A right-arm medium pace bowler and a right-handed lower middle-order hitter, Burgess is described by Cricinfo as "a good old-fashioned county professional".
Although the Somerset side at the time was not known for signing local talent, earning it a tag of 'a team of all nations', Burgess became an exception.
He made his debut for the first-team in a match against the touring West Indians in July 1966, and the step-up proved tough.
Not asked to bowl by his captain, Burgess was free to concentrate solely on his batting, and put on a 145 run partnership for the sixth wicket with Ken Palmer to help Somerset to recover from 29/5.
The closing stages of his career coincided with increasing success for the county as he played alongside Viv Richards, Ian Botham, Joel Garner, Brian Rose and Vic Marks as the club achieved its first major honours.