A bit more on the passing of R.L. from Fat Possum
R. L. Burnside
November 21, 1926 - September 1, 2005
We at Fat Possum are sad to announce that R.L. Burnside died today at his hospital room in
Memphis.
Blues artist R.L. Burnside, who redefined the blues genre by incorporating indie rock acts
and hip-hop production, died September 1, 2005, at St. Francis Hospital in Memphis,
Tennessee. Burnside was born November 21, 1926, in Harmontown, Mississippi, and spent
most of his life in the north Mississippi hill country, where he worked as a sharecropper
and a commercial fisherman and played guitar at weekend house parties. In 1968, noted
folklorist George Mitchell recorded Burnside for the first time. In 1991 Burnside was the
first artist signed to then-fledgling Fat Possum Records in Oxford, Mississippi. His debut,
"Too Bad Jim," was produced by former New York Times pop critic Robert Palmer. Along
with his friend, neighbor, and label-mate Junior Kimbrough, Burnside was one of the most
popular and important blues musicians to emerge in the last two decades. He recorded the
crossover collaboration "A Ass Pocket of Whiskey" with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion in
1996 and became a cult hero. In 1998, music from "Come On In" was featured in several
movies and television shows, including The Sopranos. Burnside sold hundreds of
thousands of records in his lifetime. He is survived by his wife Alice Mae, twelve children,
and numerous grandchildren.
Those wishing to help should send donations to:
Freeland & Freeland Trust Account
Burnside Memorial
P. O. Box 269
Oxford, MS 38655
(662)234-3414
All proceeds will go directly to RL's widow, Alice Mae.
