Ever since B.B. King died, there’s been a lot of unnecessary talk about Buddy Guy being the Last Bluesman Standing From the Golden Era. This isn’t strictly true, but among that generation of blues musicians, Guy does seem to have the highest profile. With reason: though he’s now going on 81, his singing and guitar playing are still in top shape, as is his energy level. Once a year, he continues to play a month-long stint at his club, Legends—proving that the man pictured on the sign outside is no myth. Guy’s most recent album was 2015’s Grammy-winning Born to Play Guitar (RCA), which was right in the blues-rock mode he’s become known for. His special guests this week include Eddy Clearwater (Fri), Li’l Ed & the Blues Imperials (Sat), John Primer (Sun), and tonight, the eternally underrated Bobby Rush, who just played Legends last November. In addition to his wild stage show (shake dancers!), Rush is a fine guitarist and harmonica player who strolls the line between blues and southern soul. While he’s made a concentrated attempt to break through to white audiences within the last decade, he’s in no way compromised his sound—or his wicked sense of humor. Hopefully he’ll trade a round of verses with Guy, like he did during his last Legends appearance (though as those who were there remember, Guy was visibly more interested in Rush’s dancers than in duetting with Rush). v
