Culture
Selwyn Birchwood talks about recording with Bobby Rush, going ‘Old School’ on latest album
By: Emily Votaw
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MARIETTA, Ohio (WOUB) – Selwyn Birchwood is an award-winning blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Drawing from influences like Buddy Guy and Muddy Waters, he blends traditional blues with rock and funk, creating a sound that anchors one foot in the “old school” while remaining unafraid of pushing boundaries.
Birchwood plays Saturday in Marietta at the Lafayette Hotel (101 Front Street) as a part of the 32nd Annual River City Blues Festival, organized by the Mid-Ohio Valley Blues, Jazz, and Folk Music Society. Ahead of that show, Birchwood spoke with WOUB Culture. Find a transcript of that conversation, edited for length and clarity, below.
Emily Votaw: Your new record Old School kicks off with the title track, featuring Bobby Rush on lead vocals and harmonica. Why did you want him, in particular, to lead off the new record?
Selwyn Birchwood: Well, I wanted to do a traditional blues album. I’ve done modern blues albums for Alligator Records, and I wanted to do a more rootsy one. And I wrote that song in particular because I wanted to literally do an old school kind of a song, and I felt like it would be great to have one of the actual “old school” performers record with me on it. I had met Bobby Rush a few times and we kind of were buddies in passing, so I sent that song over to his manager and he seemed really into it. I’m really happy with the way it turned out, and the audiences have really been responding well to it.
What was it like to record with him?
Birchwood: Yeah, it was really cool. I’ve been a fan of his for a long time. I started listening to him when I was in high school, to songs like Bowlegged Woman/Knock-Kneed Man and Chicken Heads, all that stuff. It’s still kind of surreal to listen back and know that I’ve recorded a song with him. I wrote the actual song myself, and then I brought it to him. I flew over to Jackson, Mississippi to have him record the vocals and harmonica. I specifically wrote that song for him, and it even quotes one of his songs, I Ain’t Studdin Ya.
Can you tell me a little bit more about the decision to do a more old school style blues record? What inspired that?
Birchwood: Well, I like all kinds of music. I like all kinds of modern sounds, but I started off listening to the traditional kind of blues. And it seems like people are either super modern and can’t really play the traditional style, or they’re super traditional and don’t really want to be outside of that box. And I wanted to make a traditional album to showcase that I can live in both worlds – and have one foot in the old school and one foot in the new school. And I think we really did that with this album.