Rockin' Johnny Burgin
Johnny Burgin is an American blues guitarist, musician, and harmonica player. Since 1997, he has released ten albums under his name and has contributed to various recordings.
Career
Johnny Burgin began performing in high school. He honed his blues style and performed on Thursday nights at Lilly's in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood with the Ice Cream Men, a blues band that included Steve Cushing, Scott Dirks, and Dave Waldman.As a student at the University of Chicago, he gained the nickname "Rockin' Johnny" for his work as a college radio DJ. In 1988, he met fellow DJ and harpist David Waldman, who had played and recorded with Tail Dragger Jones, Smokey Smothers, and others. This led to a trip to Chicago's West Side to meet and sit with Jones.
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 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 or Kelly Littleton. 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 bandleader in 1997. Collaborations with other blues musicians and European tours followed.
In 2002, Burgin left the music business to focus on his family. He returned to music in January 2009. Chicago Tribune's Rick Kogan wrote on June 1 2015, that Burgin is a passionate blues musician.
Between 2010 and 2020, Burgin released seven CDs and increased his touring schedule to more than 250 performances yearly. 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.
Personal life
Johnny Burgin was born on July 17, 1969, in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, but grew up in Starkville, Mississippi, his father's hometown. Burgin's father was an actor and folk musician who taught him how to play guitar. In 1988, he moved to Chicago, Illinois, to attend the University of Chicago.He relocated from Chicago to Petaluma, California in 2016 and then to New Orleans, Louisiana in 2021. He dropped the "Rockin'" from his name in 2019 and now goes simply by Johnny Burgin.
Discography
AS 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 and Aki Kumar |
| 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 |
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