Danny Burns could be described as a giver, especially as it applies to offering the music spawned from his Irish origins. Born and raised in Donegal, he’s found a following amongst such bluegrass luminaries as Dan Tyminski, Tim O’Brien, Sarah Jarosz, Jerry Douglas, and Sam Bush, among the many. His well-received debut album, 2019’s North Country, his follow-up EP, 2021’s Hurricane, and his most recent LP, 2023’s Promised Land, have garnered extensive airplay and critical kudos.
A new album, Southern Sky, is due from Bonfire Music on August 22, and was preceded by its sophomore single, Brother Wind, written by Tim O’Brien, and featuring a contribution from Dan Tyminski.
For the first two decades of his career, Burns honed his craft as a traveling folksinger, sharing the musical traditions of his native Ireland across the US and its rich tapestry of stories and songs. A lively exchange of fiddles, banjos, and other folk accoutrements were as prominent as they were persuasive. He left behind a multi-cultural experience, forged by ties on both sides of the Big Pond.
Burns thinks of Donegal as home, but lives now in Nashville, and for his upcoming album, he enlisted a well-seasoned cast of Music City musicians — among them, Vince Gill, Tim O’Brien, and Ricky Skaggs. In addition, it features Billy Contreras on fiddle, Matt Menefee on banjo and mandolin, Justin Moses on dobro, Cody Kilby on guitar, Ethan Burkhardt on upright bass, and Jerry Roe on drums. He describes the album as “a progressive bluegrass sound with elements of traditional country and Irish music.”
“I try to bring in as many talented folks into the studio as possible,” Burns said in the press release announcing the new album. “I hope the fans enjoy the journey of these songs, and all the sounds and people it takes to make them come to life. It takes a village.” He went on to compare the overall sound of the album to the feeling of listening to Southern Nights by Allen Toussaint, which found the storytelling traditions of Appalachia meet the twang of the Deep South.
In that regard, he lists a diverse array of influences, including Sam Bush, Tim O’Brien, Chris Stapleton, Andy Irvine & Paul Brady, Townes Van Zandt, and Steve Earle chief among them.
“I’ve toured extensively across the US, Canada, Europe, and Scandinavia,” Burns says. “Early on, I played most of the large Irish festivals in America, including Milwaukee Irish Fest, KC Irish Fest, and a festival in Dublin, Ohio. I’ve also performed at AmericanaFest and other roots music gatherings.”
Burns claims that finding common ground between Ireland and Appalachia was relatively easy. “I’ve always felt that bluegrass, Appalachian music, and even elements of Delta blues, share a lot in common with Irish traditional music,” he continues. “The fiddle tunes and melodies can be strikingly similar — sometimes they’re essentially the same tunes with different names and regional inflections.”
It’s hardly surprising then that his music has been as well-received back home as it has in the States. “We’ve received great radio support for the music I produce and record in Nashville,” Burns insists. “Folks back in Ireland have a deep appreciation for bluegrass and country music — it really resonates with them.”
Burns said that while he primarily performs his own original songs, he has shared a number of covers as well. “Our last record, Promised Land, was a covers album named after Willie Nelson’s The Promiseland,” he explains. “It featured songs like Adele’s Someone Like You, Sting’s Fields of Gold, Mindy Smith’s Come to Jesus, and the Pogues’ rendition of Dirty Old Town.
Consequently, he has no problem offering his opinion on why bluegrass sustains such interest internationally.
“I believe it’s because bluegrass is an honest and authentic form of music,” he reflects. “In a time when a lot of music can feel overproduced or disconnected, bluegrass stands out for its rawness and emotional truth — and that’s something people everywhere can connect with.”
