EVEN COUNTRY, IS THE BLUES. YOU KNOW IT AND I KNOW IT. IF THE MUSIC DOESN’T INCLUDE THAT COLOR, WELL, THEN IT JUST AIN’T AMERICAN IS IT?
ONE OF THE LAST REMAINING FOUNDATIONS OF THE BLUES, BOBBY RUSH, IN HIS PRIME AT 91, IS STILL ALIVE AND KICKING. HE RECENTLY RE-DISCOVERED HIS FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH WHEN HE CAME ACROSS KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD, NOT EVEN ALIVE YET WHEN RUSH WAS MAKING A LIVING ON THE CHITLIN’ CIRCUIT. TOGETHER, THEY REALIZED THEIR COMMON BOND IN THE BLUES, THE SOUTH AND THE LORD.
THIS UNION IS CELEBRATED ON THE WONDERFULLY EARTHY ALBUM NEW FASHIONED WAYS, THAT HAS PUT A SPARK IN BOTH ARTISTS, AND IS GUARANTEED TO DO THAT TO YOUR EARS, HEART, FEET AND SOUL.
WE RECENTLY HAD A CHANCE TO CATCH UP WITH THE TWO, JUST STARTING A COUNTRY WIDE TOUR. IF YOU DON’T SEE THEM THIS TIME AROUND, DON’T BLAME ME!
FOR KENNY-WHEN DID YOU FIRST HEAR BOBBY RUSH’S MUSIC, AND WHAT IMPRESSED YOU ABOUT IT?
KSW–That was a long time ago! When I was a kid I was listening to all kinds of blues music, doing my research and trying to educate myself on the music and the people that created it
I came across people like Bobby and his music, “Chicken Heads”, and I was just getting into it when I was just a kid. I was listening to everyone from Robert Johnson to BB King, Clarence Carter and everything in between. So, I was listening to his music way before I finally had the pleasure of meeting him and playing music with him.
WHEN YOU KNEW YOUR WERE GOING TO MEET HIM, WAS THERE ANYTHING YOU WANTED TO ASK HIM?
KWS: I don’t know if I had a plan, you don’t think of it that way. The first time we met, there wasn’t much planning going into it
But when this record came out, it was because he had agreed to make a special appearance at a blues festival with me and my band. It was then that we both thought that it would be a great idea to make some music together and then go into a studio and make a record.
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“I had tears in my eyes because I couldn’t express to him how thankful that I was. I wanted to tell him how much I appreciated him, knowing what he knew about the blues, the music and where I’m coming from”
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FOR BOBBY-WHEN DID YOU FIRST HEAR KENNY’S PLAYING?
BR-I first heard him when he was just a kid, playing in Talucah, many many years ago. I knew then that had something that was going to be bigger than bubble gum cards. I just never knew that I would be a part of it. So, to be with him and a part of him is a God-planned thing in my life
On top of him being a great player, how great it is for me that he is also from my home state, so we have two guys doing this music from Louisiana!
And it’s just a personal thing-I feel like I’m in heaven with this man!
He was a great player then, and he’s a better player now because he’s learned so much.
I never thought then that he’d be into what I’m doing, because I was doing the blues, but with that funk rhythm. I did some things with the blues that modified it.
But he comes in and loves the things that I’m doing, but he liked it more un-cut. I was surprised that he liked it like that. I respected what he likes, so I think that we’re going to be the best thing that ever happened to two men from Louisiana! (laughs)
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“I feel like I’m in heaven with this man!”
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FOR BOBBY-YOU’VE KNOWN EVERYONE FROM BB KING TO ELMORE JAMES TO MUDDY WATERS. WHEN YOU FIRST HEARD KWS, DID HE REMIND YOU OF ANYONE, OR WAS HE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT?
BR:When I first saw Kenny, I knew that he had that something that the other guys didn’t have when they played the blues. Most of the other guys were copying licks; Kenny was playing the licks but they were his own version, his own way. That’s what I was excited about.
He took the blues licks and made them his. And I never knew what he knew about the blues and the roots of it. But it paid off.
He took me to another level; I knew that he could play all of the time. Going into the studio with him put me into another mind set. It was unbelievable; I can’t put it into words. All that I can tell you is go out, buy the record and listen to the music.
Come see us in a show and you’ll see both sides of him playing. You can hear the country/western, you can hear the blues, you can hear the rock, you can hear all of these sides of him.
If you listen to Kenny, you can hear elements of a lot of different music. If you put them into a bowl and stir them up, then you’ve got Kenny Wayne Shepherd.
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“Most of the other guys were copying licks; Kenny was playing the licks but they were his own version, his own way. That’s what I was excited about”
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FOR KENNY-BOBBY JUST SAID THAT YOU WERE PREPARED FOR HIM. DID YOU HAVE TO DO ANY WOODSHEDDING OR RESEARCH IN GETTING READY TO PLAY WITH BOBBY?
KWS: Not really. We actually didn’t know what we were going to do! (laughs)
He had a bunch of lyrics for songs that he had written down. I had some ideas in my head of what we might do, but the reality of it was that neither one of us thought about what the **record was going to be like, or how it was going to turn out when we first walked into the studio together.
**But I had faith in his talents. I also had faith in my talents, and if we put those together, something special was going to happen. It did, and the end result was a really great album where you take two guys who both come from Louisiana, but from different generations yet love the same kind of music and both play the blues, although in different ways, and it was like bringing two worlds together.
The result is an incredibly special album.
BR-I just want to add to that he’s so right. We didn’t have any rehearsal or talk about what we were going to do or how we’d go about doing it. We just went in with some song ideas and wanged it out. I just sat down with my guitar, he started playing against what I was doing, and it just fit so well that I knew within the first ten minutes that this was going to be great.
I remember walking out of the studio into the hallway after cutting a couple of songs, and I had tears in my eyes because I couldn’t express to him how thankful that I was. I wanted to tell him how much I appreciated him, knowing what he knew about the blues, the music and where I’m coming from. It just happened-
I’m not nervous whether we’re going to be able to do this on the road, but I’m hoping that the people in the concerts will be able to understand and receive us as who we are-two men loving music and doing what we do. We hope we satisfy their brains just fine!
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“If you listen to Kenny, you can hear elements of a lot of different music. If you put them into a bowl and stir them up, then you’ve got Kenny Wayne Shepherd”
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SO, WE’VE DISCUSSED YOUR SIMILARITIES IN BLUES HERITAGE. SECOND, YOU HAVE LOUISIANA IN COMMON. HOW DOES THAT HELP?
BR:-Soul power, love and respect!
KWS–I would agree with that.
The thing that is unique about it is that I grew up listening to and admiring people who were the originators of this kind of music. This music was first from our area, from the Mississippi Delta.
The difference is that you have someone like myself who listened to this music after it was created, and I admired these people and tried to learn about them and how they did what they did. But Bobby Rush was THERE; he was one of the originators.
He was part of that movement in creating a genre, the ripple effect and all of the music that has been influenced by it.
It’s interesting when you get to know one of the originators of a type of music and then be influenced by the music that he helped create. Getting together with that is an interesting combination.
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“you take two guys who both come from Louisiana, but from different generations yet love the same kind of music and both play the blues, although in different ways, and it was like bringing two worlds together”
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THE THIRD THING YOU HAVE IN COMMON-THE ROAD!
BOBBY-AS THE LAST LIVING PLAYER FROM THE ‘CHITLIN’ CIRCUIT”, ARE YOU SURPRISED HOW MUCH LIFE ON THE ROAD HAS CHANGED FOR SOMEONE LIKE KENNY?
BR: First of all, the road is my life
Up. Down. I’ve slept in cars for nights and days. Eating hamburgers and hot dogs in a back room. It’s been a blessing to me; there’s nothing that I haven’t been through. But the whole thing about it is that the popularity has come late in life for me, but it’s better late than never! I’m enjoying every minute of it
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“Bobby Rush was THERE; he was one of the originators”
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KENNY-WHEN YOU THINK OF THE DUES BOBBY PAID SO AS TO MAKE THE PATH EASIER FOR YOU. WHAT GOES THROUGH YOUR MIND?
KWS: I think that we’re going to share some amazing road experiences together when we do this tour. We’re going to create some stories of our own! (laughs)
Bobby has been around long enough to have been in some legendary places, some that have come and gone. He’s also seen musicians come and go, but the one thing that is surely happening is that Bobby Rush is still making music
I can imagine that there have been a lot of changes on the road from his day. He’s rolling around in a big Mercedes convertible right now, and that didn’t even exist back in the day
My dad was telling me that when Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker came and played a show in Shreveport one time, and John Lee pulled up in a station wagon with a drum kit and all of the guitars thrown into the back and the band riding along with him!
The traveling with the air planes, automobiles and tour buses…a lot has changed over the years.
Just since I’ve been alive there have been a lot of changes about live performances. Back when I first started, everything about a live performance was actually about people performing their music “live”!
When you look at pop music nowadays, most of the people aren’t even singing their own stuff!
So, there’s been a lot of change, but one thing that has stayed constant, and that Bobby Rush and I are going to play our own music together and entertain the people.
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“We didn’t have any rehearsal or talk about what we were going to do or how we’d go about doing it. We just went in with some song ideas and wanged it out”
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BR-I want to add something to that…
Kenny is being humble about where he’s come from; he’s been playing at this level all of his live. He’s not talking about it, but he’s come through some ups and downs, because that it what this music business is like. He always wasn’t the iconic artist that he is now, but one thing for sure, but he’s still humble and down to earth. He still talks to people and signs autographs. He doesn’t talk down to people-he’s an open kind of a guy
He was doing some interviews at his house and he invited me to come by. He’s just a down home country boy who understands that regardless of who you are, you must bring love into the picture, and listen. He’s got big ears; he listens
He doesn’t act like he knows how to do everything. He makes me nervous because he’s so humble!
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“He’s just a down home country boy who understands that regardless of who you are, you must bring love into the picture, and listen”
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ONE MORE THING YOU HAVE IN COMMON-YOU HAVE A BIBLICAL FAITH AND BACKGROUND. BOBBY, YOU WERE THE SON OF A PREACHER, AND KENNY, YOU’RE A CHURCH GOER AND MAN OF FAITH. HOW DO YOUR FAITHS UNITE YOU AND HELP YOU SEE THE BLUES?
KWS–We come from an area where there are a lot of religious people, and there are a lot of different religions being practiced, not just down in the south, but across the country.
We both have our own religious backgrounds, but my intention through my music that I want to give glory to God
Every time I walk out on stage, I pray that first of all we can entertain the people and bring some light into their lives through the gift of music that God has blessed us with, and that we can give glory to Him in the performance.
We both walked into this record with the same intention as well. We prayed that God’s will be done through both of us and the tour that we’re about to do together.
Ultimately we want to show people a good time through the music that we’ve been blessed to perform. That brings everyone together.
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*Every time I walk out on stage, I pray that first of all we can entertain the people and bring some light into their lives through the gift of music that God has blessed us with, and that we can give glory to Him in the performance”
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BECAUSE YOU ARE A BELIEVER, DO YOU SEE THE BIBLE DIFFERENTLY THROUGH MUSIC, OR DOES YOUR MUSIC APPEAR DIFFERENTLY SINCE YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN?
KWS–Here’s the thing…
I’ve never tried to use my music as a platform to preach to people. I try to subtly effect people through the music, and hopefully bring them to a realization that there is Something bigger out there in control of all things. Someone who has bestowed His gifts on me. I didn’t ***create this talent. Someone gave me the ability and opportunity to entertain people so well that, that there’s got to be something more to it than just me. Maybe that will turn them on to thinking about something else.
Also, just trying to be a good example
People are more likely to be receptive things when their more attracted to it than when they’re being promoted to it. That’s what I do.
I have subtle messages in some of my songs here and there, but I never try to beat people over the head. I feel that people need to come to their own realizations about things.
If I can just be a conduit through the music to help establish some sort of connection with somebody, then so be it.
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“We both have our own religious backgrounds, but my intention through my music that I want to give glory to God”
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BR:. Well said.
I got a lot of things from my daddy being a preacher. With him being a preacher, you would think that he would not want me singing the blues
My daddy never told me not to sing the blues, but he never told me TO sing the blue. He gave me a green light
I don’t want to put religion across peoples’ heads, but I am a believer, and I know that God put me and Kenny together, but I won’t be bringing that onto the bandstand.
I want people to know that I’m a believer, but I’m also a blues singer, man!
I sing about the fat ladies, the skinny ladies, the ugly ladies, the good looking ladies. I sing about all of the ladies! And they all need some loving! (laughs)
I did tell a lie in a song that I wrote called “Big Fat Woman” where I said that I didn’t Want to Sleep with a Fat Woman No More. I lied about that. (laughs)
Life is life!
The point that I’m getting to is that Kenny came to this table with such a gift and such an open mind about it, he let me be free to do what I feel needs to be done in order to entertain people. He was supportive; he trusted me, and I trusted him.
If something came up where we didn’t agree, we’d just say, “Well, we’ll just not do that”
We want to show the world that we can bring love, music and good times to people
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“I think people need to rally around people who are really creating real music and putting their heart and soul into it with real instruments instead of just putting everything onto the computer and letting the computer do all of the work”.
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BOBBY RUSH-YOU’RE THE LAST LINK TO THE OLD DAYS OF THE CHITLIN CIRCUIT WITH BUDDY GUY AND BB KING. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO PASS ON TO THIS UPCOMING GENERATION OF ARTISTS THAT KWS NEEDS TO PASS ON TO OTHERS?
BR-That’s my problem. I want to make some money
There are only three things in this world that I’ve ever wanted to do. Making music, making money and making love to you! (laughs) That’s it for me.
If I can do that, I’m cool! I’m heaven bound
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“There are only three things in this world that I’ve ever wanted to do. Making music, making money and making love to you! (laughs)….
If I can do that, I’m cool! I’m heaven bound”
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KENNY, WHAT HAVE YOU GOTTEN FROM BOBBY RUSH THAT YOU WANT TO PASS ON?
KWS: ***First, it’s ultimately all about being your authentic self, and how that connects with the people. When you’re being true to yourself through the music, you connect with people.
I’ve seen all of these guys and have been blessed to have played with legendary people that I’ve looked up to over the years. One thing that stands out is that they were all just being themselves, and that they played the music they felt inspired to play. That’s what people connect with.
I think that people really need to get behind this music. There is a fan base for blues music, and its expanding
I don’t listen to a whole lot of new music, as it all starts to sound the same and it doesn’t ***have a lot of soul in it. That’s why I think people need to rally around people who are really creating real music and putting their heart and soul into it with real instruments instead of just putting everything onto the computer and letting the computer do all of the work.
It’s an art form. Writing songs, performing it and doing it for real is an art form that needs to be appreciated.
BR-I’d like to add something to that.
Here’s what Kenny brings to the table
I had a song called “Who Was That Awhile Ago?”. I never dreamed that Kenny would understand that song. When I said “Awhile Ago” his eyes just lit up. I knew that if he understood that song, then I’d be free to do whatever I wanted to do
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“at the end of the day, if you create something and put it out there, you put it out there because you want people to appreciate it”
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BOBBY-WHEN LIFE IS OVER AND THEY PUT YOU IN THE BOX, WHAT DO YOU WANT PEOPLE TO REMEMBER YOU FOR?
BR: Being good at what I do. I tell this too all the young kids around me-be good at what you’re doing.
You don’t have to like Bobby Rush, but if I’m good at what I’m doing, then you’ll say,
“I don’t like him, but he sure is good” That’s all that matters.
KWS–Ultimately, anyone who entertains, whether an actor, artist or musician, if you put yourself out there with your craft, we all want the same thing. We want to be remembered as being good at what we do, and that we put our best into it. We want to be accepted for that
Part of being an artist is that some people act like they don’t want to be successful. But at the end of the day, if you create something and put it out there, you put it out there because you want people to appreciate it.
At the end of the day, you just want to be appreciated for what you did, and that you did a good job at it
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“if you put yourself out there with your craft, we all want the same thing. We want to be remembered as being good at what we do, and that we put our best into it. We want to be accepted for that”
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,AS BOTH MEN HAVE LEARNED FROM THE BIBLE, “THREE THINGS REMAIN-FAITH, HOPE AND LOVE. THE GREATEST OF THESE IS LOVE”. FOR KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD AND BOBBY RUSH, THEIR FAITH IN THE LORD, HOPE IN THE MUSIC AND LOVE OF THE BLUES SHOW THAT THEY HAVE TOGETHER GRASPED ONTO THINGS THAT ARE NOT ONLY TIMELESS, BUT, YES, OLD AND NEW FASHIONED.
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