Paul Burch and the WPA Ballclub
Washington D.C. native Paul Burch grew up in Virginia, Indiana, and Mississippi in a family of writers, painters, and race-horse trainers.
Soon after moving to Nashville in the early 90's, PB began performing downtown in the vacant honky tonks once home to Music City's heady nightlife. Forming the WPA Ballclub, PB took up a year long residency at Tootsie's Orchid Lounge next to the Ryman Auditorium and formerly the "green room" to the Opry. Their marathon shows quickly attracted a following.
Fans included legendary producer Owen Bradley (who recorded PB's first Nashville sessions), Chet Atkins, and Marianne Faithful. "Marianne and I sang for hours one night at Tootsie's, mostly the John Lennon and Hank Williams songs she sings at home."
PB's debut, "Pan-American Flash", was voted the #5 country cd of the 90's by Amazon.com and was called by Billboard's Chet Flippo "extraordinary...establishing Burch as a leader in marrying country's roots tradition with a modern sensibility."
Since "Last of My Kind" in 2001--a companion to Tony Earley's NY Times bestseller "Jim the Boy"--PB has performed at the Kennedy Center for Tennessee State Day, appeared on the soundtrack to Walt Disney's "The Rookie", and contributed to cd's by Bobby Bare Jr., Pine Valley Cosmonauts, Josh Rouse, Vic Chesnutt, Richard Bennett, Jenny Toomey, and Lambchop.
PB is currently a music consultant to the PBS television documentary "The Appalachians" which will broadcast world-wide in 2004.