Young Fashioned Ways will be available on March 21st
Three-time Grammy Award-winning blues legend Bobby Rush and five-time Grammy nominated singer/songwriter/guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd, unite for a 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 21st. Their debut single, “Who Was That,” will be featured in Lionsgate’s upcoming film Flight Risk starring Mark Wahlberg, available in theaters on January 24th. Additionally, the two artists will embark on a 24-city U.S. tour starting April 25th in Kansas City, MO through August 23rd 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 ten 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…
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.”
- 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
Bobby Rush & Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band 2025 US Tour Dates:
Apr 25 – Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theatre
Apr 26 – Peoria, IL @ Civic Theatre
May 1 – Ft. Smith, AR @ TempleLive
May 3 – New Orleans, LA @ Jazz Fest
May 4 – Houston, TX @ House of Blues
May 6 – Springfield, MO @ Gillioz Theatre
May 7 – Omaha, NE @ Astro
May 8 – Wichita, KS @ TempleLive
May 9 – Denver, CO @ Paramount
May 11 – Cheyenne, WY @ Cheyenne Civic Center
May 13 – Grand Junction, CO @ Avalon Theatre
May 14 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Capitol Theatre
May 16 – Pueblo, CO @ Memorial Hall
May 17 – Santa Fe, NM @ Buffalo Thunder Casino
May 18 – Chandler, AZ @ Wild Horse Casino
June 6 – Dallas, TX @ Majestic Theatre
June 7 – Tulsa, OK @ River Spirit Casino
Aug 15 – Lawrenceburg, IN @ Hollywood Casino
Aug 16 – Appleton, WI @ Fox City PAC
Aug 17 – Minneapolis, MN @ Pantages Theatre
Aug 19 – Rochester, MN @ Mayo Civic Center
Aug 21 – Fort Wayne, IN @ Sweetwater Pavilion
Aug 22 – New Buffalo, MI @ Four Winds Casino
Aug 23 – Lincoln City, IN @ Lincoln State Park Amp
