Ross Burns
Host, I Hear America SingingA native of Austin, Texas, Ross grew up in the midst of the Urban Folk Revival of the 1950s and 60s. His first introduction to folk music was the Kingston Trio with their million selling albums. From there, he went forward, backwards and sideways collecting music all along the way. He is a retired librarian and a student of history.
As a historian, he loves researching the stories behind the music and the performers. He has worked as a librarian in public, academic and corporate libraries around the state of Texas. He combines his love of both folk music and history to research the stories of the performers as well as of the songs that they sing. He has been a guest lecturer in English and Folklore classes at the college level and has had articles published in newspapers and professional journals.
In 2006 Ross began his broadcasting with Marfa Public Radio. He retired and moved to Waco with his wife Betty. Ross is the volunteer host and mastermind behind I Hear America Singing which has been airing regularly on KWBU since August, 2014.
I Hear America Singing - Saturdays at 7pm, Sundays at 9pm - is live streamed at KWBU.org and through the KWBU mobile ap. Due to music licensing restrictions we cannot archive programs on line.
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This week on I Hear America Singing, Ross Burns digs into the stories behind a number of songs that themselves, tell stories. -
This week on I Hear America Singing, we explore the many ways music says goodbye. -
This week on I Hear America Singing, we take to the skies—both literally and figuratively. -
This week we have a passel of songs about well … uh … songs. -
This week Ross explores the world of Cattle Trials and Cattle Drives. After the Civil War, the demand for beef led to millions of Texas cattle being driven to distant markets along several established trails, including the Chisholm Trail right through downtown Waco! -
This week Ross shines the spotlight on the late, great songwriter, storyteller, poet, and playwright Billy Edd Wheeler. His songs have been recorded by over 160 artists -
This weekend, Ross remembers Mexia’s Sunday School teaching songwriter Cindy Walker. She wrote songs that became hits and standards for singers from Bing Crosby to John Legend. -
This week, Ross celebrates the whimsical world of cartoonist, children’s author, poet, and singer-songwriter Shel Silverstein. Expect the unexpected from the sad tale of The Unicorn to being Killed by a Coconut, from A Boy Named Sue to the haunting Marie Laveu to the prescient On the Cover of the Rolling Stone. -
This week we remember songwriter, singer, actor Kris Kristofferson on I Hear America Singing. -
Kickstarting a season dedicated to songwriters, this weeks edition of I Hear America Singing see's Ross burn dig into the work and influence of John Stewart. Music this week comes from Roseanne Cash, Nanci Griffith, The Monkees, and more.
