Published on Jan 17, 2000
Chances are, unless you grew up in the folk and Americana
revivals in music during the ’60s and ’70s, you don’t know the name
or music of Tom Rush.
But once you listen to the recently-released career
retrospective
The Very Best Of Tom Rush: No Regrets, you’ll think that
you’ve known his music all your life — and you’ll wonder how
anyone can live without it. In fact, if you listen real close, you
may realize that you do indeed know at least one of his songs —
but more on that in a minute.
Rush’s name might not be mentioned in the same breath as those
of contemporaries Gordon Lightfoot, Steve Goodman — or even more
modern trailblazers like the late Harry Chapin and John Hiatt. Rush
is able to craft a picture out of musical notes and vocals, and
create something that could easily be hung in the Louvre. The
drawback? You damn well better be paying attention to everything
Rush has to say, or else you’ll be lapped faster than a stalled car
at Indianapolis.
The thing about the songs featured on this collection is that
Rush didn’t write most of them — but he’s able to inject so much
personality into these tracks that you’d swear that he penned them.
Listen to the gentle, loving touch he gives on the live version of
“Jamaica, Say You Will,” and try to remember that it was really
Jackson Browne who wrote the song. It’s hard —
man, is it hard.
Looking back, “gentle” and “loving” are two words that best
describe a lot of the songs on
The Very Best Of Tom Rush: No Regrets. Whether it’s the
subtle reminders of the brevity of childhood on Murray McLaughlin’s
“Child’s Song,” the way Rush can make eight minutes fly by on Bukka
White’s “Panama Limited” or the absolute mastery of the folk music
of his time on Eric Von Schmidt’s “Joshua Gone Barbados,” Rush is
able to hook you in and captivate you until the last note fades
out. The last time I felt like that was the only time I ever saw
the late Townes Van Zandt perform.
There’s only one real misfire on this collection — Rush’s dip
into country with “Ladies Love Outlaws,” which at least knows when
to quit. Granted, many artists were getting into the country-folk
movement, like the Byrds, so at least one can appreciate what would
lead Rush into the same path. Unfortunately, it’s just not that
special.
Even on the newest track, “River Song” — a track penned by Rush
— he shows that he’s lost none of his power or artistry. If
anything, this track serves as further evidence that Rush should
have been as recognizable a name as Bob Dylan’s for all these
years. Instead, Rush has become one of the best-kept secrets of the
music industry.
The Very Best Of Tom Rush: No Regrets is a powerful
collection that is a guarantee to make the old folkies rush to
their record collections and dust off their old vinyl copies of
Rush’s work. It’s also guaranteed to raise a new level of interest
in his work from the younger generation — and might just finally
win Rush the recognition he deserves.
2000 Christopher Thelen and “The Daily Vault”. All rights
reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without
written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of the
record label, and is used for information purposes only.