| Johnny Burgin | |
| Birth Name: | Johnny Burgin |
| Birth Date: | 17 July 1969 |
| Birth Place: | Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Genre: | Chicago blues, electric blues |
| Occupation: | Guitarist, singer, songwriter |
| Instrument: | Guitar, harmonica, vocals |
| Years Active: | 1990s–present |
| Website: | http://www.johnnyburgin.com |
Johnny Burgin (born July 17, 1969) is an American blues guitarist and harmonica player. Since 1997, he has released ten recordings under his own name and has played on numerous other recordings as a sideman.
Johnny Burgin was a student and college radio DJ at the University of Chicago. In 1988 he encountered with fellow DJ and harpist David Waldman, who played and recorded with Tail Dragger Jones, Smokey Smothers and others, led to a trip to Chicago's West Side to meet and sit in with Jones.
Although Burgin had already been playing gigs since high school, his initial failure in an authentic blues club setting caused him to try a different approach to his guitar style. He focused on adapting an authentic blues style and worked every Thursday night at Lilly's in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood with the Ice Cream Men. They were a blues band which including Steve Cushing (drums), Scott Dirks (harp), and Dave Waldman (guitar). The Ice Cream Men regularly backed traditional Chicago blues artists such as Golden "Big" Wheeler, Tail Dragger Jones, Jimmy Lee Robinson and Bonnie Lee.
Burgin was then hired by Tail Dragger Jones and began playing four nights a week on Chicago's West Side with seasoned blues performers such as Eddie Burks, Mary Lane, Johnny B. Moore, Lurrie Bell, Little Mack Simmons, Little Arthur Duncan, Jimmy Dawkins and Johnny Littlejohn, among others. He toured the Midwest with Pinetop Perkins, who often had Dave Meyers, a member of the Aces, on bass. Burgin toured nationally for two years with Sam Lay, drummer for Howlin' Wolf and Paul Butterfield.
In 1994, Burgin began a residency at Smoke Daddy, a venue in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood. The band featured Jimmy Burns on vocals and guitar, Martin Lang on harp, Sho Komiya on bass, and either Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith (son of Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, drummer for Muddy Waters) or Kelly Littleton (drummer for Lil’ Ed Williams). During the residency in 1996, Bob Koester, founder of Delmark Records, signed Jimmy Burns with Burgin's band after hearing one set.
Burgin recorded his debut CD (Straight Out of Chicago) as a band leader in 1997. Collaborations with numerous blues musicians, and European tours, followed.
In 2002, Burgin left the music business to raise his family, then returned in January 2009. In the June 1, 2015, edition of the Chicago Tribune, reporter Rick Kogan wrote, "There are few more passionate practitioners of [blues] music than Johnny Burgin.",
Burgin released seven CDs between 2010 and 2020 and increased his touring schedule to perform more than 250 nights a year. In 2016 he moved from Chicago to California and collaborated with West Coast players such as Aki Kumar, Kid Andersen, Alabama Mike, Nick Gravenites, Nancy Wright, and Andy Santana.
Johnny Burgin was born July 17, 1969, in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, but grew up mostly in Starkville, Mississippi, his father's hometown. Burgin's father was an actor and folk musician who taught Burgin how to play guitar. Burgin moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1988 to attend the University of Chicago.
He relocated from Chicago to Petaluma, California in 2016 and then New Orleans in 2021. He dropped the "Rockin'" from his name in 2019 and is now billed simply as Johnny Burgin.
AS A BAND LEADER
| Ramblin' From Coast to Coast | 2024 | Straight Shooter | With special guests John Blues Boyd, Rae Gordon, Dylan Bishop, Hanna PK, Ben Levin, Jad Tariq and 14 other musicians during Burgin's travels to Rochester, N.Y., Cincinnati, Ohio, Memphis, Tenn., and Dallas, Texas. Mixed and mastered by Kid Andersen at Greaseland Studios in San Jose, Calif. | |
| No Border Blues Japan | 2020 | Delmark | The first American compilation of the underground Japanese Blues Scene. With Lee Kanehira, Minoru Maruyama, Kotez, Nacomi Tanaka, Yoshimi Hirata, Kaz Ohnogi, Takagiman, Iper Onishi, Ataka Suzuki, Hironori Yanaga, Fumiko Maejima, Stephen Dougherty and Chris Matheos. Recorded at Fukada Studio, Osaka by Yoshikazu Madokoro. Mixed and mastered by Steve Wagner at Riverside Studio, Chicago. | |
| Johnny Burgin Live | 2019 | Delmark | With special guests Charlie Musselwhite, Rae Gordon, Nancy Wright, Aki Kumar and Kid Andersen. Recorded and mixed by Kid Anderson, mastered by Steve Wagner. | |
| Rockin' Johnny and Quique Gomez | 2019 | Vizztone Label Group | Features Greg Izor, Josh Fulero, Christian Dozzler. Recorded in Toledo, Spain at Casa Madera and Austin Texas at Alnico Studio. | |
| Neoprene Fedora | 2017 | West Tone | Features Kid Andersen, Nancy Wright, Aki Kumar and Alabama Mike | |
| Greetings from Greaseland | 2015 | West Coast Records | Features Kid Andersen (guitar) and Aki Kumar (harp) | |
| Grim Reaper | 2012 | Delmark | Reached No. 7 on the Living Blues Radio charts | |
| Now's the Time | 2010 | 5105 Music | ||
| More Real Folk Blues | 2000 | Midwest Artists | Out of print | |
| Man's Temptation | 1998 | Delmark | ||
| Straight Out of Chicago | 1997 | Delmark |
| Chicago: The Blues Legends: Today! | Mary Lane, Little Jerry Jones, Milwaukee Slim, Mike Mettalia. | 2019 | West Tone | ||
| Tony Holiday's Porch Sessions | 2019 | Vizztone | |||
| Howlin' At Greaseland | John Blues Boyd, Tail Dragger Jones, Terry Hanck, Lee Donald and Alabama Mike | 2018 | West Tone | Nominated for a BMA for Best Tradiotinal Blues CD. An all-star cast of Chicago and California musicians pay tribute to the music of Howlin' Wolf | |
| Chicago Blues Harp Sessions | Martin Lang | 2015 | Random Chance | ||
| 'Straight Blues' | Peter Struijk | 2015 | Blueshine Records (Netherlands) | ||
| Cell Phone Man | Willie Buck | 2014 | Delmark |
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| Tail Dragger Live at Rooster's Lounge | Tail Dragger Jones | Delmark (DVD) |
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| Chicago Jump | Jimmy Lee Robinson | 2004 | Random Chance | ||
| Killer Diller | Shirley Johnson | 2002 | Delmark | ||
| Alive in the City | The Mighty Blue Kings | 2001 | |||
| deLay Does Chicago | Paul deLay | 1999 | Evidence |
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| Singin' With the Sun | Little Arthur Duncan | 1999 | Delmark |
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| American People | Tail Dragger Jones | 1999 | Delmark | ||
| Chicago Blues: Rockin' After Midnight | Various Artists | 1998 | St. George |
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| Rib Tips Live | Little Arthur Duncan | 1997 | Random Chance | ||
| Blues Before Sunrise: Live Vol. 1 | John Brim, Billy Boy Arnold, Big Wheeler, Jimmy Burns | 1997 | Delmark | A Benefit for Steve Cushing's Radio Show | |
| Leaving Here Walking | Jimmy Burns | 1996 | Delmark |
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| Crawlin' Kingsnake | Tail Dragger Jones and his Chicago Blues Band | 1995 | St. George | ||
| Lonely Traveler | Jimmy Lee Robinson | 1993 | Delmark | ||
| Big Wheeler's Bone Orchard with the Ice Cream Men | Golden "Big" Wheeler | 1992 | Delmark |