Rip Sanders "The Country Way" (Banff Records, 1971) (LP)

Hugh Scott "Sings Country At The Chamberland Club" (Banff Records, 1967) (LP)
Mixing old, old-school country, honky-tonk and rockabilly, in the late 1960s Ottawa, Canada's Hugh Scott led the house band at the Chamberland Club, as heard on this live recording. There's some stuff you've heard elsewhere, and some that maybe you haven't, songs like "Don't Let Her Get The Best Of You," "You're The Least Of My Worries," "Sea Of Booze" and "After You Leave." Scott's compact band included bassist Marcel Amyot and Wilf Arsenault on lead guitar. Nice stuff, although I wasn't able to find much information about Scott online...

Hugh Scott "Mr. Versatile" (Banff Records) (LP)

Hugh Scott "Now... And Then" (Snocan Records, 1979-?) (LP)
(Produced by Barry Brown, David Dennison & Ralph Carlson)
A good-natured honkytonk-meets-rockabilly set, remincent of the more robust offerings of guys like Roy Head and Joe Stampley, with one foot in the world of rock, but a full commitment to country twang. The album includes a fun version of Dick Damron's "Good Old Timey Country Rock'N'Roll," sort of a statement of purpose, along with various cover songs, including a couple of old Elvis Presley hits. Three songs are Hugh Scott originals: "Here I Am," Behind These Lonely Prison Walls" and the forlorn, sad-sack "I'll Give My Heart (To Anyone Who Wants It)." Not sure when this one came out, though I'm guessing 1979 from his groovy 'Seventies get-up on the cover, and by the album's matrix number (WRC1-79-1). The sessions were recorded at Snocan Studios in Ottowa, with Bob Boucher on lead guitar, Al Bragg on piano and pedal steel, Al Cherney on fiddle, and several other local players. Nice, low-key outing by a veteran player who was still having fun.

Joyce Seamone "Testing, 1-2-3" (Marathon Records, 1972) (LP)
Nova Scotia's Joyce Seamone had a breakaway hit with her independently produced single, "Testing, 1-2-3," which topped the charts in Canada and led to several albums on the Marathon label. This debut disc also includes several "girl" singer classics, including covers of "L.A. International Airport," "One's On The Way," Cotton Jenny" and "Help Me Make It Through The Night." After several years in the spotlight, Seamone quit touring, though she continued to perform locally and started her own label, Gemini Records, after moving back to Nova Scotia in 1987.

Joyce Seamone "Merry Christmas From Joyce Seamone" (Marathon Records, 1972) (LP)

Joyce Seamone "Stand By For A Special Announcement" (Marathon Records, 1973) (LP)

Joyce Seamone "I Can See It In His Eyes" (Boot Records, 1976) (LP)

Joyce Seamone "The Other Side Of Me" (Gemini Records, 1987)
(Produced by Georges Hebert)

Jack & Ruth Shalanko "Old Fashioned Melodies" (Diadem Productions, 19--?) (LP)
This Russo-Canadian couple were working as evangelical ministers in Quito, Ecuador when they made this album, hosting a radio show on station HCJB, which was syndicated through various Christian networks. The music is solidly old-school, pre-honky tonk country, the kind of sentimental material Roy Acuff and his generation performed back in the 1930s and '40s, complete with accordion, acoustic guitar, and squeaky fiddle. The Shalanko's worked for the Slavic Gospel Association, a group that apparently recorded a couple of records by other artists also ministering in South America, though I can't say for sure how country-sounding those albums might have been.

Zeke Sheppard "Plugged In Muzekely" (1980) (LP)
(Produced by Zeke Sheppard, Sam Allison & Peter Cardinali)
Some pretty good indiebilly from Orlando, Florida... Despite one of the most unflattering album covers of all time and a really poor sound mix, this is a nice, twangy set, mostly cover songs but with two originals -- "Fallin' In Love" and "United" -- which were written by Sheppard and recorded in a studio, while the other tracks were apparently taped at a live performance in an Orlando, Florida venue called Church Street Station. Originally from Canada, lanky, wild-eyed Frank Sheppard (1941-1997) was formerly in the Toronto rock bands McKenna Mendelson Mainline (1971) and Blackstone (1973) but seems to have moved to Florida sometime in the 'Seventies. Mr. Sheppard was still working the crowd at Church Street when they upped the ante and installed a cheesy new country-themed music-hall called The Cheyenne Saloon, and he sang lead on several tracks on an otherwise-dismal live album by the house band, The Cheyenne Stampede. He also performed in Church Street's trad-jazz band, which made an album in 1982. At any rate, this low-budget album definitely has its charms, and fans of uptempo twang by scruffy, little-known locals might get a kick out of it. A nice document of an aspiring bar band, with covers of songs by The Band, John Denver, Waylon & Willie and Jimmy Buffett's "Coast Of Marseilles." Worth a spin!

Shirley Ann "Easy Listening" (Big Chief Records, 1970) (LP)
(Produced by Ernest Klump & Bruce Thompson)

Showdown "Welcome To The Rodeo" (Damon Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Gary Lee Berthold)
A country covers band from Alberta, Canada, who were mediocre but enthusiastic, and who scored a big hit with a song that was banned from airplay... It's a funny album: usually these bar-bands would have one really hot picker, and while the banjoist and fiddler are okay, the band never really gels, and the vocals are, well, very local. Still, they cover some fun songs, like Michael Murphey's "Cosmic Cowboy" and Lee Dresser's "Redneck Disco," but their big moment comes with Gaye Delorme's hilariously profane novelty number, "The Rodeo Song" ("not suitable for airplay," they warn us, which is an understatement...) Written from the perspective of a very pissed off, road-ragey rural driver, the song is sort of an obscene take-off on the Hank Snow style of country rapping. When it became an underground classic, they re-recorded it for a new single, with singer Garry Lee billed as the star, and it has been covered many times since. I believe this is the original version, and a pretty good reason to hang onto this admittedly so-so album. From humble beginnings...

Showdown (with Garry Lee) "Wanted: Loaded, Loose And Rowdy" (Damon Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Garry McDonall & Garry Lee)
The runaway success of the "Rodeo Song" single apparently allowed the dudes in Showdown to go back into the studio and beef up their sound, taking on a more electrified (and mildly disco-y) tone... Although they sound more professional and musically accomplished than on their first album, they also sound less rootsy and a lot less fun. They also decided to make crudeness their "thing," giving this album full of songs about one-night stands, girls losing their virginity and saying "no" when they really mean yes, along with plenty of thinly-veiled sexual metaphors, and an unfortunate Alvin And The Chipmunks-style remake of "The Rodeo Song" that features the squeaky-voiced "Canadian Beavers" singing a version that's way less fun that the original. Oh, well. I suppose this was funny at the time, but it doesn't hold up very well. Worth noting: some of the electric guitar twang-banging is courtesy of Redd Volkaert, who had recently moved to Alberta from British Columbia, and would join Merle Haggard's band nearly two decades later. As far as I can tell, this must have been one of his first recorded sessions, in case anyone out there is keeping track...

The Siebert Brothers "Rodeo Action" (Banff Records, 1969) (LP)
(Produced by Dougal Trineer)

The Siebert Brothers & Wendy West "Rodeo Action" (Vintage Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Art Snider & Martin Hurst)

Stephen Sinclair "Sad And Lonely Saturday Night" (MCA Records-Canada, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Artie Butler)

Sonny Sinclair "Relations And Friends" (Rural Root Records, 19--?) (LP)

Sonny Sinclair "True Feelings" (Rural Root Records, 1980) (LP)

The Singing Sweethearts "Together Forever" (Canatal Records, 1959) (LP)
(Produced by Art Snider)
This was a Toronto-area country duo, made up of husband and wife Reg and Elanor Bartley. Mr. Bartley owned a barber shop in Long Branch, Ontario, and liked to sing as a sideline. According to the (charmingly misspelled) liner notes, they played with American artists such as "Max Weisman and Le Roy Van Dyke" as well as Canadian country acts like Chef Adams and Bill Long. The songs are mostly covers of stuff like Hank Williams, and Johnny & Jack, though there are some originals including one by the Bartley's, "My Doll."

Brian Sklar "Proudly Canadian Proudly Country" (Royalty Records, 1973-?) (LP)

Joey Sloan "Average Canadian Man" (Academy Records, 19--?) (LP)

Hank Smith "The New Country Sounds Of Hank Smith" (Birchmount Records, 19--?) (LP)

Hank Smith "Country My Way" (Quality Records, 1972) (LP)

Hank Smith "Bluegrass Music's Here To Stay" (Point Records, 196-?) (LP)

Hank Smith "Ten Golden Years Of Country" (Point Records, 196-?) (LP)

Joyce Smith "Canadian Queen Of Country Music" (Point Records, 196-?) (LP)
Country covers and some originals from singer Joyce Smith... These tracks may have been released elsewhere first, as the Point label (a subsidiary of "The Compo Company") seems to have been a budget label from Quebec, similar to American companies such as Crown, Sutton and so forth. Anyway, this includes versions of standards such as "Big City," "Making Believe," "Once A Day" and "Release Me," as well as songs I think were originals from Canadian songwriters who are unfortunately not identified in the nonexistent liner notes... "Don't Wanna Walk," "I'll Take A Chance On Loving You," "Lonesome Used To Be," "Take The Hands Off The Clock," and "You'll Never Get A Better Chance Than This." There's also no date on the disc, but I'd guess 1966-68, based on some of the songs she covers.

R. Harlan Smith "Here Comes Yesterday" (Royalty Records, 1977) (LP)

R. Harlan Smith "Uptown Country" (GRT Records, 197--?) (LP)

R. Harlan Smith "We've Got The Magic" (Royalty Records, 1978) (LP)

R. Harlan Smith "Original Hits, Original Recordings" (Royalty Records, 2007)

Hank Snow - see artist discography

Roni Sommers "High Calibre" (Great North American Phonondisc Co., 1985) (LP)
(Produced by Dallas Harms & Michael Francis)

Sons Of The Saddle "Sons Of The Saddle" (Canatal Records, 19--) (LP)
(Produced by Art Snider & Dave Newberry)
A popular band originally from Calgary, The Sons Of The Saddle were formed in 1950 by accordionist Gene Siebert, along with his brothers Lenny and Vic. Over the years, the group headlined a network show on CFAC, Calgary in the 1950s, later moving to Winnipeg, then Hamilton, and finally to Toronto, where they were the house band at the El Mocambo Supper Club. In addition to the Siebert brothers, this edition of the band also featured steel player Johnny Allen, Lucky Ambeault (guitar and fiddle), Ricki Reynolds (drums) and singer Diane Leigh, who later launched a solo career. The songs are mostly honkytonk standards, tunes like "Big River," "Cattle Call," "Crazy Arms," "Heartaches By The Number" and "Pick Me Up On Your Way Down." It's worth noting that the Siebert Brothers also recorded under their family name.

Sons Of The Saddle & Johnny Allen "Steelin' Guitars" (Canatal Records, 19--) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Newberry)
An instrumental showcase album for steel player Johnny Allen, who started his career in Edmonton back in the late 1940s, then joined the Sons Of The Saddle in the early '50s, after moving to Calgary. The album is mostly covers -- classics Leon McAuliffe, Merle Travis, Bob Wills and the like, along with several Allen originals: "E String Rag," "Johnny's China Boogie," and "Ripple Rock." He's backed by his bandmates, Gene Siebert (accordion), Lucky Ambo (guitar and fiddle), and Ricki Reynolds on drums.

Sons Of The Saddle "Sons Of The Saddle, Volume One" (Aragon Records, 19--) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Newberry)

Sons Of The Saddle "Sons Of The Saddle, Volume Two" (Aragon Records, 19--) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Newberry)

Isiadore Soucy "...Et Son Ensemble" (RCA Victor-Canada, 19--?) (LP)

Dick Stacey's Country Jamboree "Live In Canada" (By Golly Records, 19--?) (LP)

The Stardells "The Stardells" (Westmount Records, 1975-?) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Mitchell)

Lucille Starr "The French Song" (A&M Records, 1964) (LP)
(Produced by Herb Alpert, Dorsey Burnette & Jerry Moss)
French-Canadian vocalist Lucille Starr (nee Lucille Marie Raymonde Savoie, 1938-2020) had an early hit with a novelty pop single, "The French Song," which got a gold record in Canada and charted in the US as well. That led to this disc, a pop-vocals outing with nods towards classic French chanson, as well as American country. Along with a version of Edith Piaf's "La Vie En Rose" are covers of "Crazy Arms," "Release Me" and "In A Little Spanish Town" and others, recorded under the auspices of pop producer Herb Alpert, with former rockabilly star Dorsey Burnette helping manage the twang.

Lucille Starr & Bob Regan "The Canadian Sweethearts" (A&M Records, 1964) (LP)
(Produced by Herb Alpert, Dorsey Burnette & Jerry Moss)
Ms. Starr was also paired up with her husband, singer Bob Regan (1931-1990) in a duo called The Canadian Sweethearts which similarly split their albums between country and pop material. They first recorded together in the late 1950s and performed together for roughly two decades, even after divorcing in the 'Sixties. They were quite popular in the Canadian charts, although they were unable to break into the American country top forty, despite a handful of singles that charted in the mid-1960s.

Lucille Starr & Bob Regan "Side By Side: Pop And Country" (Epic Records, 1967) (LP)
(Produced by Billy Sherrill)

Lucille Starr "In South Africa" (A&M Records, 1968) (LP)
I guess working segregated venues in apartheid-era South Africa wasn't an issue for Canadian artists in 1968, or at least not a deal breaker. This looks like a tour album, though there's an awful lot of overlap between this set and the songs on her first LP, listed above. I'm not sure if this is a live album, or simply a repackaging of earlier recordings, for the South African market.

Lucille Starr "Lonely Street" (Epic Records, 1969) (LP)
(Produced by Billy Sherrill)

Lucille Starr "The Sun Shines Again" (CBS Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Howard O. White, Jr.)

Cye Steele "Fiddle Champ" (Audat Records, 1974) (LP)

Cye Steele "Fiddle Champ, Volume Two" (LP)

Brett Stevens "Brett Stevens Arrives" (Arc Records, 1978-?) (LP)
(Produced by Roy Segal)

Scotty Stevenson "Country Songs" (London Records, 196-?) (LP)

Scotty Stevenson "Scotty Stevenson" (RCA Camden, 196-?) (LP)

Scotty Stevenson "Versatile Scotty Stevenson" (London Records, 19--?) (LP)

Scotty Stevenson & The Canadian Nighthawks "Variety In Country Style" (London Records, 19--?) (LP)

Scotty Stevenson & The Canadian Nighthawks "Present Big Scene '67" (London Records, 1967) (LP)
(Produced by The Nighthawks)

Scotty Stevenson & Debbie Davis Stevenson "Can't Take Alberta From The Boy" (London Records, 1974) (LP)

Scotty Stevenson & Debbie Stevenson "Can't Take Alberta From The Boy" (Aquila Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Rick Bell)

Scotty Stevenson "Gallivanting Country Style" (Buzzy Fret Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Barry Hawkins & Joe Kozak)

Andy Stewart & Ann Williamson "Country Boy" (Pye Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Pete Kerr)

Chuck Stewart & His Maritimers "My Nova Scotia Home" (Arc Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
This appears to have been the only album recorded by East Coast singer Chuck Stewart, a Hank Snow tribute album featuring a dozen of Snow's old classics, all given a slight modernization, with a zippy, twangy, bouncy sound. Unfortunately the members of the Maritimers backing band are not identified, so I dunno if it was actually Stewart's own group, or a set of studio pros lined up by the label. (It does seem likely that this was some version The Blue Diamonds, featuring Al Hooper, Roy MacCaull, Eddie Poirier and Goug Watters, who first started out billing themselves as the Maritimers... though that's just pure speculation on my part. Anyway, this is a pretty solid country set, even if there's no original material. It should be said that Chuck Stewart did a darn good Hank Snow imitation.

The Stoltz Brothers "Across Canada With..." (Noram Records, 19--?) (LP)
The songs are mostly polkas and waltzes, also some country numbers, including "Stop The World," "Stolen Moments," and Hal Lone Pine's "Prince Edward Island Is Heaven To Me", most tracks are credited to the Stoltz's, who were by the way, Billy, Eddy, Johnny, and Paul.

Linda Stone "Goin' Home Today" (Marathon Records, 1972) (LP)
Linda Stone was a singer from St. Peter's, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, with a repertoire including covers of femme-country hits such as "Honky Tonk Angels," "Stand By Your Man" and "Take Me To Your World."

Stringband "The Maple Leaf Dog" (Nick Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Mink & Danny Lanois)
Celtic-flavored bluegrass from Ontario... I imagine most folks would be intrigued by this early effort by "Danny" (Daniel) Lanois, owner of the Grant Street Studios, who both performs on and produces this album. Lanois would later, of course, produce albums by U2, Emmylou Harris, and many others... I'm kind of curious about sisters Nancy and Aileen Ahern: any relation to Canadian country producer Brian Ahern? Well, yes, it seems so: Nancy Ahern, who sings lead on this album, also played on several of Emmylou's album around this time, including the all-bluegrass Roses In The Snow and Harris's Christmas album, Light In The Stable, both produced by Brian Ahern who -- I'm guessing -- was her brother.

Gordie Sullivan "...Sings" (Plaza Records, 1964-?) (LP)
So, are we keeping track of Canadian rockabilly artists, too? I guess we are now. Apparently this posthumous release was the only full album of material by Gordie Sullivan, a Canadian wildcat who died young in a November, 1963 airplane crash. By and large, this is pretty tame material, crafted in an Elvis-y style, though Sullivan's "Rockin' Chair Mama" was pretty zippy, and his covers of uptempo rockers like "Forty Days" and "Ride On Josephine" are worth a spin. The slower stuff, maybe not so much. One wonders what he might have acomplished if he'd had a longer career!

Terry Sumison "...Our Lovin' Place" (Summit Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Brian Ferriman & Bill Seddon)

Terry Sumison "Midnight Invitation" (Savannah Records, 1984) (LP)
(Produced by Brian Ferriman & Bill Seddon)

Sundown Jim "Sundown Jim And His Willoughby Ramblers" (Willoughby Records, 19--?) (LP)

Sundown Jim "...And His Willoughby Ramblers" (Willoughby Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by M. Addario)
This was the second album by this Ontario-based band, which played a mix of classic country and polka tunes. Among the country stuff are hits such as "Born To Lose," "From A Jack To A King," "Green Green Grass Of Home" and "There Goes My Everything." Like a lot of old Canadian LPs, this doesn't include a release date, but based on the repertoire it must have been sometime in the early 'Seventies, at the latest. And I'm guessing Jim took his stage name from the hero in Ernest Haycox's western series(?)

Rocky Swanson "Rocky Swanson" (Music Line Records, 1989) (LP)
(Produced by Ralph Murphy)

Sweet Daddy Siki "Squares Off With Country Music" (Arc Records, 197--?) (LP)
Professional wrestler Reginald "Sweet Daddy" Siki (aka "Mr. Irresistible") was born in Texas and started his career in the American Southwest, but moved to Toronto, Canada, where he became a local and national celebrity. He was a major figure in professional wrestling during the 1960s and '70s and somewhere along the line he diversified into singing country music, as heard on this album,

Sweet Daddy Siki "Sweet Daddy Siki" (Periwinkle Records, 1972) (LP)
This album is heavy on Merle Haggard songs and honkytonk oldies and early '70s hits such as "Is Anyone Going To San Antone" and "Kiss An Angel Good Morning." No info on the backing musicians, etc. Alas.

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