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This was around 1953, and it was a turning point in his life, as thoughts of returning south to
life as a farmer were overtaken by the possibilities of being a bluesman.

He bought himself a Kay guitar and a small amplifier and spent hours practising in front of the
open apartment window. He must have improved very quickly, because the neighbours were
apparently happy to listen to him, and one day the owner of the local Club Alibi knocked on his
door - he had been let down by a band that night, and wondered whether Otis would stand in.
“The man said, I’ll pay you five dollars. Five dollars for me playing my guitar!? I thought that
was terrific!” The audience seemed to like it as well, and he soon ended up working three or
four nights a week, which eventually meant he was forced to quit his day job.

As an electric guitarist, his early
influences were Earl Hooker, Albert
King and Kenny Burrell. However,
he said “I also listened to country
and western, and all kinds of music”.
He once told Living Blues magazine
that he tried to emulate the chords
of organist Jimmy Smith on his
guitar, and on hearing the playing of
T-Bone Walker and B. B. King he
sought to incorporate some of their
stylings into his own, which
increasingly included a stinging
vibrato and intense single string
runs. Coupled with his powerful
gospel tinged vocals, Rush was soon
on the way to becoming a major
player on the Chicago circuit.

Playing left handed with the guitar
strung right handed, as did Albert
Photograph: Paul
King, enabled him to develop a style
Natkin/Getty
that was most definitely his own,
Images
even if his string bending was in a
similar vein to King. That said, both
are instantly recognisable after only
a handful of notes!

He graduated from Club Alibi to the
Brown Derby and 708 Club. From playing with a pick up band much of the time, at the 708 he
was soon working regularly with the Myers brothers, Dave and Louis, who also backed Muddy
Waters and Junior Wells.

One Summer night in 1956, the Chicago ‘fixer’, Willie Dixon, brought Eli Toscano, of Ancona and
Cobra Records, to see him play. Toscano was impressed enough to offer him the opportunity to
record in his makeshift studio. There had been talk of a chance to record for Chess, on the
recommendation of Dixon, but they thought he sounded too much like Muddy Waters. Chess’s
loss was Cobra’s gain, as Dixon temporarily fell out with them, and was talent scouting for Cobra
instead.