Darryl Lee Rush comes blasting into the Americana music scene with songs so noticeably fresh and strong, he?s easily won a huge following, dedicated fans and pages of praise for his debut CD, Llano Avenue.
On his sophomore release, Darryl Lee Rush: Live from the River Road Ice House, the Dallas-based Shiner Records artist brings his sharp pen, compelling vocal, captivating guitar and riveting performance to a live, energetic night with Rush?s band caught on disc so that far-flung fans can experience what Rush?s memorable gigs are all about.
Born in the small south central Texas town of Markham, a ?town too tough to die,? Rush was raised in a house next door to the one where his father was born. Of his family, he says, ?music was considered a family value.? Rush began playing in sixth grade on a classical guitar he cunningly refitted with steel strings. Lessons with a local bluegrass picker helped Darryl find his way musically, though Rush developed a smooth style with rough-rocking edges that?s uniquely his own. As his playing progressed, he quickly gained a large dedicated following at clubs in and around the Dallas music scene.
Signing with Shiner Records changed things for Rush, as he explained in the Dallas Observer, "One day we're playing in the neighborhood, the next day we're opening for Diamond Rio at the Nokia Theater." Those bigger gigs allowed Rush to bring his expressive voice to enthusiastic audiences, and to play with artists and new friends like Robert Earl Keen, Randy Rogers and Dwight Yoakam. And Rush states, ?Shiner allowed me to touch and affect so many more people and that let these songs get out there.?
Signing with Shiner Records (an imprint of venerable Palo Duro Records) enabled Rush to work with the greats of Texas music: Legendary producer Gurf Morlix, whose work with Lucinda Williams and Slaid Cleaves is revered by fans, was tapped to produce Rush?s debut record with Shiner?s co-founder Joshua Jones. Llano Avenue debuted at #33 and spent weeks on the Americana radio chart, grabbing the attention of listeners, fans, programmers, radio stations and industry alike. The CD was lauded by critics and artists alike.
Great gigs and performances followed, including not only the Nokia Theater but The Granada Theater, Cheatham Street Warehouse, a stage at KHYI?s Texas Music Revolution, and Bocktoberfest in Shiner, TX and shows at SXSW. Rush quickly became mainstay on Texas radio with fans recognizing truth in his authentic, incisive portraits of life, from his wry observation ?if you didn?t have that caller ID/I?d call you up sometime,? in the CD?s title cut to his haunting ode to a ?so cold? stripper in ?Diary of a Dancer.? Music fans love and cheer Rush?s own original country anthem, ?White Trash Paradise,? and the title track, ?Llano Avenue,? and repeatedly request Rush?s heartfelt version of Chris Knight?s ?Miles to Memphis? and his well-loved cover of Sam Baker?s ?Truale.?
As a songwriter, Rush has been likened to both of those Americana legends as well as to Fred Eaglesmith. The three share an eye for perfect, insightful image and for strong human emotions expressed both musically and in the stunning poetry of their words.
With his new Shiner Records release, appearing December 2007, Darryl Lee Rush: Live from the River Road Icehouse, Rush invites his fans to the best table in the house at a rocking show next to the Guadalupe River where, as Rush says, ?Some of the people there were in that river before the night was through.? Accompanied by bandmates Scott Oldner on lead guitar, Andy Mayer on drums, Don Gallia on an arsenal of harmonicas and Mike McShane on bass, Darryl rocks the Texas roadhouse in his inimitable style with his strong, affecting vocals bringing every word alive and his kick-ass energy infusing the songs with raw feeling and sheer guts.
Two brand new studio cuts grace the CD, both penned by Rush: the rock-inflected Texas narrative ?Shotgun Annie? and a plaintive, searing look at a life being lived too fully in ?Lot.? Darryl Lee Rush fans ? and there will be more and more of them every day ? will love hearing their favorite cuts with live energy and will thrill to the new songs
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