Interview: Kevin Burdick
Hometown and City of Residence: Hometown – St. Johns, Arizona City of Residence – Salt Lake City, Utah
What’s your musical history? I started piano lessons when I was 6 years old. Music has always been in my family – My grandmother was in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and my parents were in musical theater. I started writing my first songs in the 7th grade and it’s just grown from there. I’ve been in countless bands through high school and college, either as the singer or on the keyboards. In 2006, I released a 4-song EP called In Your Cocoon. Prior to that, I released my first solo album in 2002 called Deep Blue America. My second album, True Stories and other fairy tales was released in 2005. I think the True Stories album was really my arrival as a musician of note – I started writing about myself and making myself more vulnerable as an artist and people began to respond. For example, track 5 from that album, Too Good For This World, was about the loss of my daughter – sharing that kind of personal tragedy with people really helps them to connect with me when I perform or when they listen to a CD.
How often do you play piano? Well, I try to play everyday. I have a piano in my room where I sit and write and practice. Lately, I’ve been playing a lot, as much as 2 or 3 hours a day, as I am finishing up the writing on my new album.What can people expect from a Kevin Burdick show? Depends on the venue and the crowd – for my bar shows locally, I tend to get a little more crass and vocal about things I wouldn’t discuss in a show for a high school for example. In all my shows, you’ll see some improv – me and the band make up songs on the fly about audience suggested topics – and then a variety of songs from my 3 album collection, along with the stories behind the songs. It’s usually one part inspiration, one part entertainment, and one part unpredictable with an occasional cover song thrown in – usually done in a way the original artist never intended.
I see you have studio members listed on your site, and you also tour with a band, correct? So is Kevin Burdick actually a band? Well, just like Elton John and Billy Joel, I have musicians that play with me at my shows. Some shows have just been me, piano, and a microphone. I’ve also done shows with a drummer, bass player, violinist, guitar player, and percussionist. It really depends on the venue and the audience as to which group I bring. I have a number of drummers, bass players, and guitar players I’ve played with depending on the show, availability, and venue.What gives your piano that “rock” element alluded to in “Rock Pianist?” There are a number of piano styles – jazz, classical, blues, and rock. Rock tends to be played more ‘straight’ and possibly even a little sloppier – what I mean by straight is less of a ‘swing’ feel, like a lot of jazz and big band piano might have. Don’t get me wrong, I have elements of jazz, classical, and blues that I occasionally throw into songs, but mostly I’m just straight rock. In general, Rock Piano songs are very melody driven and in my case, and in the case of many of my predecessors, very story driven.
Do you think you have the lifestyle that the title “rockstar” connotes? And what lifestyle would that be?? Well, I don’t know if I do or not. I live, part-time, in a tour bus and love to have a ridiculously good time, but I think I’m a lot more approachable than a lot of rockstars – I’ve lived the wild life and worked through a lot of my demons and mostly, barring drinking too much on occasion, I try to set an example of living a good life and setting a positive example of someone who goes after their dreams!!What kind of attitude do you feel you need to have as an up-and-coming musician? I think that any up-and-coming musician needs to act ‘as if.’ What I mean by that is act as if you are already there, you are already famous, you have already made it! Now, I don’t mean acting like an asshole – but what I do mean is if you carry yourself with the confidence and, uhm, nobility I guess, that you have all ready arrived it will be just a matter of time before the rest of the world sees it too… You also have to have thick skin, I’ve been told too many times over the past 30 years that I wasn’t ‘good enough’ for a lot of things, and although I try to learn from criticism – especially from knowledgeable people – I only let it sink in ‘so far.’
Congrats on the new RV purchase. How does it feel to have taken that step—to now have your own tour bus? It’s a really big step and it’s been a lot of fun! But it’s just a means to an end. Now I can easily, comfortably, and somewhat affordably (depending on gas prices), get my guys to shows all over the West Coast and beyond. Right now, we’re really focusing on California, Colorado, and everything in between.Are you working on any new material at the moment? (If yes, may I please have the details?) I’m planning to release a new album in June. In fact, I’m writing the last three songs right now. One of them, “At the Fisher House,” is inspired by our wounded veterans coming home. Specifically, Dylan – my manager’s brother – who was a marine over in Iraq and got his legs blown off by a roadside bomb about a year ago. I’ve interviewed him a number of times and met with him and his wife this weekend to put the finishing touches on the lyrics – I really believe this one, about a wife bringing home a wounded soldier, will really touch a lot of people. Let’s see, the other song I just finished was actually commissioned by the Danish Naval Academy. I played for a private party for the President of the Danish Naval Academy last May and, needless to say, they became big fans. I’m half Danish, so this song really takes me back to my roots and heritage. It was a lot of fun to research and write.
I see you have several MySpace fan sites and don’t generally have time to sign autographs, do you think you’ve “made it” as a musician? Not even close – my goals are enormous. I want a platinum album, I want to play a sold-out Madison Square Garden, and I want a string of number 1 hits. Until I can say that I’ve accomplished those things, you probably won’t hear me ever use the words, “I’ve made it.” It’s still a long road.Do you also have people working for you and your music? (manager, etc.) I’ve got a ton of people who are part of the team, either as contractors or as regular employees. Ken Gray is my business manager and handles a ton of business items for me. Joel Pack is my producer and handles things creatively for me on the music that I write. Both of those guys mean a lot to me and are two sides of the same coin. We have several local and national booking agents that work under contract, we’ve a number of local promoters, web-designers, internet promoters, PR people, marketers, videographers, and graphic designers who are all a part of the family. Not to mention some of the great, and amazing local musicians I have had the privilege to play with. It takes a village I guess.
Do you have regular/reoccurring gigs? If so, where and when? I play Huka Bar, Liquid Joe’s, The Station in
