Guitarist James Burton performs and shares stories from throughout his career as part of the Museum's “Nashville Cats” signature series, which honors musicians who have made notable contributions to country music. The Museum’s Bill Lloyd moderates this program, which was recorded on July 23, 2011.

During the interview, Burton discusses receiving his first Telecaster guitar as a boy in Shreveport, Louisiana, and shortly thereafter playing in Dale Hawkins’s blues band and writing an instrumental solo that would eventually become “Susie-Q.” He also recalls his early studio sessions with various artists; meeting Harriet, Ozzie, and Ricky Nelson; and how he developed his unique sound and picking technique. Burton closes the program with snippets of the songs “Fools Rush In,” “Hello Mary Lou,” “Mystery Train,” “Suise-Q,” and “Travelin’ Man.”

Burton was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. His signature sound is part of Ricky Nelson songs such as “Believe What You Say” and “Poor Little Fool,” and he’s also worked with Merle Haggard (“Mama Tried,” “Workin’ Man Blues”), Emmylou Harris (“Two More Bottles of Wine”), and Jerry Lee Lewis (“Rockin’ My Life Away”). Burton also plays on notable songs by John Denver, the Everly Brothers, Roy Orbison, Buck Owens, Gram Parsons, and Elvis Presley. His more recent work includes sessions with Elvis Costello, Jim Lauderdale, and Brad Paisley.

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