danbursey.com: Bio

Dan Bursey is an acoustic singer-songwriter from Lewisporte, NL.  With faith-based lyrics and music that can be described as a mix of folk, blues, and jazz, Dan is a seasoned live performer and communicator.  As a performer, Dan is able to entertain and engage an audience using only an acoustic guitar, fluidly taking them from laughter to tears, and back again, within a single set of music. As a songwriter, Dan is able to deliver raw reflections on faith and love using memorable melodies and creative chord progressions.

Dan's second full-length studio album, "Roots by the Water's Edge" was released in fall 2010.  The ten songs on the album are an intimate look into a faith that is nutured amid the dust and pain of real life.  Whether it is mourning the death of a father (Everything That I Am), pondering social responsibility (Deal Justly, Follow You), reflecting on the human condition (Garden and the Grave, Kingdom), considering our spiritual responsibility (In View, Roots by the Water's Edge), or marveling at the love of God (Praise to the One, Born and Raised a Beggar, Hallelujah Carol), each song is infused with rawness and honesty.

Roots by The Water's Edge was literally recorded a "guitar's throw" away from the water's edge, at Little Known Artist Studio in Lewisporte, NL.   With co-producer Dean Stairs, Dan was able to be creative in the use of instrumentation and percussion, utilizing such items as an "ugly stick", a baby rattle, his lap and a ceramic cat!  The result is not a project that sounds like ACC and Pop radio, but one that engages listeners with unexpected textures and thoughtful lyrics.

The first single from the album, "Hallelujah Carol" was released almost a full year before the rest of the album, and was sold online during December 2009.  The proceeds from the sale of the song were used to buy a water filtration system for New Light School in Mae Sot Thailand, an academy that serves 180 migrant students. 

His debut album, “Hope Will Rise” was released in 2008, and received critical acclaim, as well as a MusicNL award nomination (Gospel artist of the Year, 2008), and two Canadian Gospel Music Association award nominations (Jazz/Blues  Album of the Year, and Jazz/Blues Song of the Year, 2009). 

Dan will also be releasing a live album, "Live... by the Water's Edge", in early January, 2011. Armed with his acoustic guitar and a loop pedal, this intimate live set was recorded in August 2010 and showcases the diversity, humor and sincerity of a Dan Bursey live show.

2011 will see Dan taking his live show to other parts of the country, including Ontario in February and Mayl 2011.  Dan is also a regular performer at the Museum in Lewisporte NL, and maintains a very busy performance schedule.

Dan and his wife live with their three children in Lewisporte , NL.

Dan is available for:

-Live Concerts
-House Concerts
-Outreach Events
-Coffee House Concerts
-Fundraising Events
-Song-Sermons (30 minute sermon presentation weaving song and spoken word, within a church context)

As an experienced guitar teacher, Dan is also available for songwriting and guitar workshops.

Here's what other people are saying about Dan...

"An eclectic mix of jazz, blues, pop and rock. Dan is a skilled lyricist and a strong guitar player...."  Dean Stairs, Producer

"Dan Bursey joined our YC roster in Gander for YC2008 and captivated our audience with his unique blend of musicianship and songwriting."  Dean Brenton, Director YC Newfoundland

"The first thing that greets you when you listen is Dan's voice - gentle, pure and inviting, the perfect means of delivery...This is simply outstanding and deserves to be sought out.   9/10"  Review on www.crossrhythms.co.uk

Dan Bursey is a youth pastor and singer/songwriter from Lewisporte, NL Canada.  Here is part of his story...

In a grocery store in a small town in Newfoundland Canada, a young man named Dan is buying some last minute groceries on his way home from work. For years, he has been writing lyrics, playing his unique blend of acoustic folk, blues and jazz, developing a stage presence that puts his audience at ease... all one day hoping that he might be able to record a CD that reflects his unique voice in contemporary Christian Music. After all, why keep writing if no one will ever hear your songs? As he leaves the store, his eyes are caught by a poster on the bulletin board. It is a notice for a songwriting competition called One Of A Kind.

Fast forward a year and a half to July 2008... Dan is now staring at a box of CDs that have his name on them. Sure he has contributed to the One of a Kind compilation album, having been chosen as one of twelve winning songwriters from across Newfoundland and Labrador. And he was part of Hope In The Midst of a Storm - a fundraising album for the Janeway Children's Hospital in St. John's. But there is something different about this...These CDs carry 14 of his original compositions. Songs that he has labored over, been inspired by, and been brought to tears by. The reality of his own vulnerability is now staring him in the face. These are not just songs to him...they are pieces of his very soul.

"Wounded", for instance, was written as Dan thought about the plight of over a million orphans in Malawi alone. What does God feel for those children?

"Not Be Afraid" was crafted just after his father was cleared of cancer. Later, when that cancer would return, the song would bring comfort.

"Oddity" and "Like Your Love" were written in quiet times of reflection on the nature and love of God, and are the fruits of a desire to have his love proclaimed in fresh, unique ways.

"Create In Me" would later be described as a "modern day Psalm, pulled from the heart of a troubadour."

Some were written quickly, while others took years to percolate. Some are simple in their message, while others have been described as esoteric.

So now, the journey begins for this father of three, husband of one. But it isn't just about the music. The message of "Hope Will Rise" is one that needs to be heard in times like ours.

And so... as he stares at the open box of CDs on the living room floor, he is struck but the overwhelming question that burns the soul of every new artist...

"How in the world am I going to pay for all these CDs?"