Rush is considered a gifted musician and performer whose shows offer a musical celebration. His distinctive guitar style, wry humor and warm, expressive voice have made him both a legend and a lure to audiences around the world. His shows are filled with the rib-aching laughter of terrific story-telling, the sweet melancholy of ballads and the passion of gritty blues.
Rush's impact on the American music scene has been profound. He helped shape the folk revival in the '60s and the renaissance of the '80s and '90s, his music having left its stamp on generations of artists. James Taylor told Rolling Stone, "Tom was not only one of my early heroes, but also one of my main influences." Country music star Garth Brooks has credited Rush with being one of his top five musical influences. Rush has long championed emerging artists. His early recordings introduced the world to the work of Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne and James Taylor, and in more recent years his Club 47 concerts have brought artists such as Nanci Griffith and Shawn Colvin to wider audiences when they were just beginning to build their own reputations.
Rush began his musical career in the early '60s playing the Boston-area clubs while a Harvard student. The Club 47 was the flagship of the coffee house fleet, and he was soon holding down a weekly spot there, learning from the legendary artists who came to play, honing his skills and growing into his talent. He had released two albums by the time he graduated.
Rush displayed then, as he does today, an uncanny knack for finding wonderful songs, and writing his own - many of which have become classics re-interpreted by new generations. (It is testimony to the universality of his appeal that his songs have been folk hits, country hits, heavy metal and rap hits.) Signed by Elektra in 1965, Rush made three albums for them, culminating in The Circle Game, which, according to Rolling Stone, ushered in the singer/songwriter era.
In the early '70s, folk turned to folk-rock, and Rush, ever adaptable, saw more room to stretch out. Recording now for Columbia, he toured tirelessly with a five man band, playing concerts across the country. Endless promotional tours, interviews, television appearances, and recording sessions added up to five very successful but exhausting years, after which Tom decided to take a break and "recharge" his creative side at his New Hampshire farm.
Rush returned with a splash in 1981, selling out Boston's prestigious Symphony Hall in advance. Time off had not only rekindled Rush's love of music, it had re-ignited music audiences' love of Rush's music.
He instinctively knew that his listeners were interested in both the old and the new, and set out to create a musical forum - like the Club 47 of the early '60s - to allow established artists and newcomers to share the same stage. In 1982, he tried it out at Symphony Hall. The show was such a hit it became an annual event, growing to fill two, then three nights, and the Club 47 series was born. Crafting concerts that combined well known artists such as Bonnie Raitt or Emmylou Harris with (then) unknowns like Alison Krauss or Mark O' Connor, Rush took the show on the road. From the '80s to the present day, Club 47 events have filled the nation's finest halls to rave reviews, and have been broadcast as national specials on PBS and NPR.
In 1999, Columbia/Legacy released a Tom Rush retrospective album that covered his recorded musical history from 1962 to the present, including tracks recorded for Columbia, Elektra, Prestige and his independent years. Entitled "The Very Best of Tom Rush: No Regrets", the 17-track compilation includes as a bonus a brand new Tom Rush composition, "River Song," which features vocal contributions from Grammy winners Shawn Colvin and Marc Cohn.
A live CD, "Trolling for Owls" released in 2003 and published by Tom's NIGHTLIGHT RECORDINGS, captures a complete performance and includes, for the first time, some of the spoken stories that have endeared him to audiences.
In 2018, at age 79, he released the album "Voices".
Starlight
Tom Rush Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like starlight on dark water
My love brought life to me
Now I am dying wanting her
And she is loving living free.
And Jesus, you've got to help me this time
The night feels cold, the wind doesn't mind
I can't find my star and my fire has died.
The sun she dies so quietly
So sure of resurrection
And I am dying on the street
Crying for connection.
And Jesus, you've got to help me this time
Sweet Saviour, I've cried till I'm tired
Too weary to weep, too crazy to sleep
The hours and the cold are the company I keep.
The waves roll in on Sunday's dawn
And Sunday's child is smiling
The waves roll out without a word
And Sunday's sun is dying.
Jesus, come and take me home
To when my love was shining
Jesus, won't you let me live ?
Jesus, where there's starlight.
Like starlight on dark water
My love brought life to me
Now I am dying wanting her
And she is loving living free.
And Jesus, you've got to help me this time
Sweet Saviour, I'm lost and I'm blind
And Jesus, you've got to help me this time
Sweet Saviour, I've cried till I'm tired
And Jesus, you've got to help me this time.
In Tom Rush's song "Starlight," he sings about a love that has brought life to him, but he now finds himself dying for want of her while she is out living free. The use of the metaphor "starlight on dark water" creates an image of something vibrant and beautiful that is fleeting and elusive. Rush pleads with Jesus, asking for help to find his way back to his love, who seems to have left him behind. The use of religious imagery invokes a sense of desperation and hopelessness, as Rush is unable to find a way out of his current situation.
The second verse highlights Rush's despair, as he compares himself to the dying sun, patiently waiting for a resurrection that may not come. He is crying out on the street, longing for a connection that seems out of reach. The third verse introduces a glimmer of hope in the form of Sunday's child, who smiles as the waves roll in. However, this hope is short-lived, as the sun dies once again, leaving Rush alone in his misery. The final refrain brings the song full circle, reiterating the power of starlight and the longing for love that comes with it.
Line by Line Meaning
Like starlight on dark water
My love was a shining light in the midst of darkness, like stars on the surface of deep water.
My love brought life to me
Her love was the source of my vitality and gave meaning to my existence.
Now I am dying wanting her
Without her love, I'm slowly withering away, and I feel a desperate yearning to be reunited with her.
And she is loving living free
Meanwhile, she's living her life fully and without constraints, unencumbered by her feelings for me.
The night feels cold, the wind doesn't mind
Throughout the lonely nights, I feel the chill of my isolation, but the world around me remains indifferent and uncaring.
I can't find my star and my fire has died
I've lost the bright light that once guided me, and the passion that once burned within me has been extinguished.
The sun she dies so quietly
Death comes gently for everything, even the powerful and radiant sun.
So sure of resurrection
But even though it may fade away, there is always the possibility of renewal and rebirth.
And I am dying on the street
My suffering has brought me to the lowest point, where I am alone and vulnerable, exposed to the harshness of the world.
Crying for connection
All I want is to connect with someone, to feel seen and understood, and to believe that I am not alone.
Too weary to weep, too crazy to sleep
My exhaustion and desperation are such that I can't even muster tears, and my mind is so consumed by grief that I can't rest.
The hours and the cold are the company I keep
My only companions are the endless hours of misery and the biting cold that accentuates my loneliness.
The waves roll in on Sunday's dawn
Time marches on, and the natural cycles of life continue, no matter how painful or joyful they may be.
And Sunday's child is smiling
Even as I suffer, I see others who are able to find joy and contentment in their lives, and it fills me with both happiness and sorrow.
The waves roll out without a word
But the tide recedes without explanation or response, reminding me that life can be unpredictable and indifferent to our needs and desires.
And Sunday's sun is dying
Once again, the brightness of life fades away, and darkness descends, signaling the end of another day.
Jesus, come and take me home
In my desperation, I turn to a higher power for help, asking for the release of death to free me from my suffering.
To when my love was shining
But I also yearn to return to the time when my love was alive and vibrant, before the pain and isolation set in.
Jesus, won't you let me live?
At the same time, I plead for a reason to keep going, a purpose that will keep me alive, rather than taking me away from the world altogether.
Jesus, where there's starlight
Ultimately, I hope to find a glimmer of hope or connection, a sign that love and light are still present in the world, even in my darkest moments.
And Jesus, you've got to help me this time
Throughout the song, the artist turns to Jesus for aid and guidance, acknowledging the limitations of his own strength and the need for divine support.
Sweet Saviour, I'm lost and I'm blind
He describes himself as lost and crippled by his suffering, in need of someone to help him find his way and see through the darkness.
Sweet Saviour, I've cried till I'm tired
His tears and grief have exhausted him, and he begs for relief and comfort from an external source.
Contributed by Hunter D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.