Wow! Tom Rush Comes Rock Hall November 15

Folk music legend Tom Rush will be in concert at the Mainstay in Rock Hall, Maryland on Thursday November 15 at 7:30 pm. Admission is $25. For information and reservations call 410-639-9133. Information is also available at the Mainstay’s website https://www.mainstayrockhall.org.

A brilliant musician & performer, Tom Rush has had a profound impact on American music. He helped shape the folk revival in the ’60s and the singer-songwriter renaissance of the ’80s and ’90s and his music has left its stamp on generations of artists. James Taylor told Rolling Stone, “Tom was not only one of my early heroes, but also one of my main influences.” Country music star Garth Brooks has credited Rush with being one of his top five musical influences.

Rush has long championed emerging artists. His early recordings introduced the world to the work of Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne and James Taylor, and in more recent years his Club 47 concerts have brought artists such as Nanci Griffith and Shawn Colvin to wider audiences when they were just beginning to build their own reputations.

Today, Tom Rush lives in Vermont when he’s not touring. His voice has grown even richer and more melodic with time, and his music, like a fine wine, has matured and ripened in the blending of traditional and modern influences. His distinctive guitar style, wry humor and warm, expressive voice have made him a legend to audiences around the world. His shows are filled with the rib-aching laughter of terrific story-telling, the sweet melancholy of one stunning song after another and the passion of a gritty blues.

Rush began his musical career in the early ’60s playing the Boston-area clubs while a Harvard student. The Club 47 was the flagship of the coffee house fleet, and he was soon holding down a weekly spot there, learning from the legendary artists who came to play, honing his skills and growing into his talent. He had released two albums by the time he graduated.

Rush displayed then, as he does today, an uncanny knack for finding wonderful songs, and writing his own – many of which have become classics re-interpreted by new generations. It is testimony to the universality of his appeal that his songs have been folk hits, country hits, heavy metal and rap hits. Signed by Elektra in 1965, Rush made three albums for them, culminating in The Circle Game, which, according to Rolling Stone, ushered in the singer/songwriter era.

In the early ’70s, folk turned to folk-rock, and Rush, ever adaptable, saw more room to stretch out. Recording now for Columbia, he toured tirelessly with a five man band, playing concerts across the country. Endless promotional tours, interviews, television appearances, and recording sessions added up to five very successful but exhausting years, after which Tom decided to take a break and “recharge” his creative side at his New Hampshire farm.

He returned with a splash in 1981, selling out Boston’s prestigious Symphony Hall in advance. Time off had not only rekindled Rush’s love of music, it had re-ignited music audiences’ love of Rush.

He instinctively knew that his listeners were interested in both the old and the new, and set out to create a musical forum – like the Club 47 of the early ’60s – to allow established artists and newcomers to share the same stage. In 1982, he tried it out at Symphony Hall. The show was such a hit it became an annual event, growing to fill two, then three nights, and the Club 47 series was born. Crafting concerts that combined well known artists such as Bonnie Raitt or Emmylou Harris with (then) unknowns like Alison Krauss or Mark O’ Connor, Rush took the show on the road. From the ’80s to the present day, Club 47 events have filled the nation’s finest halls to rave reviews, and have been broadcast as national specials on PBS and NPR.

In 1999, Columbia/Legacy released a Tom Rush retrospective album that covers his recorded musical history from 1962 on, including tracks recorded for Columbia, Elektra, Prestige and his independent years. Entitled “The Very Best of Tom Rush: No Regrets”, the 17-track compilation included as a bonus a new Tom Rush composition, “River Song,” featuring vocal contributions from Grammy winners Shawn Colvin and Marc Cohn.

A live CD, “Trolling for Owls” released in 2003 by his own Nightlight Recordings, captures a complete performance and includes, for the first time, some of the spoken stories that have endeared him to audiences.

“How I Play (some of) My Favorite Songs” a DVD released in 2005 by Homespun Tapes, shows how he plays some of the remarkable guitar arrangements to ten of his memorable songs.

In 2009, Rush recorded his first studio CD in 35 years. Recorded in Nashville, “What I Know” was produced by his long-time friend Jim Rooney and includes original Tom Rush material, as well as harmonies by Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Bramlett and Nanci Griffith.

The Mainstay (Home of Musical Magic) is the friendly informal storefront performing arts center on Rock Hall’s old time Main Street. It is a 501(c)(3), non profit dedicated to the arts, serving Rock Hall, MD and the surrounding region. It is committed to presenting local, regional and national level talent, at a reasonable price, in an almost perfect acoustic setting. Wine, beer, sodas and snacks are available at the bar.

The Mainstay is supported by ticket sales, fundraising including donations from friends and audience members and an operating grant from the Maryland State Arts Council.

For information and reservations call the Mainstay at 410-639-9133. More information is also available at the Mainstay’s website https://www.mainstayrockhall.org.