A Night At Red's Ice House With Eddie Bush And Company-Boats, Beer, And Music

Shem Creek at sunset

While "Rock of Ages" semi-rocked the theaters, Eddie Bush was pickin' his guts out for the party crowd at Red's Ice House on Shem Creek. "Rock of Ages" is a rock/jukebox musical about a night of revelry and debauchery at the beer soaked Bourbon Room on the Sunset Strip with a "Footloose" theme. It features Tom Cruise as the ripped and jaded metal musician/singer Stacee Jaxx decked out in a Bret Michaels type of bandanna, only blue, and sporting an Axl Rose attitude. While the movie has gotten cool reviews, Tom Cruise's performance as Stacee Jaxx has gotten "thumbs up" reviews along with an endorsement from Bret Michaels himself. It features old hits like "Sister Christian", "Anyway You Want It", "Cum On Feel the Noize", and "Wanted Dead or Alive", which makes it worth seeing for a nostalgic trip back to the 80's brand of rock music.

Red's Ice House on Shem Creek is a popular restaurant/bar located in Mt. Pleasant. The views from its water-side decks on the boat busy Shem Creek are spectacular, especially around sunset. It attracts a high-energy crowd with only one objective on their mind, fun. It has its own dock where boats can pull in and out throughout the night, a full service bar close to the action inside and out, and an upper deck for the ultimate view of Shem Creek. It also has a dog-friendly policy, which I soon became quite aware of from the slobbery licks on my hand as I walked on the outside decks.

Upper deck at Red's Ice House

It is not hard to guess where Red's Ice House got its name, because that is what it literally was back in the early days, an ice house owned by Lewis Hughes Simmons, also known as "Red". The Simmons family first built a dock in 1957 along the Shem Creek to provide a shrimp packing shed for local shrimpers. Then, in the 1970s Red Simmons installed a big ice blowing machine to fill the ice holds of the local fleet. So, from that time until the late 1990's he provided both the ice and housing services for fish packing. And so, the restaurant /bar in honor of its one time owner bears the name Red's Ice House.

Every Friday and Saturday night there is live entertainment. Eddie Bush was the featured performer scheduled and the main reason I came to Red's Ice House this particular Saturday night. When I arrived around 8:15pm, the restaurant and decks were packed with young and older. The Palmetto Breeze was just pulling into the docks with a full compliment of sightseers and fun seekers. For your information, the Palmetto Breeze is a sailing catamaran with 1,700 square feet of decking, plus covered seating. It offers a variety of daily public cruises, including dolphin sails, pirate adventures, barrier island sunsets, and historic Charleston Harbor sails. It is also available for private charters. Tonight's cruise was the Harbor Dolphin Sunset Sail. For more information on itinerary and dates go to the Palmetto Breeze calendar.

Palmetto Breeze catamaran

The skies were beautiful and the temperature was a perfect 72 degrees. The air wasn't saturated with the usual southern humidity, but a hint of testosterone and estrogen could be detected. The conversations were boisterous and filled with laughter. Just what you would expect of Red's Ice House on a Saturday night. Tonight, Coronas looked like the favored choice of beer judging by the empty bottles left on the deck rails and tables. I started to make my way around the outside decks to take some pictures, at which time I got my first slobbery kiss from one of the female patrons, this one happened to be on a leash. I thought I might fair better down where the boats come into the docks, so I parked myself for awhile at the boat entrance to take videos and pass the time until Eddie Bush took to the floor. I got a few nods and smiles, but no kisses. I did have a brief conversation with two very attractive, nicely dressed women who were curious about what I was doing at the restaurant.

Boaters on Shem Creek

Boats docking at Red's Ice House

Red's Ice House crowd

Eddie Bush started his first set around 10:15pm. Eddie needs no introduction. He is a Charleston favorite and draws a crowd where ever he goes. He is well known for his fiery guitar riffs and energized performances. Another talent became apparent tonight, he would make an excellent radio talk show host judging by his introduction of his accompanying bassist, Ben Bennett, where he encouraged him to do a rendering of "Billy Jean". Eddie was also joined by Julie Beam, the birthday girl of the night with excellent moves and harmony singer. I will let the videos speak for themselves and enjoy the pictures as well. See you around town.