John Bush Shinn III (February 17, 1935October 16, 2020) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Nicknamed the "Country Caruso", Bush was best known for his distinctive voice and for writing the song "Whiskey River", a top-20 hit for himself that also became a signature song of fellow country artist Willie Nelson. He was especially popular in his native Texas. He listened to the western swing music of Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys and the honky-tonk sounds of artists such as Ernest Tubb, Lefty Frizzell, and Hank Thompson. His uncle, the host of a local radio program on KTHT, urged Bush and his brother to play on air, giving Bush his first experience of performing in public.
Stardom and vocal problems
A series of regional hits on the Stop label, including "You Gave Me a Mountain" (penned by Marty Robbins), "Undo the Right" (penned by Willie Nelson and Hank Cochran), "What A Way To Live", and "I'll Be There" soon followed. Rock critic Robert Christgau said that Bush's version of "You Gave Me a Mountain" "brings a catch to the throat and a tear to the eye." These songs did well in Bush's native Texas, and reached the national top 20. In 1972, he was signed to RCA Records, whose Nashville division was headed by guitarist Chet Atkins. His first RCA single, "Whiskey River", was climbing the charts with airplay on countless radio stations when his voice began faltering. Bush even felt he was being punished by God for his sins. Bush has since said: "I thought because of my promiscuous behavior and bad choices and being raised as a Baptist, that it was a punishment from God."
Bush lost half of his vocal range and was sometimes unable to talk. RCA dropped him in 1974 after three albums, he developed a drug habit, and was often stricken with performance anxiety when he was able to perform at all. After several misdiagnoses, doctors diagnosed the cause in 1978 when they discovered he had a rare neurological disorder called spasmodic dysphonia. Although this did not prevent him from recording, Bush's career began to take a downturn. He worked with a vocal coach in 1985, and was able to regain 70% of his original voice.
Bush died at a hospital in San Antonio on October 16, 2020. He was 85, and suffered from pneumonia in the time leading up to his death.
Discography
Albums
{| class="wikitable"
! Year
! Album
! <small>US Country</small>
! Label
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1968
| The Sound of a Heartache
| align="center"| 38
| rowspan="5"| Stop
|-
| Undo the Right
| align="center"| 22
|-
| 1969
| You Gave Me a Mountain
| align="center"| 29
|-
| 1970
| Johnny Bush
| align="center"| —
|-
| rowspan="3"| 1972
| Bush Country
| align="center"| —
|-
| The Best of Johnny Bush
| align="center"| 35
| Million
|-
| Here's Johnny Bush
| align="center"| —
| Starday
|-
| rowspan="3"| 1973
| Whiskey River/There Stands the Glass
| align="center"| 38
| rowspan="3"| RCA
|-
| Here Comes the World Again
| align="center"| —
|-
| Texas Dance Hall Girl
| align="center"| —
|-
| 1979
| Johnny Bush and the Bandoleros<br />Live at Dance Town, U.S.A.
| align="center"| —
| Whiskey River
|-
| 1982
| Live from Texas
| align="center"| —
| Delta
|-
| 1994
| Time Changes Everything
| align="center"| —
| TCE
|-
| 1998
| Talk to My Heart
| align="center"| —
| Watermelon
|-
| rowspan="2"| 2000
| Lost Highway Saloon
| align="center"| —
| rowspan="3"| Texas Music
|-
| Sings Bob Wills
| align="center"| —
|-
| 2001
| Green Snakes
| align="center"| —
|-
| 2004
| Honkytonic
| align="center"| —
| rowspan="3"| BGM
|-
| rowspan="2"| 2006
| Texas State of Mind
| align="center"| —
|-
| Devil's Disciple
| align="center"| —
|-
| rowspan="2"| 2007
| Texas on a Saturday Night
| align="center"| —
| Heart of Texas
|-
| Kashmere Gardens Mud
| align="center"| —
| Icehouse
|-
| 2013
| Reflections
| align="center"| —
| Heart of Texas
|-
| 2017
| The Absolute Johnny Bush
| align="center"| —
| BGM
|}
<small>Source: AllMusic</small>
Singles
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Single
! colspan="2"| Chart Positions
! rowspan="2"| Album
|-
! width="50"| <small>US Country</small>
! width="50"| <small>CAN Country</small>
|-
| 1967
| "You Oughta Hear Me Cry"
| align="center"| 69
| align="center"| —
| Sound of a Heartache
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1968
| "What a Way to Live"
| align="center"| 29
| align="center"| —
| rowspan="2"| Undo the Right
|-
| "Undo the Right"
| align="center"| 10
| align="center"| —
|-
| rowspan="3"| 1969
| "Each Time"
| align="center"| 16
| align="center"| —
| rowspan="2"| You Gave Me a Mountain
|-
| "You Gave Me a Mountain"
| align="center"| 7
| align="center"| —
|-
| "My Cup Runneth Over"
| align="center"| 26
| align="center"| —
| rowspan="3"| Bush Country
|-
| rowspan="4"| 1970
| "Jim, Jack, and Rose"
| align="center"| 56
| align="center"| —
|-
| "I'll Go to a Stranger"
| align="center"| flip
| align="center"| —
|-
| "Warmth of the Wine"
| align="center"| 25
| align="center"| 42
| rowspan="4"| The Best of Johnny Bush
|-
| "My Joy"
| align="center"| 44
| align="center"| —
|-
| 1971
| "City Lights"
| align="center"| 53
| align="center"| —
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1972
| "I'll Be There"
| align="center"| 17
| align="center"| —
|-
| "Whiskey River"
| align="center"| 14
| align="center"| 7
| rowspan="2"| Whiskey River/There Stands the Glass
|-
| rowspan="3"| 1973
| "There Stands the Glass"
| align="center"| 34
| align="center"| 60
|-
| "Here Comes the World Again"
| align="center"| 38
| align="center"| 53
| rowspan="2"| Here Comes the World
|-
| "Green Snakes on the Ceiling"
| align="center"| 53
| align="center"| —
|-
| rowspan="3"| 1974
| "We're Back in Love Again"
| align="center"| 37
| align="center"| 83
| rowspan="3"| Greatest Hits
|-
| "Toy Telephone"
| align="center"| 48
| align="center"| —
|-
| "From Tennessee to Texas"
| align="center"| flip
| align="center"| —
|-
| 1977
| "You'll Never Leave Me Completely"
| align="center"| 78
| align="center"| —
|
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1978
| "Put Me Out of My Memory"
| align="center"| 99
| align="center"| —
| Whiskey River
|-
| "She Just Made Me Love You More"
| align="center"| 89
| align="center"| —
|
|-
| 1979
| "When My Conscience Hurts the Most"
| align="center"| 83
| align="center"| —
| rowspan="2"| Whiskey River
|-
| 1981
| "Whiskey River" <small>(re-release)</small>
| align="center"| 92
| align="center"| —
|}
<small>Source: AllMusic, unless otherwise stated.</small>
References
Bibliography
Sources
External links
- Official website
- [ Johnny Bush] at Allmusic
- Johnny Bush at CMT
- Johnny Bush at Lone Star Music