I've missed two weeks at my local blues club with a sprained ankle but now I'm more or less mobile again I went last night to see Adrian Byron Burns.
To my shame I only knew him from one track on the Bill Wyman Rhythm Kings "Double Bill" album. The club flyer described him as "too blues to be jazz, too jazz to be folk, too folk to be rock, too rock to be blues, too good to be missed" and his web site quoted comparisons with Eric Bibb and Corey Harris though his style is so unusual Terry Callier might be a better comparison.
Apparantly his first professional gigs were supporting Neil Young!
He includes the blues standards (Sittin on top of the world), showtunes (Summertime)and even Blue Suede Shoes but, apart from a fairly straight rendition of Johnson's "Come on in My Kitchen", he imrovised the hell out of them. He doesn't start with the straight tune but goes right into his own version, even interspersing quotes from "Star Spangled Banner" and Rodrigo's Guitar Concerto. If you weren't familiar with the originals, you wouldn't know how they usually sound. He knowledges the influence of John Renbourn and his guitar style (acoustic Taylor)certainly sounds Renbournish. His voice ranges from a rich deep Barry White to falsetto and he has a nice confident line in introductions.
I wasn't tempted to buy one of his six current albums but it was ceretainly an evening of virtuoso playing.
Catch him in Chippenham on Sat 23rd, Bridport Dec 1st,Axminster Mon 2nd , Hereford Sat 7th etc. Website HERE for more details.
RtS
(Should have asked him to play Dust My Credenza by Blind Lemon Pledge)