NEW ZEALAND MUSIC
He's spent most of his life behind a guitar - singing and pickin', from campfire circles to concert stages. Guitarist and vocalist DON BURNHAM is best known as the bandleader of LOST WEEKEND Western Swing Band (since 1985). Born in San Francisco (June 3, 1947), DON was raised on the SF Peninsula, and he attended the University of California, where guitars, music and songwriting ultimately prevailed over other studies. Drafted by Uncle Sam in 1968, DON served in the US ARMY/Korea. He worked for a time in New York City at the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) as a news assistant, before returning to California and the West Coast music scene. DON supported his music habit by working as a seasonal park ranger, where he developed his musical program known as 'Songs and Tales of California and the West'. After years as a folksinger, troubadour, songwriter, and bandleader, DON'S overriding interest in swing music and traditional jazz produced his NEW CENTURY JAZZ BAND, and also the Western Swing outfit LOST WEEKEND. Ultimately these two bands 'merged' (1991). The modern Western Swing band known as LOST WEEKEND today is internationally recognized as one of the leading lights in contemporary Western Swing. DON was inducted into the Western Swing Hall of Fame in 2005. DON continues today performing with LOST WEEKEND, as well as with smaller subsets of the group (the BOLOS, the OVERALLS) and also as he began, with just his Martin guitar.