Michael Richard Burston (23 October 1949 – 9 July 2011), commonly known by the stage name Würzel, was an English musician, who played professionally for three decades. He played guitar in British rock band Motörhead from 1984 to 1995, playing on six studio albums and two live albums. Burston died at the age of 61, following heart complications.\n', 'Before joining Motörhead in 1984, Burston had been a corporal in the British Army, serving in Germany and Northern Ireland with the 1st Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment, and had played in the bands Bastard and Warfare. In the early eighties Wurzel played in a Cheltenham band, originally named Made in England, then The Meek; their lead singer Kevin Keane played Brian Eno to Wurzel for many hours.[citation needed] He joined another relatively unknown guitarist, Phil Campbell, at a Motörhead audition; both were hired. The new four-piece line-up made its debut recording a backing track for The Young Ones on 14 February 1984.He also played on the Lemmy produced album for Warfare entitled Metal Anarchy in 1985.\n', 'Burston acquired the nickname \'Würzel\' whilst in the Army, being compared to the character Worzel Gummidge owing to his scarecrow-style hair and bumpkin-like manner. Motörhead singer Lemmy encouraged Würzel to add an umlaut to the \'U\' in his nickname, for heavy metal effect.\n', '

Return to Würzel Autograph Profile