Little Rock, Arkansas

Guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Michael “Iron Man” Burks stands tall as a major contemporary blues figure. With a nickname earned by his hours-long, intensely physical performances, fearsome guitar attack, tough, smoky vocals and the thousands of miles logged behind the wheel of his touring van, Burks is a modern blues hero. Nobody in today’s blues world successfully bridges searing electric guitar blues with unbridled rock and roll energy like Burks.

Boasting remarkable natural talent and a blue-collar work ethic, Burks is a musician with deep roots in the blues tradition, playing every song with intensity, conviction and soul. Although playing since he was a child, it was the release of his Alligator Records debut, Make It Rain, in 2001 that brought Burks well-deserved national recognition as one of the blues world’s fastest-rising stars. His 2003 follow-up, I Smell Smoke, featured songs fueled by feral guitar playing and tough, soulful vocals. Living Bluessaid, “Burks’ fretwork is skin-tight yet emotionally expressive. His voice is dusky and sensual yet shot through with virility. Burks burns his signature onto almost everything he touches with aching passion and the probing intensity of his guitar. He has the ability and the imagination to fuse the best of the old and the new.” Burks received three Blues Music Award nominations for his CD, including Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year and Blues Song Of The Year for the title track.

Although inspired by Albert King, Freddie King and Albert Collins, Burks’ sound and style are all his own. Blues Revue says, “Burks delivers blazing, explosive solos and outrageous tone…part rock, part soul and filled with plenty of blues sensibility”. His latest release, Iron Man, continues Burk’s upward trajectory. The music – forged by his unquestionable talent and fueled by the experience of years on the road – proves that electric guitar blues is alive and well in the skillful hands of the Iron Man.“Burks is a legend in waiting”, GuitarOne magazine.

Don’t miss the man the Chicago Sun-Times calls “a flamethrower guitarist…with.. savage fury and heartfelt tenderness”; and Vintage Guitar describes as  “Gospel-ringed, sweet and nasty. Burks will warm your heart at the same time he puts a chill down your back.”

michaelburks.com