Some kinds of music and the people who play them age better than others. It can be a little embarrassing to see a 60 or 70-year old rocker singing about partying, rebellion, or teenage love. But other genres can be more timeless and cross generational boundaries easily – classical music, jazz and blues musicians often get better as the years go on. And the music can speak to, and be made by artists of all ages. This week, we have a great example, a blues album made by pair of musicians from two different generations, separated by over 40 years, who collaborate seamlessly in a great album of classic-style blues. It’s by Bobby Rush and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and their recording is called Young Fashioned Ways.

Bobby Rush and Kenny Wayne Shepherd have both had lengthy careers. Both are originally from Northern Louisiana, and both grew up on the blues. Bobby Rush has been recording since 1967, but he has been performing for longer than that. He was 91 at the time of this recording, and is full of energy, sounding mature, but not old. Kenny Wayne Shepherd, age 47 at the time of this recording, first emerged as a teenage blues guitar prodigy, catching the eye of record producers at age 13, and releasing his first album in 1995 at age 18. His second album Trouble Is still holds the record for the longest period at #1 on the Billboard blues charts.

Rush and Shepherd’s new album shows how compatible they are across generations. They jointly collaborated on composing most of the songs, but there are a few penned by Rush alone. There is a full band in this recording made at Royal Studios in Memphis which had been the site of several soul hits going back to the 1960s. The group here includes keyboard man Charles Hodges, bassist Darryl Pruitt and drummer Steve Potts. There are also three horn player who appear on a few tracks. Bobby Rush is heard extensively on harmonica and some rhythm guitar. Shepherd mostly serves as an ensemble player, but there are a few opportunities for him to shine with strong solos. While the music is in classic-style blues, both musically and lyrically, there is a commendable variety, with a few acoustic tracks, and different tempos, from shuffle style blues, to more laid-back tunes, including one with just vocals and acoustic guitar. It’s all well done with the tight band propelling Rush’s vocals.

Opening the album is a classic Chicago-style style electric blues. The original joint composition is called Who Was That, and the lyrical topic about suspected infidelity have been the staple of blues for the better part of a century. <<>>

A Bobby Rush tune called 40 Acres (Low Long) takes up a broader subject, the long history of racism, in a mostly acoustic setting, in a style reminiscent of John Lee Hooker. It’s one of the album’s highlights. <<>>

One of the more musically infections tracks on the album is Uncle Esau, done New Orleans style with a Bo Diddley beat. <<>>

The album gets down into the figurative musical swamp on a track called Make Love to You, which couldn’t me more direct in its lyrics. <<>>

It wouldn’t be a proper blues album without a song about experiencing hard times. Long Way from Home fits the bill with its semi-acousic arrangement. <<>>

On the bawdy side is another of the acoustic tracks, G String which is another song that doesn’t beat around the bush, it its intentions. <<>>

What it essentially the album’s title track is Young Ways a tune that is credited to Rush, Shepherd and the late Willie Dixon, who wrote many a blues classic. The song is a declaration that just because a guy is old it doesn’t mean he’s isn’t still, let’s say, functional. <<>>

The album ends with its longest track, a slow, mostly acoustic blues called What She Said with archetypical lyrics about fretting over a breakup. <<>>

The blues is truly cross-generational music, with quite few young blues prodigies teaming up with veteran performers, many of whom just seem to get better with age. Kenny Wayne Shepherd was a blues guitar prodigy in his teens, but now at age 47, he is still the junior partner to the 91-year old vocalist, harmonica player and guitarist Bobby Rush, who shows no signs of slowing down. It’s a great pairing. While there is nothing on the album that hasn’t been covered before stylistically, it’s still an excellent testament to the durability of the blues, and there’s a nice variety of sound with some mostly acoustic tracks.

Our grade for audio quality is a B. The production goes in for a raw kind of sound, evoking memories of blues recordings of the past when the old technology resulted in that kind of sound. But in an age of high definition audio, a slightly cleaner sound would have been appreciated, better to the capture the authenticity of the performances.

The blues has been going for over a century now of recordings. Young Fashioned Ways from Bobby Rush and Kenny Wayne Shepherd is a reminder of why.

(c) Copyright 2025 George D. Graham. All rights reserved.
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<<>> indicates audio excerpt played in produced radio review

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