{ "ok" : true, "artist" : { "name" : "Burnshee Thornside", "page" : "thornside", "description" : "funny, funky blues", "location" : "Stockholm, Sweden", "bio" : "First, a true story.\nWhen Thornside was in his mid twenties, he worked at McDonalds. Believe it or not, he came so far as to being a \"white shirt\", bossing around. But of course Thornside had a boss over him, a crazy but nice man from Iran. When he heard that Thornside sang and played the trumpet, he immediately insisted (or \"decided\" is probably the right word) that Thornside should play for the guests between four and five every Tuesday. Thornside called his old friend Burnshee, with whom he was playing in different bands, and asked him to play with him. They formed a duo, performing jazz standards and some dixie, in the corner of the McDonalds restaurant at Kungsgatan in Stockholm, Sweden. Thornside singing, playing trumpet and banjo, and Thornside playing the guitar. Two hundred Swedish kronor and a free meal was the deal. And the start of what 15 years later would be Burnshee Thornside, the funky jazzy whacky duo from Sweden. (What the guests thought at the moment is not very clear. One thing is for sure: they did not come only to hear Thornside and Burnshee.)\n\nIt started in the early 80's\nJohan Nilsson and Jens Henriksson - Burnshee Thornside - met in their teens and formed many bands playing mostly funk. It was the days of the \"slapping bass\" so you had to get hold of a good bassplayer, who knew how to use his thumb. Compared to the rock bands, you also had to have horns, and you had to know how to arrange for horns. Trumpets, saxophones, trombones. Thornside, being also a trumpet player, knew that, so we had great horn arrangements from day one. We made a lot of our own music, played many gigs, and we listened to Earth Wind & Fire, Kool & The Gang, Steely Dan, Koinonia, Gino Vanelli, Chaka Khan, Rufus, James Brown, jazz and blues, Zappa, Weather Report... Sometimes Burnshee and Thornside would meet up in the rehearsal studio to record together, on their own. A little pleasure they had, together with the 4-track Fostex Cassette Recorder. It sounded very Motown...\n\nThe year 2003\nAfter pursuing different careers (IT, Advertising, computers), of course neither Thornside or Burnshee made a living out of music, altough it gave some good extra money, Burnshee finally made one of his dreams come true: his own studio in the basement. Based around a Mac G4 and Logic. All of a sudden Burnshee and Thornside were back were it all started. Recording, making music, composing, arranging. They looked at each other and decided to start all over. But first they had to get rid of their Swedish sounding names - Johan Nilsson and Jens Henriksson - so they named themselves Burnshee Thornside and their first recording in the new studio was of their old song \"Hey Hey Hey\" (which now appears on the Burnshee Thornside Album Blues and misc.) After that they composed 14 brand new songs and invited the magic musician Tomas Bergquist in to play drums and bass (he is still with us). The releasing of \"The Art Of Not Blending In\" was quite successful, there being no record label behind it. We got some airtime on a small radiostation in Oregon, and Australia, and we sold some albums via magnatune.com who supported us from the start. Everybody said it sounded like Steely Dan and Michael McDonald, mostly thanks to Thornside's voice, we guess, but also due to the fact that the music is kind of Rhythm & Blues. With a jazzy feeling. And then a bit funky. And with horns. The lyrics, that's quite another story. They are not only about love. They can be about anything...\n\nThe years 2004 and 2005\nIn 2004 Burnshee Thornside released \"Blues & misc.\", as the title reveals, a whole lot of blues, but also funky jazzy stuff, 12 tracks. A bit more simple. Not as many horn arrangements. Not as many background vocals performed by great sounding female singers. But still very good. (Some regard \"Blues and misc.\" as better than \"The Art Of Not Blending In\".)\n\nAnd then, in 2005, came \"Rock This Moon\". 15 new tracks, back to more horns, more background vocals, more 70's jazzy/funky Steely Dan-ish. With fun, intriguing and whacky lyrics.\n\nIs this only the beginning? Yes, we think so! And maybe, just maybe, one day people will come to McDonalds only because Burnshee Thornside is playing in the sound system.", "photo" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/img/thornside1.jpg", "web_url" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/thornside/", "albums" : [{ "sku" : "burnshee-artnv", "name" : "The Art of Not Blending In (vocals removed)", "artist" : { "name" : "Burnshee Thornside", "page" : "thornside" }, "release_date" : "2026-10-20", "genres" : ["Alt Rock","Funk","Blues"], "vocals" : "vocals removed", "moods" : ["playful","quirky","groovy","funky","uplifting","energetic"], "uses" : ["comedy","vlog","road trip","podcast background","advertising","cafe or restaurant"], "energy" : 4, "instrumentation" : ["spicy guitar licks","smooth vocals","jazzy funk rhythms","brass sections","driving rhythms"], "sounds_like" : [], "summary" : "A funny, funky blues album with eclectic upbeat songs ranging from jazzy funk and soul to sixties pop, ideal for lively, humorous, or stylish media projects.", "cover" : "https://magnatune.com/music/Burnshee%20Thornside/The%20Art%20of%20Not%20Blending%20In%20(vocals%20removed)/cover_400.jpg", "web_url" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/albums/burnshee-artnv/", "api_url" : "https://magnatune.com/api/albums/burnshee-artnv", "buy_url" : "https://magnatune.com/buy/album?sku=burnshee-artnv" },{ "sku" : "burnshee-bluesnv", "name" : "Blues and misc (vocals removed)", "artist" : { "name" : "Burnshee Thornside", "page" : "thornside" }, "release_date" : "2026-10-20", "genres" : ["Alt Rock","Funk","Blues"], "vocals" : "vocals removed", "moods" : ["playful","quirky","groovy","funky"], "uses" : ["comedy","vlog","podcast background","advertising","cafe or restaurant","lounge or bar"], "energy" : 4, "instrumentation" : ["blues guitar","drums","bass","vocals"], "sounds_like" : [], "summary" : "Funny, funky blues with wry lyrics and tight instrumental grooves, ideal for lighthearted videos, comedy, or casual background music.", "cover" : "https://magnatune.com/music/Burnshee%20Thornside/Blues%20and%20misc%20(vocals%20removed)/cover_400.jpg", "web_url" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/albums/burnshee-bluesnv/", "api_url" : "https://magnatune.com/api/albums/burnshee-bluesnv", "buy_url" : "https://magnatune.com/buy/album?sku=burnshee-bluesnv" },{ "sku" : "burnshee-moonnv", "name" : "Rock This Moon (vocals removed)", "artist" : { "name" : "Burnshee Thornside", "page" : "thornside" }, "release_date" : "2026-10-20", "genres" : ["Alt Rock","Funk","Blues"], "vocals" : "vocals removed", "moods" : ["playful","quirky","groovy","funky"], "uses" : ["comedy","vlog","podcast background","cafe or restaurant","lounge or bar","emotional storytelling"], "energy" : 3, "instrumentation" : ["horns","jazz-soul instrumentation","male and female vocals","funky rock band"], "sounds_like" : ["Steely Dan"], "summary" : "A funny, funky blues and jazz-soul album with witty lyrics, laid-back grooves, and horn-accented funky rock—ideal for comedy, vlogs, and relaxed background use.", "cover" : "https://magnatune.com/music/Burnshee%20Thornside/Rock%20This%20Moon%20(vocals%20removed)/cover_400.jpg", "web_url" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/albums/burnshee-moonnv/", "api_url" : "https://magnatune.com/api/albums/burnshee-moonnv", "buy_url" : "https://magnatune.com/buy/album?sku=burnshee-moonnv" },{ "sku" : "burnshee-moon", "name" : "Rock This Moon", "artist" : { "name" : "Burnshee Thornside", "page" : "thornside" }, "release_date" : "2005-09-05", "genres" : ["Alt Rock","Funk","Blues"], "vocals" : "vocals", "moods" : ["playful","quirky","groovy","funky"], "uses" : ["comedy","vlog","podcast background","cafe or restaurant","lounge or bar","emotional storytelling"], "energy" : 3, "instrumentation" : ["horns","jazz-soul instrumentation","male and female vocals","funky rock band"], "sounds_like" : ["Steely Dan"], "summary" : "A funny, funky blues and jazz-soul album with witty lyrics, laid-back grooves, and horn-accented funky rock—ideal for comedy, vlogs, and relaxed background use.", "cover" : "https://magnatune.com/music/Burnshee%20Thornside/Rock%20This%20Moon/cover_400.jpg", "web_url" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/albums/burnshee-moon/", "api_url" : "https://magnatune.com/api/albums/burnshee-moon", "buy_url" : "https://magnatune.com/buy/album?sku=burnshee-moon" },{ "sku" : "burnshee-blues", "name" : "Blues and misc", "artist" : { "name" : "Burnshee Thornside", "page" : "thornside" }, "release_date" : "2004-10-25", "genres" : ["Alt Rock","Funk","Blues"], "vocals" : "vocals", "moods" : ["playful","quirky","groovy","funky"], "uses" : ["comedy","vlog","podcast background","advertising","cafe or restaurant","lounge or bar"], "energy" : 4, "instrumentation" : ["blues guitar","drums","bass","vocals"], "sounds_like" : [], "summary" : "Funny, funky blues with wry lyrics and tight instrumental grooves, ideal for lighthearted videos, comedy, or casual background music.", "cover" : "https://magnatune.com/music/Burnshee%20Thornside/Blues%20and%20misc/cover_400.jpg", "web_url" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/albums/burnshee-blues/", "api_url" : "https://magnatune.com/api/albums/burnshee-blues", "buy_url" : "https://magnatune.com/buy/album?sku=burnshee-blues" },{ "sku" : "burnshee-art", "name" : "The Art of Not Blending In", "artist" : { "name" : "Burnshee Thornside", "page" : "thornside" }, "release_date" : "2004-03-09", "genres" : ["Alt Rock","Funk","Blues"], "vocals" : "vocals", "moods" : ["playful","quirky","groovy","funky","uplifting","energetic"], "uses" : ["comedy","vlog","road trip","podcast background","advertising","cafe or restaurant"], "energy" : 4, "instrumentation" : ["spicy guitar licks","smooth vocals","jazzy funk rhythms","brass sections","driving rhythms"], "sounds_like" : [], "summary" : "A funny, funky blues album with eclectic upbeat songs ranging from jazzy funk and soul to sixties pop, ideal for lively, humorous, or stylish media projects.", "cover" : "https://magnatune.com/music/Burnshee%20Thornside/The%20Art%20of%20Not%20Blending%20In/cover_400.jpg", "web_url" : "https://magnatune.com/artists/albums/burnshee-art/", "api_url" : "https://magnatune.com/api/albums/burnshee-art", "buy_url" : "https://magnatune.com/buy/album?sku=burnshee-art" }] }, "license" : { "music_license" : "Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 1.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 1.0)", "music_license_url" : "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/1.0/", "listening" : "Stream the free previews, or buy an album for $8 to download it in MP3, AAC, ALAC, FLAC, OGG or WAV. 100% of the price goes to the musician.", "non_commercial" : "Non-commercial projects may use the music under CC BY-NC-SA 1.0: credit the artist and Magnatune, and share alike.", "projects" : "Magnatune members may use any Magnatune music in their projects, commercial or not (videos, films, podcasts, games, apps, websites, adverts), including work for clients, under the Magnatune Project Licence. Projects released while a member stay licensed for good; new projects need an active membership. Credit is required. TV or radio broadcast, cinema, and background music in shops, restaurants or on-hold lines are not included: license those from the musician. Membership: $10/month, $99/year or $299 lifetime; agents can buy one themselves with MPP at /api/member-pass ($10 month, $99 year, $299 lifetime, one-off).", "projects_status" : "available", "projects_signup" : "https://magnatune.com/member/signup", "royalty_free" : "Membership is royalty-free licensing: no per-video, per-download or per-view fees, for every project created and released while a member.", "youtube" : "YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, podcasts: members may use the clean songs in monetized videos. Members register their YouTube channel (the set_youtube_channel MCP tool, or their account page) so YouTube's Content ID doesn't claim their videos. The free versions carry a spoken Magnatune voice and are non-commercial (CC BY-NC-SA), so they're not for monetized channels or client work.", "details" : "https://magnatune.com/info/licensing", "how_to_credit" : "Name the artist and \"Magnatune\", with a link to the album's web_url." } }