Johnny Rawls

Make Them Dance

Catfood Records

Johnny Rawls was born in Columbia, Mississippi, in 1951. Johnny grew up in Purvis, near Hattiesburg. He started out playing clarinet in the school band when he was in 5th grade. Over the next couple of years, he graduated to saxophone, trumpet, and eventually guitar. By the age of fifteen he was in a professional band that backed touring soul artists including Z. Z. Hill, Little Johnny Taylor, and Joe Tex. In the mid-seventies, Johnny became the band director for soul singer O.V. Wright and The Ace of Spades Band, and toured with him until his passing in 1980. Under Johnny’s leadership, he continued to perform as the Ace of Spades band for another thirteen years.

In 1996, Johnny finally recorded his debut album, “Here We Go,” on JSP Records. He has released albums on various labels, including his own label, Deep Soul South. The Blues Music Awards frequently recognize Johnny’s work, and overall he has twenty-five nominations. Johnny won a BMA for Soul Blues Album in 2010 for “Ace of Spades” and another BMA for “I’m Still Around” in 2019. Rawls has played with B.B. King, Bobby “Blue” Bland, and Little Milton. Together Johnny and Bob Trenchard produced Kay, Kay and Ray’s 2001 album “Texas Justice.” Johnny began recording for Trenchard’s Catfood Records in 2006, and this is his tenth recording for the label. Johnny’s band is still The Rays, as some of them have been with him for over twenty years, including Trenchard, bass; Dan Ferguson, keyboards; and Andy Roman, alto and tenor sax. This album is also the last from the late Grammy-winning producer Jim Gaines, and it is dedicated to his memory.

Rawls sings all vocals and plays rhythm guitar on all tracks. Unless mentioned otherwise, the tracks were written by the team of Bob Trenchard and Johnny Rawls. The lead-off song “So Cold” features Johnny’s recognizable voice as he sings “So Cold,” written by Zac Harmon and Trenchard, “True love, can’t be bought, true love can’t be sold…the fire is burning out, how did you get so cold…your touch is colder than ice…how did you get so cold,” with a sax solo from Roman, and additional horns from saxophonist Nick Flood, and trombonist Frank Otero.

“Dreams Of You” features the lyric “you walk into my life…like a big old open door…I won’t forgive, I won’t forget, I want to go back, baby, I want to go back in time, I want to go back when you were mine” with some Hammond B-3 from Ferguson. The title track “Make Them Dance” was written by bassist Trenchard: “Got to prove, make them move…make them dance, make them dance, all night long and make them sing along…make them dance, dance, dance, all night long” with another sax solo from Roman.

“Move In My Direction” was co-written by Sandy Carroll (Gaines’ wife), Stephanie C. Brown, and Will MacFarlane, with Clayton Ivey sitting in on the Hammond organ, as Rawls chimes, “I can’t help but wonder…and all you have to do, baby, is move in my direction…I’ve been in your corner all this time.” On “Costs Too Much,” written by Rawls, “I walk down the street; it comes with a price; it costs too much; it costs too much to get along; it costs too much to be in love.”

“Give It To Me,” “I don’t want to share, I need it every day, I want it all, give it to me, baby, give it to me, baby, I need it all, give it to me, baby.” “Rip Off The Bandage,” “Rip off the bandage, feel the pain…and you’ll find out who you are… rip it off…feel the pain…all the time you let me down, all the time you made me cry, rip off the bandage, rip it off.” On “Say That You Love Me,” written by Trenchard, Middleton opens with some trumpet as Rawls chants, “You say you love me, but I don’t know. You always stay ahead of the game, and I take the blame. Say you love me; that’s all I need.”

“Swimming With The Sharks” features Johnny singing, “Swimming with the sharks, taking chances in the dark, she didn’t care what they say…she didn’t care.” On the closer “The Long Road,” Johnny croons, “Shuffling down the road, as time passes by, traveling’ down the road, come with me, my friend…until’ I reach the end, look ahead, look behind, traveling’ down a long, long road, it’s a long road.”

Johnny Rawls is a soul blues legend. With a career spanning more than fifty years, he’s done it all. An internationally recognized recording artist, music producer, and songwriter who tours extensively throughout North America and overseas, playing approximately 200 dates every year. Whether he’s playing in a small, intimate club or at a large blues festival, Johnny Rawls
always delivers a high-energy show to the delight of audiences everywhere.

Richard Ludmerer

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