CD Review
Blues Revue (U.S.A.)
April 1999 issue
Adrian Byron Burns
'Back To The Wood'
Bluetrack 002
This is the second release for Bluetrack records, based in Oxford. That's Oxford. UK - however not Mississippi - and guitarist/vocalist Adrian Byron Burns is a Washington, D.C, native who currently resides on the other side of the pond in England.
Though Oxford is best known for fostering deep scholarship, Back To The Wood indicates that there's some depth of feeling for the blues in that studious corner of the island.
On his debut album, contemporary bluesman Burns displays knowledge of the standards and faith in his own vision. Musically, Burns moves from strength to strength, working an acoustic guitar through the tracks with fluid and powerful chops. The original 'Massa John' finds Burns busting down a fierce, percussive guitar attack reminiscent of Rory Block at her least guarded. But the cover of Bill Withers' 'Ain't No Sunshine' proves that Burns' guitar style is more intricate and richly embellished than anything you will hear from Block. He possesses the sort of flair and technique on the guitar that one associates with Paul Geremia. Burns' singing is as impressive as his picking; his voice is as evocative as that of contemporaries such as Keb' Mo' and Corey Harris. His special vocal mojo is that he shares the same low-down funk found in the work of John Lee Hooker and of current R&B singers such as Sam McClain. Back To The Woods is an artful mix of classic material such as Robert Johnson's 'Come On in My Kitchen' and Muddy Waters 'She's Nineteen Years Old' and original songs such as the sly 'PC Blues'. Burns is a contender. Check him out.