James Burton is one of the most recognized guitarists of all time. He is the inventor and father of Chicken Pickin’; a fusion of Country and Rhythm and Blues. He is in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame and in the top 20 on Rolling Stone’s list of the Top 100 Guitar Players.

James introduced the Chicken Pickin’ style at the age of 15 on the original recording of Suzie Q. He is known as the Guitarist for Elvis, The Everly Brothers, The Beach Boys, The Buffalo Springfield, Ricky Nelson, Merle Haggard, Emmylou Harris, John Denver, Gram Parsons, Jerry lee Louis and so many others. The list is at least a mile long.

We were in the studio getting ready for a recording session when the phone rang. Ray picked up the phone and said American Recording. It was James Burton on the phone. James and Ray were friends from over four decades of making and working on hit songs. One thing lead to another and James said he would like to say hello to the guys in Big Rain.

Wow one of our guitar heroes wanted to talk to us!

It was so very cool, and what an honor it was.

Needles to say the band was inspired and did some Chicken Pickin’ that day. But really, nobody does it as good as James Burton.

Similar to James Burton we developed a signature sound that was a fusion of Rock, Rhythm and Blues and Country. This became our brand of Country Rock that took in other elements as well. As you listen you will hear different rhythms and feels along with different picking approaches. These are all played on electric, acoustic, pedal steel guitars, and mandolin.

In fact, I’d like to take this opportunity give you another free song;)
Click here to download “Waiting” .

It’s not Chicken Pickin’, but I’m sure you’ll agree that it’s a great example of the unique sound we’ve developed.

Enjoy!