Who is Tom Rush

NEWS! Don't miss Tom Rush at Prescott Park in Portsmouth, NH on Wednesday evening, July 1st. It's a free concert in the park. Bring your own chair or blanket to sit on, and enjoy a great evening of music as you watch the boats go by.

Here's the rest of his upcoming schedule (as of June 2009)

July

1 - Portsmouth, NH - Prescott Park - 7 PM
16 - Ogunquit, ME - Jonathan's - 8 PM
17 - Gt. Barrington, MA - Guthrie Center - 8 PM
18 - Gt. Barrington, MA - Guthrie Center - 8 PM
31 - Woodstock, NY - Bearsville Theater

August

1 - Manchester, CT - Cheney Hall - 8 PM (Best of "Folk'on Fridays" opens)
2 - Larchmont, NY - Watercolor Café - 7:30
15 - Schwenksville, PA - Philadelphia Folk Festival

September

5 - Lowell, MA - Lowell Summer Music Series - 7:30 PM
10 - New York City - BB King Blues Club - 8 PM
11 - Norfolk, CT - Infinity Music Hall - 7:30 PM
12 - Fall River, MA - Narrows Center for the Arts - 8 PM
13 - Newburyport, MA - Firehouse Center for the Arts - 3 & 7 PM
17 - Plymouth, NH - Plymouth State College/Silver Center - 7 PM
19 - Randolph, VT - Chandler Music Hall - 7:30 PM

October

9 - Minneapolis, MN - Cedar Cultural Center - 8 PM
11 - Chicago, IL - Old Town School of Folk Music - 7 PM

November

11 - Toronto, ONT - Hugh's Room - 8:30 PM
12 - Toronto, ONT - Hugh's Room - 8:30 PM
13 - Bethel, NY - Bethel Woods Center for the Arts - 8 PM
14 - Utica, NY - Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute - 8 PM

December

4 - Londonderry, NH - Tupelo Music Hall - 7 PM
6 - Philadelphia, PA - World Café Live - 7:30 PM

2010

January

10 - Livermore, CA - Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center - 7 PM

March

12 - Annapolis, MD - Ram's Head - 7 PM
13 - Alexandria, VA - The Birchmere
14 - Wilmington, DE - Grand Opera House - 8 PM
27 - Pittsfield, MA - Colonial Theatre - 9:15 PM


April

9 - Manchester, NH - St. Anselm College - 8 PM
10 - Brooklyn, NY - First Acoustic Concert PAC - 8 PM


May

14 - West Hartford, CT - Saint Joseph College - 8 PM
15 - Old Saybrook, CT - Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center- 8 PM

June

12 - Carlisle, MA - Union Hall Coffeehouse - 8 PM

The first time that I saw Tom Rush was at a 1960's outdoor concert at the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln, Massachusetts. My mother insisted on going to it, and I was too young to babysit my little brother. So, we all went. I expected to be bored, as usual.

Somewhere between the performances of Jim Kweskin's jug band and the Charles River Valley Boys, Tom Rush took the stage, and I was as smitten as any pre-teen could be.

At first, it was the boots; back then, unless it was winter, only bikers wore boots. Tom had the biggest, heaviest boots -- probably forerunners of Frye boots -- and I remember the cloud of dust as he walked along the dirt path to the stage. I was practically hypnotized, watching as tiny flecks of mica sparkled in the sun and drifted back to earth.

Then, when Tom Rush started playing, his music sounded like nothing I'd ever heard before. It seemed easy. He was relaxed, laughing and talking directly with the audience. He hit every note and his rhythm was impeccable, but his technical expertise was just a backdrop.

What impressed me then, and still does, is how casually Tom makes music. Tom's performances, like his comments between songs, are about the joy of music and creative expression. It's as if he's sharing his favorite songs with us, and we're his closest friends.

I was fortunate to be in the Boston area during the peak of the folk music revival, and then at Cambridge Common when the hippie movement resulted in free, Sunday concerts. From afar, I had crushes on many musicians.

However, Tom Rush was the first musician who impressed me, and I'm still awed by his influence on music today.