Johnny Burgin

Johnny Burgin is a blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and relentless road musician whose sound was forged in the clubs of Chicago and carried to stages around the world. After moving to Chicago as a young musician, Burgin immersed himself in the city’s blues scene, learning firsthand from artists including Tail Dragger and legendary drummer Sam Lay. Over the years he developed a style rooted firmly in traditional electric Chicago blues while becoming an accomplished songwriter and unmistakable guitarist in his own right.

Burgin has spent decades recording, collaborating, and touring throughout the United States as well as Europe, Japan, and Mexico. His work has brought him together with an extraordinary collection of blues musicians, including Charlie Musselwhite, Billy Boy Arnold, Pinetop Perkins, Mary Lane, Aki Kumar, and many others. In 2023 he received a Blues Music Award nomination for Traditional Blues Male Artist, while his 2024 album Ramblin’ From Coast to Coast captured the collaborative spirit of his life on the road, recording eleven original songs in cities including Dallas, Cincinnati, Rochester, and Memphis.

Today, Johnny continues to carry traditional electric blues forward through his recordings, performances, collaborations, and popular blues-guitar lessons. His music respects the people and traditions that taught him the blues without treating the form as a museum piece—it’s living music, meant to be played loud, shared with other musicians, and taken wherever the next road leads.