THE FOLK CIRCLE
Rush took a year off after his junior fall to travel around the country and perform, and when he got his college degree in 1964 he had already recorded and released his albums “Tom Rush at the Unicorn” and “Got a Mind to Ramble.” In 1965, Rush signed with Elektra Records and continued performing at Boston coffee houses and other East Coast venues.
In 1966 Rush was performing on tour when he stopped at a music club in Detroit, the Chess Mate. That evening, a young woman asked the owner if she could do a guest set so that Rush could hear her sing. Her name was Joni Mitchell.
At that time, Rush was trying to compile songs for another album, so he asked Mitchell to send him a tape. The tape she sent included the song “The Circle Game,” and Rush liked the song so much that it became the title track of his next album. Released in 1968, “The Circle Game” also included covers of songs by James Taylor and Jackson Browne—two other artists that Rush helped popularize.
“I was at a point in my career when I didn’t know what to do next, then along came these three stunning songwriters at the same time,” Rush remembers, adding that he thinks their songwriting was critical to the album’s success.
“The Circle Game” also featured original songs, including his often-covered tune “No Regrets,” which has become a folk standard.
“[Rush] had a good ear for finding singer-songwriters,” says Todd Kwait, a filmmaker who is currently making a documentary about Tom Rush’s life. Kwait argues that Tom’s success hinged on his ability to cover many genres well, his handsome appearance—which Kwait describes as “the Harvard look but also the urban-cowboy type look”—and his ability to find fresh talent.
PLAYING IT FORWARD
In the early 1980s, Rush heard that Boston’s Symphony Hall went unused between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. So, in 1981, Rush decided to use that week to create a forum like Club 47 in Symphony Hall, one that would combine established folk artists and newer folk talent. The plan worked. Rush filled Symphony Hall in the week leading up to New Years for multiple nights, 8 years in a row until the space was unavailable.
But last year, for the first time in 30 years, Rush successfully launched a campaign to rent out Symphony Hall on Dec. 28 to throw a concert celebrating 50 years of performing.
Rush used Kickstarter—an online funding platform for creative projects—to raise more than the $100,000 he needed to rent the hall in one week.
Kwait says this is typical of Rush, who always had a smart, business-minded approach to his music and was quick to adapt to new technologies like social media.
“Tom just turned 72 and here he is selling out symphony hall doing this huge concert,” says Tilney. “He’s still a wonderful performer and giving it 100 percent.”
—Staff Writer Ginny C. Fahs can be reached at fahs14@college.harvard.edu.