"Wish I was in Heaven Sitting Down" is the accumulation of 74 years of experience and contains some of R.L. best singing ever. His voice has the depth and maturity of a seasoned Blues man. His emotion and feeling come are presented in clear detail.

The gutarist, singer, songwriter was born on November 26, 1926 in Oxford, MS.He learned his music from a neighbor; Fred Mc Dowell and the rhythmic style is still evident despite the otherworldly sound put down by Burnside and some of the "garage band" background of this collection. His oher influences are more traditional like Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, and Lightin’ Hopkins.

The title track is a gospel song accompanied only by Kenny Brown’s driving acoustic guitar. "Got Messed Up" and "Hard Time Killing Floor" mix the ambient beats, slide guitar, and a hip-hop DJ scratching vinyl. Granted , these tracks are a bit strange, even otherworldly, but engender a true blues feeling.

R.L. shouts and hollers in "Miss Maybelle" and "See what my Buddy Done" and jokes about "Too Many Ups and Downs" with a sample of a "Fife and Drum Piece".

At a time when most men are either retired or thinking about it, R.L.’s popularity is on the rise. He is a sharecropper’s son who didn’t start recording until he was in his 40’s.  R.L. career stated to look up in the early 90s when the documentary film based on Robert Palmer’s book "Deep Blues" featured R.L. as one of the subjects.  The irony of Burnside’s recent renaissance is that his audience has grown at the same time that he became a guest star of sorts on his own album.

Burnside wrote seven of the eleven cuts on this album. This is truly one of the most unique albums of the year. It is a Blues album by one of the last true Blues musicians but contains today’s hip-hop beats embedded in the background. Backup musicians include Smokey Hormel and DJ Swamp who are members of Beck’s band.

I found this album to lend a little different flavor to what you would expect from this true Blues artist. Definatly Worth a listen. You can obtain it from Tower Records or CD Now by clicking on their links at the bottom of our homepage.