Michael "Stoney" Burks, the human Xerox machine.

If you ever want some true inspiration, this is a story that you don't want to miss.If you ever want to know that you can accomplish whatever you set your mind on, then this is the story for you.
Michael "Stoney" Burks is a true inspiration as a musician. He not only can play most any instrument, but he also masters them completely.
Stoney has been one of my dearest friends for a long long time.We were roommates, as well as bandmates for a number of years, and he is one of the people that I think of when I think about all the possibilities of what you can achieve in music.
I first met Stoney when I was in Stratus and the band went to Detroit to do a gig .If memory serves me correctly, I think that he was playing trumpet with someone else, when we recruited him to come to West Virginia to play with us which he accepted readily.
When he got here he quicky establised himself in the black music community as a musician of note. He joined Stratus as a second horn player along with Dugan Carter on the tenor saxophone.
Somewhere along the way he and I and Joloyd ( Stratus' drummer) ended up rooming together along with another friend of mine who was also from Detriot, so it was the New York boy with the Detroiters ( man that was a scene...),we had this serious apartment in Dunbar, threw some of the jazziest parties ever and jammed around the house all day long.
As it turned out we used to store the band equipment at the apartment, so Stoney had access to all of the instruments that we housed including a Fender Rhodes electric piano, and being inquisitive as he still is, he started teaching himself how to play.In nothing flat he became a serious keyboard player; from there he set his sights on the electric bass, and quickly mastered it.
Stoney is like a human Xerox machine in that he can copy something to perfection,even getting all the nuances.
My little brother still amazes me with his skills as a musician. I think about so many people out there who want to play music so badly, they spend countless dollars and countless time trying to become musicians, when the truth of the matter is that all they need to do is spend quality time with an instrument, and play something slowly until they get it...that's what Stoney does, and it truly does pay off.
If your out and about in the Charleston area, go check out Stratus and Stoney Burks wherever mellifluous sounds are emanating, you will be glad you did. You can also check out Stoney, Dugan Carter, and David Loyd, collectively known as Full Flavor, at the Empty Glass on Fridays during Happy Hour.They're one of the few musical situations that even during a Happy Hour people take notice of...It's that good.

Support Live music today tomorrow and always.