Burton Cummings
| Burton Cummings | |
|---|---|
Cummings in 2008
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Burton Lorne Cummings |
| Born |
December 31, 1947 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada |
| Genres | Rock, soft rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1965–present |
| Associated acts | The Guess Who, Bachman Cummings, The Deverons, Tim Thorney, Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band |
| Website | burtoncummings |
Burton Lorne Cummings, OC OM (born December 31, 1947) is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter.
Burton is the former lead singer and keyboardist for the Canadian rock band The Guess Who. During his 10 years in the band, from 1965 to 1975, he sang, wrote or co-wrote many hit songs, including "American Woman," "No Time", "Share the Land", "Hand Me Down World", "Laughing", "Star Baby", "New Mother Nature", "These Eyes", and "Clap for the Wolfman". His solo career includes many hit singles, including "Stand Tall", "My Own Way to Rock", "Fine State of Affairs", and "You Saved My Soul".
Cummings was born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, as were all of the other original members of The Guess Who. Burton was brought up by his mother Rhoda and her parents; he never knew his father, who left when he was less than a year old. Burton attended St. John's High School. He dropped out of school, due to poor grades, when he was sixteen. Forty-five years later, in 2010, his former high school awarded him an honorary diploma. His first band was a local Winnipeg R&B group, The Deverons, with an 'E' (not to be confused with the band The Devrons who had Country/R&B hits in the early 1960s). The Deverons with Cummings released two singles on the tiny REO Records label. The first single, "Blue Is The Night / She's Your Lover", was cut at a Winnipeg radio station. The second single, "Lost Love / Feel Alright", was recorded at Kay Bank Studios in Minneapolis, where The Guess Who frequently recorded. In January 1966 he was asked by the The Guess Who to join the band, originally as a replacement for recently departed keyboardist Bob Ashley. By May 1966 Cummings had assumed the role of lead singer, a position recently vacated by original front man Chad Allan who left the group that April.
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