Up until the mid-'80s, Burnside was primarily a farmer and fisherman. The label has issued recordings made by a group of Burnside's peers, including Junior Kimbrough, Dave Thompson and others. It wasn't until the 1990's that he began hitting full stride with tours and his music, thanks largely to the efforts of Fat Possum Records. But Burnside's music is pure country Delta juke joint blues, heavily rhythm-oriented and played with a slide. Despite the otherworldly country-blues sounds put down by Burnside and his family band, known as the Sound Machine, his other influences are surprisingly contemporary: Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and Lightnin' Hopkins. He learned his music from his neighbor, Fred McDowell, and the highly rhythmic style that Burnside plays is evident in McDowell's recording as well. He lived most of his life in the Mississippi hill country, which, unlike the Delta region, consists mainly of a lot of small farms.
The guitarist, singer and songwriter was born Novemin Oxford, MS, and made his home in Holly Springs, in the hill country above the Delta. Burnside was one of the paragons of state-of-the-art Delta juke joint blues.
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