Catfood Records announces an April 1st release date for Make Them Dance, the new album from Blues Music Award-winning singer Johnny Rawls. Make Them Dance was produced by Grammy-winner Jim Gaines at his Bessie Blue Studio in Stantonville, Tennessee, and turned out to be the last recording by the beloved Gaines, who passed away last year.  Gaines, whose production work included artists such as Santana and Stevie Ray Vaughan, was honored in a celebration for his life’s work in Memphis shortly after his passing, at which Huey Lewis and Santana sang his praises.

On the new disc, Johnny Rawls (vocals and rhythm guitar) is backed by an all-star cadre of masterful musicians, including Wil McFarlane – guitar; Bob Trenchard – bass; Steve Potts – drums; Dan Ferguson – keyboards; Andy Roman – sax solos; Mike Middleton – trumpet; Nick Flood – baritone/tenor/alto sax; Frank Otero – trombone; with guest slots from Claton Ivey (keys track 4), Jamie McFarlane (bass track 4) Justin Holder (drums track 4); and backing vocals by Kimberly Horton and Trinecia Butler.

“This new Johnny Rawls album is called Make Them Dance and that's what it's going to make you do,” says Rawls. “I have some great love ballads on here, too; some of my best work and produced by the great Jim Gaines. One of the tracks on this is the song, ‘Move In My Direction,’ and  that's what you should do: move in the direction that Johnny Rawls is going.”

The ten tracks on Make Them Dance include a number of original songs either written by Johnny Rawls, record label head Bob Trenchard, or co-written by the two, as well as the bouncy opening track, “So Cold,” penned by Trenchard and Catfood Records labelmate Zac Harmon; and “Move In My Direction,” co-written by Jim Gaines’ widow, Sandy Carroll

About Johnny Rawls

Johnny Rawls is a soul blues legend.  With a career spanning more than 50 years, he’s done it all.  He’s an internationally recognized recording artist, music producer, and songwriter who tours extensively throughout North America and overseas. Three of Johnny’s albums on Catfood Records have made the DownBeat Magazine Critics’ Choice Best of the Year List.  Waiting For The Train and Tiger In A Cage both stayed at #1 on Roots Music Report Soul Blues chart for several weeks.  Johnny has been Top 50 Roots Music Report Soul Blues of year many times. 

The Blues Music Awards, Blues Blast Awards, Living Blues Awards, and the W. C. Handy Awards have all acknowledged Johnny with multiple awards and nominations, including Soul Blues Album of the Year and Soul Blues Artist of the Year.  Living Blues magazine described him as a “soul-blues renaissance man” when he was featured on the cover in 2002.  Johnny is honored to be mentioned on two markers along the Mississippi Blues Trail – one in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, marking the Hi-Hat Club, and another in Rocklin, Maine marking the migration of blues from Mississippi to Maine.

Born in Columbia, Mississippi, in 1951, Johnny grew up in Purvis (near Hattiesburg) and Gulfport.  Johnny’s interest in music began in early childhood. 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 other instruments.  Johnny became interested in guitar when he heard his grandfather playing one Christmas morning and by age 13 was playing guitar seriously.  Johnny’s high school band teacher had a professional band that backed touring soul artists and asked Johnny to join his band as a saxophone player. This began Johnny’s professional career, and at age 15, he was backing artists including ZZ Hill, Little Johnny Taylor, Joe Tex, and The Sweet Inspirations on their tours in the Southeast.  In the mid-1970s, Johnny became the band director for soul singer O.V. Wright, and toured with O.V. until his death in 1980.  Wright’s band, under Johnny’s leadership, continued to perform as the Ace of Spades band for several years.  Then, Johnny became the band director for Little Johnny Taylor.

In 1985, Johnny began touring as a solo artist and made his first solo recording.  A prolific songwriter, hundreds of Johnny’s songs have been recorded. He has released more than 15 albums since his debut solo album, Here We Go, in 1996 on JSP Records, where he later worked as an arranger and record producer.  He has released albums on various labels, including Catfood Records and his own label, Deep South Soul, which he created in 2002. The Blues Music Awards (and its predecessor, the W.C. Handy Awards) frequently recognize his work. To date, ten of Johnny’s albums have been nominated for Soul Blues Album of the Year, with I’m Still Around winning in 2019 and Ace of Spades winning in 2010. He has been nominated for Soul Blues Male Artist many times and received a nomination for Song of the Year.  Roots Music Report declared his 2017 release, Waiting for the Train, one of the top 50 blues albums of the year. Johnny also has multiple nominations/awards from Blues Blast and Living Blues.

A true “road warrior,” Johnny tours extensively throughout the US, and internationally, playing approximately 200 dates every year. He’s performed at major blues festivals, including the Chicago Blues Festival and the Waterfront Blues Festival multiple times. Whether he’s playing in a small intimate club or at a large blues festival, Johnny always delivers a high-energy show to the delight of audiences everywhere.

MAKE THEM DANCE Album Credits

1  So Cold 3:57  (William Harmon & Bob Trenchard 2019)

2  Dreams Of You 3:52  (Bob Trenchard & Johnny Rawls 2025)

3  Make Them Dance 3:21  (Bob Trenchard 2025)

4  Move In My Direction 4:31  (Sandy Carroll, Stephanie C. Brown & Will MacFarlane 2025)

5  Costs Too Much 4:01  (Johnny Rawls 2025)

6  Give It To Me 3:03  (Bob Trenchard & Johnny Rawls 2025)

7  Rip Off The Bandage 3:25  (Bob Trenchard & Johnny Rawls 2025)

8  Say That You Love Me 3:11  (Bob Trenchard 2025)

9  Swimming With The Sharks 3:20  (Bob Trenchard & Johnny Rawls 2025)

10 The Long Road 3:14  (Bob Trenchard & Johnny Rawls 2025)