Porcupine
Awards - 1997
WINSTON 'SCOTTY' FITZGERALD
AWARD FOR CELTIC FIDDLING:
Jerry
Holland, Cape Breton
Jerry Holland first recorded
for Rounder Records in the United States in 1976 when he was just
21. A fiddling, step dancing sensation, he was steeped in the music of
Cape Breton where he spent most of his summers. At an early age he listened
to the fiddling of Bill Lamey and Angus
Chislom. Later he was asked to join the Cape
Breton Symphony with Buddy MacMaster and
other great fiddlers, appearing regularly on John Allen Cameron’s
TV program. It was there that he met the late Winston
‘Scotty’ Fitzgerald and adopted the master’s relish for swing dance
music. Jerry has gone on to become one of the deans of the Scottish fiddle
in America of his generation.
WILF CARTER WESTERN CANADIAN
AWARD:
Tammy Fassaert, BC
Tammy has worked hard at
her craft and deserves mention here. Her songwriting skills have grown
through her desire to learn the music. A good bluegrass bass player, she
has performed through North America. Her songwriting skills have been honed,
her musicianship and ability to sing with feeling are recognized by fellow
musicians and audiences.
HARRY HIBBS AWARD FOR PERSEVERANCE:
Mrs Phylis Cavalini Silver,
Toronto/Nfld
Mrs Cavalini always wanted
to be a singer, always wanted to record her own songs written to celebrate
the experience of her upbringing in a Portuguese/Newfoundland home. Daughter
of a Portuguese stowaway and Newfoundland-Irish mother, she recalls the
good times when Portuguese sailors would drop in from the fishery, bringing
with them olives and wine and other Portuguese delicacies. And oh how they
partied. After an initial start at a career in the early 1970s, she gave
it up to raise her sons in Toronto who went on to play hockey in the NHL.
Now, after all these years, she has finally released her first album of
songs.
NOEL DINN HERITAGE PRESERVATION
AWARD:
Liette Remon, Gaspesie,
Québec
Born into a working class,
musical family, Liette was inspired by the traditional sounds of her family.
Learning the violin, she soon learned the reels and other dance tunes of
the people around her. Sister to Porcupine Award recipient Lina
Remon - for her book on Madame La Bolduc - Liette last year
recorded and released a precious family portrait in music, complete with
the encapsulated stories of her family members.
MARIUS BARBEAU AWARD FOR
FIELD RESEARCH:
Lynn Russwurm, Ontario
Lynn has been personally
responsible for archiving the history of Canadian Country music. His knowledge
and love of the subject have made him a wise father-figure. The recent
compilation album that he is responsible for assembling, ‘It’s
The Saturday Night Barndance’ features some of the recording pioneers
of the CKNX Barndance scene, right on up till the present. It includes
some very rare recordings and good liner notes which would probably have
been more in depth had he the budget to do so.
PORCUPINE BOOK AWARD
Chuck Angus & Brit
Griffon, Cobalt, ON for We Lived A Life And Then Some: The Life,
Death, and Life of a Mining Town, Between The Lines Pub., Toronto,
ON - ISBN 1-896357-06-7
A great undertaking, the
oral history of the Cobalt mining camp. It takes a good look at the folklore,
the legends and characters who took part in this incredible history. A
rich and creamy, working class story as told by the residents of this once
famous mining town. The book includes artwork by Sally Lawrence
and Rob Moir.
JACK HAYES AWARD FOR OLD
TIME MUSIC:
The Leahy Family,
Lakefield, ON
While Leahy is following
in the footsteps of the Maritime success stories, The Rankins, The Barra
MacNeils, etc.,it was the dedication and devotion of their parents
Frank
and Julie who originally formed the Leahy Family Band over
twenty years ago. As each new sibling was born, it was drummed into them
that they too would soon stepdance into the family tradition. Keeping a
family of 10 kids on the go was never easy: each member had to learn to
play more than one instrument and to do so well. Their current incarnation
is testament to their tremendous skills and determination to follow through
in the footsteps of their heritage.
DAVID PARRY AWARD:
The Friends of Fiddlers’
Green, Ontario
26 years ago the Friends
got together to perform their favourite songs and tunes together. The set
up their own folk club and hosted it weekly for twenty years. With a great
collection of material at their disposal, their performances were punctuated
by stories, anecdotes and periodic nonsense, and of course the no holds
barred jokes of Tam Kearney. Joining him were the late David
Parry, Finest Kind’s Ian Robb, luthier Grit Laskin, with
Lawrence
Stevenson, Alistair Brown and Geoff McClintock. Their
club helped launch the careers of others such as Margaret Christl and Stan
Rogers as well as some of their own individual careers.
DON MESSER CANADIAN FIDDLE
AWARD:
Ivan Hicks, Sackville,
NB
Ivan was born in New Brunswick
in 1940 and started gigging with his dad, Curtis Hicks, when he
was only 6, first as a mandolin player, and a short time later as a fiddler.
His father, a self-taught fiddler with great technique and stubborn resolve
to play it right, was Ivan's main inspiration. Now in his mid-fifties,
he has gone on to become a major proponent of 'down east fiddling'. He
teaches, he volunteers for fiddle fests, he has his own radio program and
is known for his compositions, dexterity and the fame associated with having
won the Maritime Fiddle Championships held in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia,
5 times.
AL CROMWELL CANADIAN FOLK/BLUES:
Ken Hamm, Victoria,
BC
Originally from Thunder
Bay, Ontario, Ken started playing folk and blues music in his teens, having
learned the music of Pete Seeger, Woodie Guthrie and Leadbelly through
local music store owner Einar Nordstrom. Although he’s now living
in BC, Ken stuck to his hometown roots for many years, increasing his abilities
to write, sing and perform folkblues.
FORIEGN PORCUPINE AWARD:
Linda Brietag, Minneapolis,
MN
Linda’s love for Québécois
traditional music, blended with her other musical tendencies, have produced
some great musical sessions, some of which are captured on her CD Feet
to the Fire. Produced in Québec by André Marchand,
and utilizing the resources of many of Launadiere’s fine musicians, Linda’s
journey has come round full tilt with authority, enthusiasm and joy. Her
early work with Québec City based Cajun band Josephine exposed
her to many Québécois musicians and thus her love for what
is truly a Canadienne experience.
MAC BEATTIE AWARD FOR ONTARIO
SONG:
Gail Gavan, Quyon,
QC
Daughter of the late Irish
traditional singer - hotellier Lennox
Gavan, Gail has taken to performing her rocking country music throughout
the Ottawa Valley. Having recorded three albums, she has included
a good measure of Mac Beattie’s music and other songs about the
Valley. Her upbringing in Gavan’s Hotel was filled with Irish nights,
fiddle nights, traditional singing nights, and many other excuses to party.
She is bringing the music back to the people.
MDME. LA BOLDUC AWARD FOR
QUEBECOIS FOLKLORE:
Simon Riopel, Launadiere,
Québec
Fiddler, singer Simon Riopel
has delved into the past and produced a living music that reaches into
the depth of his family’s tradition. With his companion, Eric Beaudry,
he brought it all together in the CD called Ni Sarpe Ni Branche,
playing the way his father or his grandfather would, and utilizing the
technology of the times to record it so clearly. Still only a youngster,
it is people like Simon who will propel the wonders of folk music well
into the twenty-first century.
FOLK MUSIC BUILDERS:
-
Judy Perly
- proprietor of the Free Times Cafe, Toronto - providing a home
for the singer/songwriter folks for the past 17 years.
-
Mike Reganstreif,
radio programmer, Folk Routes Folk Branches, CKUT FM, Montreal -
has been a booker, promoter, enthusiast, collector, writer and now radio
host for the past 25 years.
-
Joel Wortzman,
radio programmer, Acoustic Routes, CKLN FM, Toronto - has been selflessly
promoting the careers of Toronto-based artists for year. Pat Paget Project
and careers of Ron Sexsmith and Bob Snider owe a lot to this
man.
-
Merrick Jerrett
- folklorist, Kitchener, ON - has collected folklore of The West. Had radio
show on the CBC in the 1950s. Performed songs collected by Edith Fowke
on her Radio Program. Holder of an expansive archieve.
ACOUSTIC WORKSHOP SONG OF
THE YEAR:
McBeth Again
by Jim Armour, Toronto
A tougue in cheek poke-at
song sung in the traditional way. While Jim has not recorded, he is an
enthusastic student of traditional folk music which he can never quite
get enough of. This song was written as a parody with brilliantly humourous
lyrics.
STAN ROGERS GOLDEN QUILL
AWARD FOR SONGWRITING:
Bruce Cockburn, Toronto,
ON for The Whole Night Sky
Bruce has many honours to
his credit and doesn’t really need recognition here to validate his amazing
career. However, how can we pass up this opportunity to honour a truly
great Canadian singer/songwriter who has moved so many people, with his
abilities to paint landscapes, bringing home the sense of responsibility
we much each bare in the face of human activity. His relentless work on
behalf of banning land mines, something he’s fought for some years, is
finally proving fruitful. This is our humble way of honouring him. This
song, in our humble opinion, ranks up there with some of his best work.
It was recorded on his 1996 album The Charity of Night.
ROAD KILL AWARD:
Guy Lafleur, Québec
for Lafleur!
Well it's been a few years
since we last awarded this Porcupine to anyone, in fact in the history
of the Porcupines, it's only been awarded twice before. However, Guy Lafleur,
the legendary Montreal Canadien hockey player deserves this for
his hockey instructional record backed with a disco track, complete with
singers. Right out of the BeeGees book. The album (produced in the
early 80s) comes complete with instruction booklet and a poster of Lafleur,
half nude, sitting with his skates on in front of his Number 10 hockey
sweater. Two minutes for looking so good Lafleur.
JEAN CARIGNAN AWARD
Daniel Roy, Québec
City, QC
Daniel Roy performed for
a time with La Bottine Souriante (their second album) and has since
gained the respect of his fellow musicians for his great flute, flageolet
and bones playing. Currently in the group Enterloupe with Paul
Marchand and Eric Favereau, he has taken fairly obscure tunes
and recorded them on his first CD called Au Tour du Flageolet,
utilizing many forces that have influenced his own playing over the years
into the mix. A great player - even better teacher.
PRODUCER:
Bill Garrett, Toronto
ON
Bill Garrett, originally
from Québec, was influenced by the sweet guitar sounds of American
bluegrass and folk, and the reels of Québec. When he joined up with
his musical partner Paul Mills, aka Curly Boy Stubbs, in
the 1970s, he was enticed into working as a producer at the CBC.
Since that time Garrett has put his name on classic Canadian albums, recorded
to CBC standards, by the likes of the Schryer Triplets, Stan Rogers,
Graham Townsend, Steel Rail and JP Cormier. His recent involvement
with Borealis Records ensures
that Bill Garrett will continue working on producing great Canadian folk
oriented projects in the future.
CEC McECHERN AWARD:
Tony Quarrington,
Toronto
Tony Quarrington has been
one of the quiet players on the Toronto music scene for over 3 decades.
A producer, performer, but mostly an accompanist, he's there to make others
sound great. His guitar work is superb, but it is his ability to improvise
so strongly, and yet so tastefully, that makes him a favourite choice as
a session artist or backup musician.
LENNY BREAU AWARD:
David Woodhead, Toronto,
ON
David Woodhead - the guy
in the background that just about everybody uses - started playing in the
legendary folk troup Perth County Conspiracy in the early 1970s.
Having mastered the art of electric bass, and especially the electric fretless,
he has performed and recorded with the who’s who of Canada: Stan Rogers,
Loreena McKennett, Eileen McGann, Oliver Schroer, Valdy, Anderson and Brown
and
countless others. His sound is like that of no other. His ability to play
in almost any style, to solo, and his lesser known talents on the electric
jazz guitar, is astounding.
SPECIAL APPRECIATION AWARD
Michelle Rumball,
Toronto/Timmins, ON
Best known for her wonderful,
gritty, get down to it vocals with the early Grievous
Angels, Michelle graces our airwaves each week to sing the Theme
song of The Great North Wind. It was only fitting to award her with
this special appreciation award.
CLASSIC CANADIAN ALBUM:
Gordon Lightfoot's Don
Quixote - 1973
Lightfoot zoomed to the
top of the folk ladder, not only in Canada, but in the world with his incredible
songs. But it was this album, filled with incredible songs fit so well
together, that put him over the top. Some say that this was his greatest
work that he never again equalled. The jury will always be out on that
one, but it was an album that I played over and over again, and learned
to sing almost every song. The album featured Red Shea and Terry
Clements, Rick Haynes and Gordon Lightfoot on all the instruments
except for one: the mandolin on his hit song Alberta Bound was played by
Ry
Cooder.
The songs: Don Quixote -
Christian Island (Georgian Bay) - Alberta Bound - Looking At The
Rain - Ordinary Man - Brave Mountaineers - Ode To Big Blue - Second Cup
of Coffee - Beautiful - On Susan's Floor - The Patriot's Dream. Produced
by Lenny Waronker; engineered by Lee Herschberg.
ACOUSTIC WORKSHOP GUEST OF THE
YEAR:
Jim McHarg, Toronto
This Scottish born jazz
musician came to Toronto in the early 1960s and quickly formed The Metro
Stompers, a dixieland jazz band. Jim played bass for so many great
jazz artists visiting Toronto at places like the Colonial Tavern.
When he guested on Acoustic Workshop he was so intriguing that Rick
Fielding had him back the following week to continue his tale.
GEM OF CANADA ALBUM:
En Spectacle, by La
Bottine Souriante
I fought hard not to give
them this award since they'd already been awarded with Porcupines. However
I couldn't resist. I listened to some other great albums trying my hardest
to choose them over En Spectacle, but to no avail. This was simply the
most enjoyable one. It was recorded live, in Québec, with great
audience sound, and great live sound, and featured works from their repertoire
over the past 20 years. But this will never happen again: La Bottine is
being retired into the Porcupine Hall of Fame, ineligible for Porcupine
Awards forever more. Promise.
Hall of Famers:
Memorial
Smiley Bates - country
singer, Ontario
Andy Dejarlis - fiddler,
Manitoba
Dan R. MacDonald
- fiddler, Cape Breton
Marg Osburne - singer,
New Brunswick
George Wade - band
leader, Ontario
Member
Charles ‘Chuck’ Angus
- author, singer/songwriter, Northern Ontario
Bruce Cockburn -
singer songwriter, Ontario
Bill Langstroth -
television producer, Nova Scotia/Ontario
Manny Pitson - television
producer, Nova Scotia/Ontario
Buddy MacMaster -
fiddler, Cape Breton
Group
Don Messer and His Islanders,
PEI
George Wade and His Cornhuskers,
Ontario
Grievous Angels,
Ontario
La Bottine Souriante,
Québec
Ottawa Valley Melodiers,
Ontario
Tamarack, Ontario
GOLDEN PORCUPINE AWARD:
Bruce Cockburn, Toronto,
ON
Ever since his early days
in Ottawa with The Children and Three's A Crowd in the 1960s,
Cockburn was destined to become what he has. His early influence of playing
blues-style guitar has only been expanded upon but is essentially the same.
He has shared his life with us, painted in portraits through his earliest
works as a solo artists, all on the same record label, True North.
He's been awarded with Junos, the Order of Canada, and many
other awards. He's brought us consciousness of social concerns through
his spirituality. He's embroiled us in issues such as what they call democracy
in the face of what goes on in the world, sanctioned by our governments.
He even accomplished what Farley Mowat could not: threatened
the United States with a Rocket Launcher and still not banned from entering
that land (Mowat did it with a whaling gun). More than twenty albums
of original work, more memories than most of us can remember, he's still
energetic, still composing, still youthful, looking at the world through
the innocent eyes of a beholder. He refuses to preach: he just paints a
scene and lets us wander into it. If he does nothing more, he has deserved
the credit to which this award attests to. He has accomplished enough for
at least one lifetime; hopefully he'll start working on another one.
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