Byrd Burton, Guitar Player / Producer for The Amazing Rhythm Aces, has toured and recorded with numerous acts including Dan Fogelberg, Judy Rodman, Dolly Parton, Suzy Bogus, Nanci Griffith, Brooks & Dunn, Don Williams, The Oak Ridge Boys, Emmylou Harris, Crystal Gayle, Mickey Gilley, John Conlee, TG Shephard, Bobby Broddock, Pinkard and Bowden, and Bobby Bare, to name a few. A two-time Grammy Nominee (Aces) and Grammy Award Winner (Aces), Byrd has won multiple ASCAP Awards, and was awarded the honored “Nashville Superpicker Award”.

In 1996 Byrd battled prostate cancer and won. Then in 1999 he was diagnosed with acute Mylogenous Leukemia. He fought hard to get the disease in remission and succeeded, but in May 2007, after 7 years of remission, Byrd was diagnosed with Myleodysplastic Syndrome, a disease in which the production of blood cells by the bone marrow is disrupted. In contrast to leukemia, in which one specific type of blood cell (the white cell) is produced in excessively large numbers, with Myleodysplastic Syndrome the production of any, and sometimes all, types of blood cells is affected. This led to a diagnosis of Leukemia in January of 2008. His only chance for survival now is induction chemotherapy to try to get the disease in remission, followed by a stem cell transplant.

From Byrd’s sister Luan: “Many of you who knew he was sick have asked what you can do to help. We have been reluctant to ask for anyone's help until now, but as you can imagine, his medical bills are astronomical and we are still trying to pay for medical expenses from 2007, and find ourselves in a new year with co-pays starting over again. He has no prescription medical coverage and Vanderbilt has told us we need to have $35,000 deposited with them to cover his prescriptions for the 6 months following the transplant before they will begin the process.”


How You Can Help

You can send a check to:

The Barry "Byrd" Burton Benefit Fund
First Tennessee Bank
429 West Main Street
Hendersonville, TN 37075

(Contributions are tax deductible. Please keep copies of cancelled checks for your records when filing 2008 Tax Returns)

OR

Go into any First Tennessee Bank across the state to make a deposit into the fund.

OR

Attend the benefit concert:

The Barry “Byrd” Burton Benefit Concert and Auction will be held on Friday, April 28th, at Niswonger Greeneville Performing Arts Center in Rogersville, Tennessee. The featured act of the night will be none other than KANSAS (hits include "Dust In The Wind", "Carry On My Wayward Son", "Point of Know Return", etc. etc.!) The tentative lineup includes Dixie Highway, followed by a set by a group of “pickers” that Byrd has played with through the years including The B-Team Blues Band, Stick Davis from The Amazing Rhythm Aces, Benny Wilson, and more. There will be autographed memorabilia to be sold at auction, including a guitar signed by Styx, a Greg Allman autographed guitar, a Charlie Daniels fiddle, .38 Special stuff, and MUCH more. Tickets will be $30 through the Niswonger Performing Arts Center and will go on sale Monday, March 17th, at 11:30 a.m. All seats reserved, first come first served. DO NOT CALL UNTIL THE 17th OF MARCH…they can’t sell them before then!