Tag: Canada

Chilliwack = A Canadian Classic

Bill Henderson (lead singer and guitarist for ...
Bill Henderson

Ah yes, Chilliwack.  A Canadian staple on the radio in the 70’s.  “Fly at Night”, “Lonesome Mary”, “Rain-O”, “Crazy Talk”, “Gone, Gone, Gone”, an extensive list of classics.  The group was formed in 1964 as The Classics, later changing their name to The Collectors before settling on Chilliwack.  Being around for so long, there have obviously been many changes in personnel, all rotating around the constant of Bill Henderson.  They were innovators in their use of Native American instruments in their songs, predating Xavier Rudd by many decades.  Over the years the band has released 14 albums and has had 8 Top 40 hits in Canada while charting 23 times and 2 Top 40 hits in the USA, while charting 7 times.  The have not recorded since 1984, although a live album was released in 2003.  An interesting side-note, band member Brian Macleod and the rest of the group, without Bill Henderson, played as the Headpins in the 1980’s with Darby Mills, another Canadian icon of the 1980’s.  The band continues to tour today.

 

The song attached is a live version of “Sundown”, another Chilliwack staple.  This version was done live on the old TV show, Come Together.

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Listening to Canadians – Fearing and White

Andy White (singer-songwriter)
Andy White

Kind of a cheat here.  Stephen Fearing and Andy White (Stephen is Canadian, Andy should be) have successful solo careers, but have teamed up here as Fearing in White to record an album and tour together.    The album, Fearing and White, was released in March of 2011.  They toured Western Canada and recorded the attached video on an iPhone.  Nice job.  I clued in on this band as Andy White and Fearing and White both follow me on Twitter.  When I got the follow, curiosity drew me to YouTube to check them out and was pleased with what I found.  Promotion in any way always helps.  They made me a fan, and maybe you as well.

 

A bit about them now.  Stephen Fearing is out of Vancouver and is a double Juno winner (Canada’s Grammy for the non-Canadians reading this).  He is well-known roots and folk artist.  He has been successful as a solo artists and as a member of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings.

Andy White hails from Northern Ireland and is basically a rambling troubadour.  He tours constantly and has played  with a who’s who of Irish players, including Van Morrison and Sinead O’Connor.

The video is “Under the Silver Sky”.

April Wine = A Canadian Classic

Canadian rock band April Wine in concert at th...
April Wine

A new series of posts based on classic Canadian artists. In the early years of rock and roll, we in Canada had government regulated rules for Canadian content on the airwaves. This created a cottage industry for Canadian bands to create and record as radio stations had to put something on the air, and even though American Woman by the Guess Who is a great song (and fairly long), you couldn’t play it 15 times a day. The upside is that the rules did kick-start an entire stable of artists, which inspired more and more artists until it was no longer necessary to regulate the content. Think current artists such as Arcade Fire, Feist, Celine Dion, Avril Lavigne and even Justin Bieber. There is a possibility that none of these people would have made it without this intervention. We also have a catalogue of great songs that the rest of the world has not heard, which is kind of cool.

The artists that I have chosen to kick off this series with is “April Wine“. A band out of Montreal, formed in 1969 and still touring and still recording. In their heyday they were legendary for their live shows. Frontman Myles Goodwin has been the force behind the band from the beginning and has been the constant since day 1. He handled most of the vocals and played guitars in every incarnation of the band. Other long time members were Jim Clench on bass, Brian Greenway on guitars and vocals and Jerry Mercer on drums. In their career they recorded 16 studio albums (Electric Jewels is my favourite), had 15 compilations and 9 live albums. The most famous live one is Live at the El Mocambo. They opened for a band on that night called the Cockroaches, who in fact were the Rolling Stones.

Despite have 21 top 40 hits in Canada, they had limited success elsewhere. In the USA they had 3 top 40’s and 7 total that charted. In the UK only 2 songs reached the charts with none breaking into the top 40. Truly a Canadian phenomenon. The video is I Like To Rock, which charted in all 3 countries, hitting 86 in the USA, 41 in the UK and only hit 75 in Canada. This is the official video of the song, released in 1980.

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New Canadian Music – Library Voices

Library Voices
Library Voices

Regina band “Library Voices” released their new album on August 23. (Available on iTunes). The album is titled “Summer Lust”, which is what people in Western Canada definitely do for summer. The attached video is their first single released from the album “Generation Handclap”. The band hails from Regina, Saskatchewan and are following up a successful album “Denim on Denim” from 2010. If you like the video, and are interested in hearing more from this band, hit the link*. It will take you to CBC3 and has most of their songs.

Their upcoming tour dates:

date city venue tix
Sep 16 Saskatoon, SK Amigos Cantina
Sep 17 Edmonton, AB Pawn Shop
Sep 19 Jasper, AB Horseshoe Club
Sep 20 Kelowna, BC The Habitat
Sep 22 Vancouver, BC Biltmore Cabaret (Presented by The Peak 100.5FM)
Sep 23 Victoria, BC Rifflandia Festival
Sep 24 Victoria, BC Rifflandia Festival
Sep 25 Robert’s Creek, BC The Gumboot
Sep 27 Penticton, BC The Barking Parrot
Sep 28 Nelson, BC Spirit Bar
Sep 29 Canmore, AB Canmore Hotel
Sep 30 Calgary, AB The Gateway (Presented by X92.9FM)
Oct 01 Regina, SK The Exchange
Oct 04 Chicago, IL Beat Kitchen
Oct 07 Brooklyn, NY Spike Hill
Oct 13 Hamilton, ON Casbah
Oct 14 Kingston, ON Mansion
Oct 15 Wakefield, ON Black Sheep Inn
Oct 18 Charlottetown, PEI Baba’s
Oct 19 Moncton, NB Plan B
Oct 20 Fredericton, NB Capital
Oct 21 Halifax, NS Halifax Pop Explosion – Seahorse Tavern
Oct 25 Quebec City, PQ Le Cercle
Oct 26 Montreal, PQ Casa De Popolo
Oct 27 Peterborough, ON Trash
Oct 28 Toronto, ON Horseshoe Tavern
Oct 29 Guelph, ON E Bar
Oct 30 Windsor, ON Phog Lounge

Things That Ticked Me Off This Week

Libby Davies, New Democratic member of Parliam...
Libby Davies

As a rule, I sit and read, then seethed over some really crazy (to me) stuff.  The ironic, the pompous, the ridiculous, the downright stupid, I ingest it and just basically get angry.  Some of this is not anger worthy to you,  Doesn’t matter, it is foolish to me.  In this vein, I intend to do a weekly post of stuff that just plain pisses me off.  Nothing fancy, an article or 2 and a comment or 2.  You’ll either get pissed at me or you’ll join me at laughing in the face of the foolish.

Lets get started shall we.

The pompous.  Al Gore compares climate change to the Civil Rights fight.*  I am sure Al is well-meaning, but, come on.  the science is loose at best, his personal reputation on the subject is crumbling.  I wouldn’t be surprised if his Oscar gets yanked on him for that horrendous “Inconvenient Truth” bafflegab.  Ridiculous comment by a spent force.

The ridiculous. Christine St-Pierre, Quebec’s Culture Minister has come up with a beautiful plan to control the press* (and bloggers).  She floated a plan to, get this, license journalists.  Needless to say, journalists were somewhat unanimous in condemning this dumbass idea.  The best part, Christine St-Pierre was once a CBC employee. LOL.

The Crazy.  A professor at the University of Manitoba lost his bid to rescind a student’s PhD* awarded despite the student failing the course.  the student claimed a disability, which the university agreed with.  The disability? “EXTREME EXAM ANXIETY”.  I am enrolling at the U of M tomorrow.  I’ll be a surgeon in a couple of years.

The foolish.  My favourite for the NDP leadership. Libby Davies, came out in support of eliminating the 10 year rule* that immigrants are required to wait to be able to claim Old Age Security.  Her thinking is that if you come to Canada and promptly retire, we should pay that person  OAS and GIS, no questions asked.  The bill was promptly pulled by the NDP for obvious optical reasons.

That is all.

Elbow Falls and Cobble Flats, Alberta

Northern lights over the city of Calgary, Albe...
Northern Lights Over Calgary, Alberta

We have been spending the summer fairly close to home this year.  That may sound unlike someone who likes to travel and wonders “Is It Possible To See It All”, but one must remember that we live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, a veritable smorgasbord of things to see and do, all within hours of our home.  On this journey, we travelled about an hour west to K-Country (Kananaskis Provincial Park) and visited Elbow Falls, and continued west to Cobble Flats where we lunched prior to returning home.  We were entertaining some guests from Winnipeg on this run and as we had never been here, we decided it was the place to go.

First stop, Elbow Falls.  The video doesn’t do justice.

The area is very tourist friendly with a paved path along the river, protected by guard rails.  There is a large picnic area, but one has to arrive very early to get a spot.  A nice peaceful area to spend a day though.

Roger and Wendy

As the picnic area was full, we left and headed a bit further west, ending up at Cobble Flats.  A beautiful spot for a nice lunch.  A beautiful creek with a picnic area along the creek.  we grabbed a spot and had a great time enjoying the surroundings and company.

The area is surrounded by beauty in every direction.  It is great to live in this part of the world.

The Creek
The View
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Remembering Jack Layton

Jack Layton making NDP transit announcement.
Jack Layton

Jack Layton, leader of the NDP, Canada’s official opposition party. passed away this morning at the age of 61.  He had stepped down as leader in July to fight his personal battle with cancer and vowed to be back in time for the next parliament in September.

On a national level, he was likely Canada’s most popular political figure.  His style was very personable and he seemed to above the fray.  He connected with people with his down to earth personality.  He projected honesty and stirred a belief that he deeply cared about people, which was reflected in his policies and beliefs.  He dragged the NDP from oblivion to its’ current status.  He forced them from being the “Left Wing” soldiers to being a viable alternative to Canada’s Liberal Party, the strategy that transformed from perennial 4th or 5th place finishes to second place.

On a personal level, there is not a chance that I could ever vote for him, and in fact, the very idea that he was head of Canada’s government in waiting scared me.  This had nothing to do with him, but with his politics.  I always enjoyed listening to him.  I didn’t agree with 99,9% of what he said, but he said it well. In many respects, I have been one of his and his parties more vocal critics.  That , though is the very nature of politics.  One speaks out against or for what you or someone else believes.  This discourse usually creates consensus and moves our society down the path to the future.  Jack Layton definitely tried to move the discussion down his road, and I respected him for that.

Canada has lost a great personality in it’s political rainbow.  He will certainly be missed by most everybody.  So long Jack.

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Hanging Out at Heritage Park – Calgary, AB

The pathway along Glenmore Reservoir
Glenmore reservoir Image by elliottzone via Flickr

One of Calgary‘s major attractions is one of the biggest outdoor museums in the world, Heritage Park.  It is basically a town from the early 20th century set along the Glenmore Reservoir.  A beautiful setting for an outstanding piece of history.  The buildings on site are historical  and have been donated or purchased and moved to the park.  Once here they have been restored and turned into exhibits.

When one enters the park, the first exhibit is Gasoline Alley, a museum of restored vehicles and pieces from early gas stations.

Gasoline Alley

Restored vehicle in Gasoline AlleyFrom Gasoline Alley, it is off to the town site itself.  There is everything from fully staffed general stores, candy shops and bakeries to a pool hall and post office.  Each is staffed with well informed park personnel who are willing to answer questions and point out the features and history of each building.

Main Street - Heritage Park

The video below is taken in the Blacksmith shop and is indicative of what happens here to teach people about our history.

Then there are the vistas where one can sit and watch sailboats and the bustle on the reservoir.

Glenmore Reservoir

All in all, Heritage Park is a great way to spend a quiet day in the middle of a large city, without knowing you are in a big city.  There is something for everybody, whether it is history, antique cars or old trains.  If you are in Calgary, make it a point to visit this terrific exhibit.

Listening to Canadians – Royal Wood

Royal Wood
Royal Wood

Royal Wood is a Canadian singer songwriter, born in Peterborough, Ontario.  He has been releasing albums since 2002.  In 2010, he received the  iTunes songwriter of the year award for his album “The Waiting.  His sound is all over the map, from being compared to Randy Newman to Tom Waits and even to the Beach Boys.  Each album is different, but each is musically very sound.  The attached song is of of “The Waiting” and is titled “On Top of Your Love”.

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Lake Louise – The List

Living in Calgary means being close to one of the icons of travel, Lake Louise and of course, the classic picture of one standing on the edge with the majestic view behind you.  We have now been there many times with guests and have taken the picture on multiple occasions.  So, without much fanfare, I have compiled the Lake Louise Post of Fame.  I will add to this on each opportunity (or as I find old pictures).  I also encourage our friends and relatives to contribute their own photos to the cause and I will update the Post of Fame.

My post, we get to be first
Jason & Tera
Jeff & Charmaine
Lori & Ethel
Lauren - The Ice Princess