Otis Rush

Otis Rush was an American blues guitarist known for his agile jazz style and emotional vocals who became a major force in the Chicago blues world and influenced scores of musicians who followed him. He died from complications from a stroke aged 83 on 29th September 2018.

Born in central Mississippi in 1935, he began to play the guitar at the age of ten and, inspired by Muddy Waters, he moved to Chicago and signed with the Cobra label in 1956. Singles such as 'I Can't Quit You Baby', 'My Love Will Never Die', 'Groaning the Blues' and 'Double Trouble' established him as a major blues artist in the city along with Magic Sam and Buddy Guy. In the 1960s he toured America and Europe with the American Folk Blues Festival and he played regularly at the Ann Arbor Blues Festival in Michigan. Troubled relationships with record labels meant that several albums were not heard widely. Titles include 'This One's a Good Un' (1968), 'Mourning in the Morning' (1969), 'Right Place, Wrong Time' (1977) and 'So Many Roads' (1979), which were both nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Ethnic Or Traditional Recording.

His 1994 release 'Ain't Enough Comin' In' earned another Grammy nomination as Best Traditional Blues Album and he won the award for his final studio recording 'Any Place I'm Going' in 1998. 'Otis Rush & Friends: Live at Montreux 1986' featuring guests including Eric Clapton and Luther Allison, went to number 15 on Billboard's Blues Album Chart when it came out in 2006.