Retirement Announcement
As of January 2017 I retired (again)! I've had a great time making instruments for my friends and making new friends in the process. But the time has come to open some new doors and do some of the things we've thought about but haven't gotten around to while we still can.
I'll still mess around with dobros to be sure, but only as a hobby. I'm looking forward to trying out some more 'hairbrained schemes' in design and construction, but only when time permits and the mood strikes.
Thanks so much to all of you who have offered so much encouragement and support for the BurkeReso enterprise, which actually never was intended to be more than a hobby in the first place. So we'll now move on to the next phase....Let's Pick!
I'm going to maintain the website as an archive, a rememberance of some really fun years. Enjoy the photos and construction details. Use what you can, enjoy the rest. And Thanks Again! Dan Burke
"I've played several of Dan's resonator guitars over the years since he started building them. He has the most unique design features I've ever seen in a reso, and it works! Every one has a crisp, clear and resonant sound quality to it, and the tone - it just makes you want to play it. And the workmanship is impeccable. Pleasing to the ear, pleasing to the eye. With every one I've played - well, I just couldn't put it down!"
Roger Williams
"Great sounding guitar for sure. I picked it quite a bit.
Beautiful cosmetic work and awesome tone. This guitar is SLICK!!!!!"
Phil Leadbetter, 2005 IBMA Dobro Player of the Year and again in 2014! Congrats Uncle Phil!
This is in reference to the Rosewood / Spruce shown above and in the "Fall & Winter, 2011" section on the Recent Projects page
"As a Burke Reso owner I can only say that IT WILL SOUND as good as it looks. I get more compliments on my new Burke; Dan has found his calling…"
Richard Bernier, Back Woods Road Band
That's Richard's Maine sugar maple Standard above. Also see the "Spring, 2010" section on the Recent Projects page.
Below is a maple Standard with a slotted headstock, finished with polished spar varnish. The dark maple sunburst under that one is a thin-body vintage replica, (although of solid maple rather than plywood) with a square slotted headstock and complete with a 1936 Dobro lug cone. It does sound funky! See more of it on the Recent Projects page too, Fall & Winter, 2011.
Sound Clips
Here's Nashville musician and pal, Perley Curtis playing his original tune, 'Waiting for Sunny Days' on his Burke custom Maple with a slide show of it being built.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-TT0H5JvQg
Repairs and Setup
Many relatively inexpensive instruments can be dramatically improved in tone, volume and sustain by upgrades to hardware and proper interior and action setup. Check out the Repairs and Setup page for more details.
