Ruthie Foster is a Texan. She grew up in the Brazos Valley of Central Texas, and now lives in the musical hotbed of Austin. But for her latest album, she went “Back to Memphis,” to borrow a Chuck Berry song title — and we mean that both musically and geographically.

Ever since her 1997 debut, Foster’s albums have generously borrowed from blues, soul, funk, rock and country-music styles, whether she was engaging in some song-to-song genre-hopping, or commingling those forms to create something uniquely her own. For “The Truth According to Ruthie Foster,” however, “I felt like I wanted to capture the vibe of that Memphis-soul sound, but more guitar-oriented,” she says.

Foster, who comes to The Ark on Friday, certainly succeeded on that front. First, in order to immerse herself in the Memphis-soul vibe, she traveled to Memphis, cut the album in the famed Argent Studios and recruited the legendary Memphis Horns.

But to give it a more guitar-intensive sound — and who can argue with that? — she also lured the great Robben Ford, who, in addition to his own solo career, has lent his eloquent but biting guitar phrasing and riffage to the recordings of Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell and seemingly about a hundred others. Topping it off was Foster’s ability to bring aboard keyboard player Jim Dickinson, a venerable soul-music / roots-rock stalwart who has also played with Dylan, not to mention the Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin and, again, scores of others.

“I felt so lucky that I was able to get both of them,” gushes Foster during a recent phone interview. “Robben was definitely at the top of my list, and he doesn’t do too many sessions for other artists any more, and he was just getting ready to go on a tour of Europe. So we only had him for a small window — so we used every note he played,” she adds with a laugh.

And every note is a keeper, whether it’s an elegantly jazzy phrase, a slow-blues burner or a rip-snorting rocking-blues solo. As for Dickinson, “he just brought so much history, and true soul, and it was a humbling experience for me, for him to even come and do the sessions,” says Foster admiringly.

Together, this ensemble cooks up some simmering soul-funk grooves but also pays homage to the blues, particularly via Ford’s presence. And Foster delivers a couple of unadorned, acoustic-based, gospel-soul confessionals that cut to the bone.

Foster wrote about half the songs on the record, but she also likes to find material from other sources. On “Truth,” one cover is her interpretation of Patty Griffin’s “When It Don’t Come Easy.” “I really like a lot of what Patty does, and that whole Americana-music scene in general,” says Foster. “I had been playing that Patty record, and I cut a demo of it, and I had it at the top of my list of covers that I wanted to ‘make the cut’ and make it onto the album,” she says.

“She’s a great writer, so I wanted to stay true to her version, but, you know, also put my own spin on it,” says Foster. On the disc, Foster also employs her sultry, emotive voice — which, to many listeners will evoke early Bonnie Raitt, or perhaps Susan Tedeschi — to punch up the emotional power of tunes made famous by soulsters like Ann Peebles and O.V. Wright - “(You Keep Me) Hangin’ On” and “Nickel and a Nail,” respectively.

As for Foster’s having “big ears,” as they say in the business, she attributes that to being exposed to many styles of music, as early as her childhood years.

“It seems like I always just let genres find me, instead of me looking for them,” says Foster. “That was true even when I was a kid — my grandfather was a huge country-music fan, and used to listen to those high-wattage country stations a lot, so I heard a lot of that kind of music growing up.

“And then when I first heard those Ray Charles country albums” — the seminal two-volume set, “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music” from 1962 — “I thought, ‘Geez, here’s a black artist, playing country songs. In terms of the supposed ‘barriers’ between different styles of music, that just opened everything up for me.”

Kevin Ransom is a free-lance writer who covers music for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at KevinRansom10@aol.com.

PREVIEW Ruthie Foster What: Deft comingling of soul, blues, funk, rock and gospel styles. Where: The Ark, 316 S. Main. When: Friday, 8 p.m. How much: $17.50. Details: 734-761-1451, The Ark web site, Ruthie Foster web site.