What makes Burton Cummings so special?
It might be that Cummings is one of a select group of artists who has managed to transcend time with a truly staggering body of work that has won him more awards and accolades than pretty much any Canadian artist.
He’s a member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, The Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, The Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame, the Order of Canada, The Governor- General’s Performance Arts Award … well, you get the idea.
| Burton Cummings starred with the Guess Who for about 10 years. (image supplied) |
Consider that Burton wrote or co-wrote such classics as These Eyes, Laughing, No Time, American Woman, Share The Land, Hang On To Your Life, Albert Flasher, Sour Suite, Orly, Glamour Boy, Star Baby, Clap For The Wolfman, and Dancin’ Fool, and it’s not hard to see why.
In a recent interview, Cummings admitted that he’s also got “a hundred songs that no one has ever heard”, but he’s not in a great hurry to release another album to add to the more than 30 that he’s already done.
Instead, Cummings occupies his time touring and sharing the intimate nature of his words and music with his fans – fans that now span several generations.
On May 28, Cummings will be bringing his music back to Vancouver Island when he does a one-night only show at the in Victoria, and one can only assume that, by the time he moves on, his fan base will have grown once again, because it’s almost impossible to leave one of his concerts without wanting to hear more.
“The biggest compliment I get is that I don’t sound like anyone else,” Cummings has said. “I think I value that as the highest compliment.”
It’s an approach that has worked for decades for this Canadian musical legend and based upon the sold-out nature of most of his current concert tour, it continues to be successful.
Tickets for the May 28 Victoria concert are available at rmts.bc.ca.
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