Chicago Blues Legend Otis Rush Dies at 84

Otis Rush
Otis Rush in 2016.Getty

The guitarist influenced greats including Carlos Santana and Eric Clapton.

Legendary Chicago blues guitarist Otis Rush has died at 84. 

The musician's longtime manager, Rick Bates, told the AP on Saturday Rush died following complications from a stroke he suffered in 2003. 

Rush gained world renown after his 1956 “I Can’t Quit You Baby” hit No. 6 on the Billboard R&B charts.

He helped create the modern urban blues sound and counted greats including Muddy Waters and Willie Dixon among his contemporaries.

Later acts such as Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton and Led Zeppelin--now legends in their own right--found an early influence in Rush.

Born in Mississippi in 1934, Rush grew up signing in the church choir with his six siblings. At the age of just 14, he dropped out of school and moved with one of his sisters to Chicago, where his eclectic style would leave its most indelible mark.

He was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame in 1984 and became a Grammy winner in 1999 for Best Traditional Blues Recording with “Any Place I’m Going." 

Rush is survived by his wife, Masaki Rush, their eight children, as well as grandchildren and great grandchildren.

RELATED STORIES