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“Raw, fresh and full of energy!” Freddy Cellis, Rootstime (Belgium)

“Burgin’s clean, reverb-soaked guitar licks recall Magic Sam, while his vocals sound breezy and effortless. It takes a special talent to generously share the spotlight and bring out the best in a star-studded cast of musicians. Burgin and his friends clearly had a great time on stage, and that makes Johnny Burgin Live a joyous listen.” Jon Kleinman, Living Blues

“A master of controlled chaos, Johnny has the great ability and chops to take it to the edge and bring it right back home. Johnny Burgin Live is an excellent live snapshot, a great inducement to catch these folks in person.” Bob Monteleone, Big City Blues.

Now available on LP! “Johnny Burgin Live” was nominated for a Blues Blast Award for Best Live Blues Recording of the year. It debuted at #3 on the Living Blues blues radio chart last October and hit #1 on the Roots Music Report Chicago Blues Chart in November of 2019. It was at #1 or #2 on the Oregon Top 50 Roots Music Report Album chart from November to February. It offers twelve brand-new originals and two covers performed by Johnny’s regular road band and augmented by the cream of the crop of West Coast blues talent. The band had just one night to nail it – which made this recording a crazy, but thrilling, high wire act! Johnny drew from the great Bay Area blues talent pool that lured him to the West Coast back in 2016. Blues legend Charlie Musselwhite’s driving boogie-woogie harp on California Blues is an absolute highlight. You could feel a jolt of electricity run through the crowd when Portland, Oregon-based Rae Gordon took the stage. The end result is a raw, fresh, and original all-star set of blues, shot through with live energy. Recorded 1.5.19 at Redwood Cafe, Cotati, CA.

My thing has always been live music. Going to shows, booking shows, playing shows. Playing with the best musicians I could. More than anything, I loved the feeling of getting in the van and going. Even better, once I got there, I love the feeling of knockin’ em dead.

It’s been nearly 20 years since my last live CD. That one, More Real Folk Blues Live, was Chicago in every way, back when living in Chicago was like Christmas for me every day. It was the result of seeing and playing with great blues artists all the time– artists like Eddie C. Campbell, Tail Dragger, Sam Lay, Eddie Taylor Jr., Jimmy Dawkins, Eddie Shaw, Little Arthur Duncan, Jimmy Burns, Big Smokey Smothers, L.V. Banks, Eddy Clearwater– and many others. It was a recording borne of a long, self-imposed apprenticeship– the kind musicians like me came to Chicago from all over the world to get. Although that apprenticeship ended some time ago, I have begun another journey that’s taken me from coast to coast in the US and all around the world, across Europe, to Russia, Japan and beyond.

Live recordings often just repeat well-worn songs played by well-oiled machines. This live session is the exact opposite. It offers twelve brand-new originals done by artists who don’t play together regularly, performed for a packed house of enthusiastic fans of course! We had just one night to nail it– which made this recording a crazy, but thrilling, high wire act! The many miles and musical clairvoyance I’ve enjoyed with my road band of bassist Chris Matheos and drummer Steve Dougherty gave me the confidence for this do-or-die session. I drew from the great Bay Area blues talent pool that lured me to the West Coast back in 2016. I count all my special guests as friends and knew their contributions would carry me through. Blues legend Charlie Musselwhite’s driving boogie-woogie harp on “California Blues” is an absolute highlight. The end result is a raw, fresh, and original all-star set of blues, shot through with live energy.

Chicago Blues sax legend Eddie Shaw once said, “It takes 20 years to make a bluesman.” Here I am, ready to play my blues for you.

–Johnny Burgin


Johnny Burgin: vocals, guitar
Aki Kumar: harp (1, 5), percussion (3, 9)
Kid Andersen: guitar (all except 4, 7, 12), piano (7, 12)
Chris Matheos: bass
Steve Dougherty: drums
Rae Gordon: vocals (tracks 6-9)
Charlie Musselwhite: harmonica (tracks 11-13)
Nancy Wright: sax (tracks 6-10, 14)

Recorded live at Redwood Café, Cotati, CA on January 5, 2019
Album Production and Supervision: Julia A. Miller and Elbio Barilari
Live Sound Production Assistance: Randy Teaford and David Formato
Mastered by Steve Wagner at Delmark Records’ Riverside Studio, Chicago
Produced by Stephanie Tice and Johnny Burgin
Mixed by Kid Anderson at Greaseland Studios


https://rockinjohnnyburgin.com/