Blue Note Hawaii
Bobby Rush Raw

    Bobby Rush Raw
    An Intimate Night of Stories and Songs (Solo)


    Rush—born Emmett Ellis, Jr. —grew up on his family’s farm picking cotton, tending to mules and chickens, and living in a home without electricity nor indoor plumbing. He built his first guitar on the side of the family’s house out of broom wire, nails, bottles and bricks.

    The blues, Rush recalls, provided “an escape from the cotton fields. You’d go out on Saturday night to the juke joints, but then on Monday morning you’d go back into the cotton fields to work for your bossman.”

    He left behind farm work to perform on the road with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, and as “Bobby Rush”—a name he took on out of respect to his father, a minister—he toured the jukes and clubs of Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi before settling in Chicago in the 1950s. Through singles on labels including Chess, ABC and Philadelphia International and relentless touring Rush established an unparalleled reputation as an entertainer.

    Rush has become one of the most prominent advocates for the blues tradition, and says “it’s the root of all music, it’s the mother of all music. If you don’t like the blues, you probably don’t like your mama.” 

    And he has no plans to slow down. 

    Tickets $35

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    CLUB POLICIES

    • Seating is Communal & First Come, First Served
    • $10 Food or Beverage Minimum Per Person 
    • Full Bar & Full Dinner Menu Available
    • No refunds or exchange. Please make sure you purchase tickets for the correct date and time. Mahalo!

    Click here to view seating chart full screen.

    • Bobby Rush

      Bobby Rush is the greatest bluesman currently performing on the live circuit.

      He estimates that he has cut over 370 songs since he first began making music. He has been honored with four total Grammy nominations, as well as 46 nominations and 12 awards from the Blues Foundation, and a 2006 induction into the Blues Hall of Fame.

      At age 84, he exudes the energy of a 20-year-old, and is on the road for over 200 dates a year. His hectic tour schedule has earned him the affectionate title “King of the Chitlin’ Circuit,” by Rolling Stone Magazine.

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