Rusty Creek bid a fond farewell to a dearly missed pal with their sweetly exotic new single and video Hello Old Friend (Erich’s Song) — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
The Vancouver roots outfit’s latest release makes an unforgettable dedication to an old friend who influenced the band as a percussionist and songwriter. Rusty Creek combined their original style of country blues, western swing, and Cajun with some traditional South African instruments to commemorate their friend, who grew up in Cape Town.
“He was my great friend who I miss so much,” says Rusty Creek lead vocalist and guitarist Alex Deeth. “When we recorded this song, we used different instruments on it some from South Africa and we captured the kind of rhythm that we knew Erich would have played. We think he would dig the groove.”
Indeed, despite its inspiration, Hello Old Friend isn’t a sad ballad, but more a celebration of life. The fusion of the South African instruments makes it a more upbeat song than you might expect. And when that is mixed with the slide instruments and guitar Rusty Creek are known for, it makes for an original piece of music their old friend would likely be proud of.
Hello Old Friend is the latest release from the band’s album The Road Of Life, released in June. With influences that span the music world, the band’s most recent release is described as roots remastered, with songs that range from a stomping party to reflective storytelling.
Rusty Creek features lifelong musicians Deeth, Peter Callaway, Lee Stephens and Leonard Saidman, who have all had a variety of success in the industry since the 1960s. Their experience makes for a well-polished collection of roots music that you could hear at any pub from coast to coast.
Watch Hello Old Friend above, listen to The Road Of Life below, and take a trip to Rusty Creek’s website, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram.
