The state of Texas has a country music legacy unmatched by any other. History has made household names out of the likes of Bob Wills, Lefty Frizzell, George Jones, and George Strait. Today, its country music scene is alive and flourishing, while country music sales and revenues in general are stagnated. Texas stands as an example with first quarter sales reporting an increase of an astounding 221% from this time last year.
Texas country music has outgrown its wide open spaces and found fertile soil in the wastelands of mainstream country music. Sonny Burgess is one of many artists recently emerging from the heart of Texas. Unassumingly, he travels from state to state, taking his traditional music to a wider audience, an audience that's been waiting for their cherished country music to come back full circle.
When asked, he sounds humbled and amazed at the reception he's been receiving outside of the Lonestar state. "The people who like country music get into it. No matter whether you're from Texas, Albuquerque or Oklahoma, we get the same response. We were kinda worried about the title track 'When in Texas'. We worried about what people would think, but you'd think we were in Texas the way they get into it. Everyone seems to really enjoy it. "
What exactly is Texas Country Music? Well, according to Sonny "It is what it is. It's going back to the roots. The melody, morals, back to the family and the basics of life." While other subgenres of country music have taken twists and turns along the way, music in Texas has remained virtually untouched. "You listen to something from somebody, an artist from the fifties out of Texas and you listen to what we're doing on our new CD and its really the same. The technology and recording aspects are a little better, but its basically the same instrumentation, and the same lyrics, maybe a little more positive." The reasons for its longevity? It's no secret it's well supported, with its own radio chart, a state government operated 'Texas Music Office' and a thriving live circuit, but Sonny's quick to point out where the real support comes from. "People stay true. They stick to the true values of country music, and they don't go with fads. They stick to what they've heard for years and believe in it."
Born and raised in Clebourne, Texas, Sonny recalls music as a way of life in the Burgess home with the extended family playing on the front porch every Sunday afternoon. Sonny began performing early at the age of five, and at the ripe age of 8, he joined forces with a couple of 5th graders and formed a band aptly dubbed "The Miniatures". Relying on a repertoire that included instrumental covers of everything from The Ventures to Roy Clark, the band played for local schools and service clubs. Sonny admits he didn't do many vocals back then. "My voice was too high" he chuckles, "Instead of Johnny Cash I sounded like June Carter doing Johnny Cash".
With a sidestep to Trinity College on a baseball scholarship, two years of playing in the AA league for the San Antonio Dodgers and a mirage of random jobs, Sonny ended up following his heart and roots, playing his music in clubs and honky tonks, becoming a crowd favorite at such places as Billy Bob's in Fort Worth and Wildhorse Saloon in Nashville.
While playing in Nashville in 1995, Sonny made an acquaintance that would prove to have a significant impact on his career. "Kerry Kurt Phillips and I got to be friends while I was in Nashville. When I wasn't playing, I'd drive up from Texas and I'd stay at his house. I had a deal with Sony/Columbia back in '95. I did half an album but it never was released, I never finished it. Kerry Kurt thought it hadn't done justice and he wanted to work on it, so we started doing this album a couple of years after that. It wasn't an overnight thing where we just went into the studio. It took about 3 or 4 years. With Kerry Kurt coming out and listening to me, really studying me, getting to know what I really liked. We listened to a lot of material, then we put the album together and Bob Heatherly (Music City Records) heard it and fell in love with it."
The friendship and time invested has paid off well, with Phillips co-writing nine out of ten tracks on Sonny's debut album 'When in Texas'. Although the CD is hardcore traditional, Phillips, both as a writer and a co-producer, managed to capitalize on Sonny's versatility, drawing out just what was needed for each track. If you listen closely you can hear the legacy of Texas country music...there's a whole lotta of Bob Wills' western swing in the title cut, the playful twang of George Jones in 'Smack Dab' and the simple, honest delivery with the essence of George Strait in 'I Keep It Under My Hat'.
Sonny Burgess is on his way to making his mark in country music and although his heart and sound may have originated in Texas, as good fortune would have it, he's willing to travel.
April 2001 - Laurie Joulie - Take Country Back