Burns graduated to assistant engineer with the Jethro Tull albums Stand Up (1969) and Benefit (1970); his credits in this period include the self-titled album by Blind Faith (1969), Humble Pie, Jethro Tull, Spooky Tooth, Blodwyn Pig, Ten Years After, Quintessence, David Bowie, King Crimson and Donovan.
During a period as freelance engineer with Island Records, when he often stood in for other engineers on sessions, he worked with major acts including Traffic, Mott the Hoople,[3] Fairport Convention, Free,[1] Curved Air, Deep Purple, Marc Bolan and T. Rex, Jeff Beck, Alexis Corner, Jimmy Cliff, Toots & the Maytals and John Martyn, on the sessions that became Martyn's classic Solid Air (1973) album.
In 1972 he began a successful collaboration with progressive rock band Genesis on their Foxtrot album replacing two previous engineers who had been brought in and then quit.
During a brief period as owner of Escape Studios in Kent in the late 1970s, he recorded artists including Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker and engineered Motörhead's 1977 self-titled album with producer John "Speedy" Keen (ex Thunderclap Newman).
[2] He also produced Straight Eight a band signed to Pete Townshends Eel Pie Label, their first album No Noise from Here.