Chicago guitarist Johnny Burgin is set to release the collaboration-filled album No Border Blues on June 19 via Delmark Records.
The project is the first-ever American/Japanese collaboration featuring the talented musicians of the underground blues scenes of Osaka, Tokyo and Kyoto. Burgin – AKA “The Worldwide West Side Guitar Man” – frequently works with blues artists from all over the world and has toured Japan four times since 1996.
Burgin explained in a statement, “No Border Blues is a result of cherry picking just some of my favorite players from several tours in Japan over a twenty year period. I also included a representative of an elite group of Japanese blues players who immigrated to Chicago and by hard work, talent and persistence, earned their way into some of Chicago’s top blues bands. Minoru Maruyama, for example, toured and recorded with Johnny B. Moore and Billy Branch, and his stinging guitar can be heard to great effect on ‘Two Telephones.'”
No Border Blues is produced by Stephanie Tice. Burgin sings on select tracks and contributes guitar throughout, but its the Japanese musicians – and their incredible playing – who are often in the spotlight.
“Throughout my time in Japan, I was struck by the selflessness and discipline that so many Japanese musicians displayed. The artists on No Border Blues don’t worry about being nominated for awards, because there aren’t any. They don’t compete for gigs, because practically nobody plays music for a living. I hope that their spirit, attitude towards their craft, and soul will refresh, intrigue and impress you as much as it has me over the years, and that the rest of the world will come to know some of the hidden treasures of Japan’s underground blues scene,” said Burgin.
No Border Blues is available for pre-order in advance of its June 19 release and more information about Burgin can be found at Rockinjohnnyburgin.com.