To paraphrase Artur Wachala who introduced Ruthie saying that “This is a great audience for a blues show. I am going to say something unusual about this performance. It will be fun”. As if by cue, one of the volunteers stepped in front of him and announced the food he was serving. Artur quickly improvised and announced it was also about the volunteers, the volunteer hammed it up. “Great save” remarked Ruthie. That set the tone for a joyous set that followed.
Ruthie appeared on stage with new brand new green JRS guitar. So new, that it had yet to be given a name. But she remarked that it could play both acoustic and electric music equally well.
She opened with the title track of the Grammy Award winning album “Mileage”. The title referring to the her journey as a proud Texan LGBTQ blueswoman. It was inspired by a recent physical by her physician.
Her 90 minute set was peppered with all kinds of free form anecdotes and songs in no particular order ranging from :
- Cruising through Missisippi and sampling the local food.
- Cruise ship gigs.
- Singing in church.
- Lessons from singing in front of a big band ( You can’t win against a horn section. Ennunciate while you sing).
- Online jamming during COVID
- Mississippi John Hurt Festival & grounds in Avalon, MS
- the influence of BB KIng
- Sun Records
Her composition “Six Mile Water” spoke of her hometown and her connection to her late mother through the creek that ran through her hometown.
The Elvis Presley hit “Thats All Right” was brought back to its blues roots by slowing it down to the pace of Big Boy Crudup’s 1946 original. Both of these were released on Sun Records. The link to these recordings was completed by releasing this on Sun also.
“Four AM” spoke of the loneliness of the road, being pumped out by the vibe of live performance and unable to come down.
She freely scatted throughout her set.
Although I had anticipated seeing her perform with her crack band; I certainly was not disappointed with this performance. This performance was liberating and fun for both the audience and her. The performance was punctuated by gails of laughter by all.
Thanks again to the staff and volunteers at Caffe Lena for facilitating this fun filled evening.
