(RCPMK) Three-time Grammy Award-winning blues legend Bobby Rush and five-time Grammy nominated singer/songwriter/guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd, unite for a very special collection of new blues songs that the two artists wrote and recorded together. Titled YOUNG FASHIONED WAYS, the album will be available on March 21.
Their debut single, "Who Was That," which will also be featured in Lionsgate's upcoming film "Flight Risk" starring Mark Wahlberg that releases on January 24, drops today. Additionally, the two artists will embark on a 24-city U.S. tour starting April 25 in Kansas City, MO through August 23 in Lincoln City, LA, with additional dates to be announced.
Born about 44 years apart, Rush and Shepherd joined forces at Royal Studios in Memphis, Tennessee for the sessions that led to YOUNG FASHIONED WAYS which includes 10 tracks featuring Shepherd's trademark guitar work and Rush's soulful vocals, rhythm guitar and harmonica. The 91-year old Rush is a three-time Grammy Award winner for "Best Traditional Blues Album" for "Porcupine Meat," "Rawer than Raw" and 2024's "All My Love For You." He is also a 16-time Blues Music Awards winner (with 56 career nominations), and has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame and Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.
In addition to his five-time Grammy nods, Shepherd has received two Billboard Music Awards, two Orville H. Gibson Awards which honors the world's greatest guitarists, a Blues Music Award and a Keeping The Blues Alive Award. He's also scored eight Top 10 singles on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, sharing the record with B.B. King and Eric Clapton for the longest running albums on the Billboard Blues charts with his album, "Trouble Is..."
Says Shepherd, "You don't find albums this 100 percent, real deal authentic every day." He continues, "With me and Bobby collaborating on a project, our age difference is of course going to be part of the initial conversation and makes for good headlines, but at the end of the day, he's an incredibly talented musician and amazing human being who loves the same kind of music I do. We start playing together and all of a sudden, age has nothing to do with us. We were speaking the same language and there was a level of acceptance about truly joining together on the same page with the blues, coming from the same place, spiritually, musically and of course, geographically."
Adds Rush, "I think we both had something to prove to each other with 'Young Fashioned Ways.' There was a moment where I was walking in the hallways at Royal and broke down in tears because as an older man who has spent many years trying to keep up with trends, I so appreciated him letting me in this door to do what I knew I could do. Just as music keeps me young, so does learning something new every day. It's like he (Kenny) said, this kind of album is a rare thing, and when it comes to the blues these days, you can't get much better than we have done it. Nobody who is my age is still doing it like this, and no one Kenny's age can do old-style blues better. We're both looking forward to doing a lot of shows together to support this."
TRACK LISTING FOR "YOUNG FASHIONED WAYS" INCLUDES:
Who Was That
40 Acres (How Long)
Hey Baby (What Are We Gonna Do)
Uncle Esau
Make Love To You
Long Way From Home
G String
You So Fine
Young Ways
What She Said
Rush and Shepherd named the album YOUNG FASHIONED WAYS culminating from their mutual admiration of blues legend Muddy Waters, and the youthfulness of their pairing despite their wide age gap. The two artists also wrote a new version of Waters' "Young Fashioned Ways" based on Willie Dixon's original, re-titled the song "Young Ways," and included it on the album.
The original compositions on YOUNG FASHIONED WAYS either found Shepherd specifically writing licks and melodies to Rush's lyrics, or Shepherd coming up with a riff or melody and Rush reaching into his satchel and pulling out lyrics that fit perfectly. For the tracks with a full band, the songs feature veteran blues and R&B musicians Steve Potts (drums), Charles Hodges (keyboards and B-3), Darryl "DJ" Pruitt" (bass), Doug Wolverton (trumpet) and Charlie Di Puma (saxophone). YOUNG FASHIONED WAYS also includes colorful re-inventions of four classic Rush songs - "40 Acres (How Long)," "G String," "Make Love to You" and "Uncle Esau."
BOBBY RUSH & KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD BAND U.S. TOUR DATES INCLUDE:
4/25/25 - Uptown Theatre - Kansas City, MO
4/26/25 - Civic Theatre - Peoria, IL
5/1/25 - TempleLive - Ft. Smith, AR
5/3/25 - Jazz Fest - New Orleans, LA
5/4/25 - House of Blues - Houston, TX
5/6/25 - Gillioz Theatre - Springfield, MO
5/7/25 - Astro - Omaha, NE
5/8/25 - TempleLive - Wichita, KS
5/9/25 - Paramount - Denver, CO
5/11/25 - Cheyenne Civic Center - Cheyenne, WY
5/13/25 - Avalon Theatre - Grand Junction, CO
5/14/25 - Capitol Theatre - Salt Lake City, UT
5/16/25 - Memorial Hall - Pueblo, CO
5/17/25 - Buffalo Thunder Casino - Santa Fe, NM
5/18/25 - Wild Horse Casino - Chandler, AZ
6/6/25 - Majestic Theatre - Dallas, TX
6/7/25 - River Spirit Casino - Tulsa, OK
8/15/25 - Hollywood Casino - Lawrenceburg, IN
8/16/25 - Fox City PAC - Appleton, WI
8/17/25 - Pantages Theatre - Minneapolis, MN
8/19/25 - Mayo Civic Center - Rochester, MN
8/21/25 - Sweetwater Pavilion -Fort Wayne, IN
8/22/25 - Four Winds Casino - New Buffalo, MI
8/23/25 - Lincoln State Park Amp - Lincoln City, IN
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