George Wade & His Cornhuskers "George Wade And His Cornhuskers" (Heritage Music, 2006) (LP)
(Reissue produced by Lynn Russwurm)
A deeply old-school Canadian showband, George Wade And His Cornhuskers had their heyday in the 1930s, when they performed regularly on the CRBC and CBC and when they recorded the bulk of the material on this archival album. The group was led by Manitoba-born George Wade (1895-1975) a square dance caller and lively emcee; other members included banjo plunker Doc Boyd, pianist Johnny Burt, bass player Cecil McEachern, guitarist Tony Mont, and a long parade of fiddlers, the most notable of which was French-Canadian violinist Jean Carignan, who went on to a prolific recording career as a regional artist. The Cornhuskers were an influential group with a diverse repertoire, including plenty of fiddle tunes, reels and instrumental waltzes, and a slew of folk and country songs, including a few western-themed cowboy numbers, such as "The Chisholm Trail." They recorded only thirteen 78rpm singles, mainly for RCA Victor, making this 24-song set the near-definitive collection of their work. Although the Cornhuskers stopped recording in the mid-1930s, the group still played on radio and performed widely up until the start of World War Two, and is considered one of the best-known Canadian country acts of the prewar era.

Tommy Wade & The Country Rebels "Bluegrass Country" (Condor Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Spooner & Ken Freisen)

Les Wagoneers "Pour Toi Les Lumieres S'Allument" (Bonanza Records, 1974-?) (LP)
(Produced by Paul Menand)
Not to be confused with either the '90s Nashvillers, or with Porter Wagoner's backing band of the same name, the Wagoneers were the Quebeqois husband-wife duo of Lorraine Boisvert and Marcel Boisvert (d. 2014), who sang and composed French-language country music. Several tracks on this album are credited to the Boisverts, notably two instrumentals composed by Marcel Boisvert which end of each side of the disc; there are also two tracks credited to Gaetan Richard, "Que Dieu Protege Notre Amour" and "Unis Devant Dieu Desunis Par Le Juge." As far as I know this album (and its attendant single) was the only record by the Boisverts... Mr. Boisvert was a businessman, running a heating company in Ontario; in later years he performed with a local group called the John Fletcher Band.

Les Wagoneers "Les Wagoneers" (Souvenir Records, 19--?) (LP)
I believe this may have been a reissue of the record above...

Angus Walker & The Birch Mountain Boys "Blue Grass Songs" (1961) (LP)

Angus Walker & The Birch Mountain Boys "Bluegrass Special" (19--?) (LP)

Angus Walker & The Birch Mountain Boys "Let's Sing Blue Grass Songs" (Rodeo Records, 19--?) (LP)

Angus Walker "...Picks 16 Country And Western Hits" (1963) (LP)

Angus Walker "Introducing Canada's Prime Minister Of Country Music" (Cynda Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Angus Walker)

Michael T. Wall "The Singing Newfoundlander" (Banff Records, 1973) (LP)

Michael T. Wall "More Of Canada's Singing Newfoundlander" (Banff Records, 1975) (LP)

Michael T. Wall "On Stage At Molly'N'Me" (Banff Records, 1975) (LP)

Michael T. Wall "King Of The Newfies" (Boot Records, 1978) (LP)

Michael T. Wall "Sing Along With Michael T. Hall" (Canadian Country Music, 1983) (LP)

David Walsh "Somewhere In Canada" (Charta Records, 197-?) (LP)

Ward 6 "Ward 6" (Cynda Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Todd)
A folk-rock trio made up of John Lacey (guitar), Boyd Norman (bass) and Gordon Quinton on guitar... Ward 6 were one of several poppish, but country-adjacent acts signed to Stompin' Tom Connor's Cynda label in the early 1970s. This appears to have been their only album.

Roy Warhurst "Country Feelin' " (MCA Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Gary Buck)

Roy Warhurst & Dick Damron "Northwest Rebellion" (Westwood Records, 1976) (LP)

Jerry Warren "Country Blue Boy" (Canadian Talent Library, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Art Snider & Glen Clarke)
A former rockabilly singer from Ontario, Canada, Jerry Warren was a wicked guitar player who "went country" in the late 1960s and released his first LP in '73, starting a hot streak that propelled him to the top of the Canadian charts and established him both as a songwriter and performer. This disc includes several originals by Warren, along with tunes from other Canadian songwriters, including a version of Gordon Lightfoot's "Ten Degrees And Gettin' Colder." He also tips his Strat towards Nashville, covering hits by George Jones, Jerry Reed and Cindy Walker. Augmenting his own career, Warren worked prolifically as a session guitarist and even dabbled in producing other Canadian artists. He died young in 1991 from a heart attack at age fifty-four, but left a bunch of cool music as his legacy.

Jerry Warren "From The Falls To The Coast" (United Artists Records, 1974) (LP)
Warren's rise was truly meteoric, though brief, with his second album producing a #1 hit in Canada, "Big Red Jimmy," part of a flock of original songs in this set. All but two of the songs were Warren originals, including gems such as "I'll Never Write Another Happy Song" and a reprise of one of his old Capitol singles, "Meanest Man." He also covers Marty Robbins ("Don't Worry") and Kris Kristofferson ("Why Me, Lord") but for the most part this is a triumph of northern twang. For whatever reasons, Warren retreated into the background after this: he penned several singles for other Canadian up-and-comers, and produced an album for his brother Lee Warren, but I'm not sure if he released another full LP of his own... There were a few singles in 1990-91, which sadly came out around the time Warren passed away. Love to see a comprehensive collection of his work come out, though!

Lee Warren "Money, Marbles & Chalk" (Grand Slam Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Jerry Warren & Ken Friesen)
The brother of rockabilly-turned chart-topper Jerry Warren, Canadian honkytonker Lee Warren kicked off his career with a boost from his sibling, who produced this disc and added a couple of his songs to the mix. Four of the tracks are originals by Lee Warren, however, leavened with classy covers of stuff from the States, by artists such as Wayne Kemp, Willie Nelson and Marty Robbins, as well as another rendition of Kris Kristofferson's "Me And Bobby McGee." Jerry Warren plays guitar on this album, along with backing by Mel Aucoin, Johnny Burke, Roddy Lee, Bobby Lucier, and backing vocals by the Laurie Bowen Singers. Warren later self-released some stuff during the CD era, though I don't have the retails on those discs.

Sneezy Waters & The Excellent Band "You've Got Sawdust On The Floor Of Your Heart" (Sneezy Waters Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Sneezy Waters & Ted Gerow)
Canadian singer-songwriter Peter Hodgson took on the stage name of Sneezy Waters in the early 1970s, after playing in rock bands for several years and busking on the streets of Ottawa... He's best known for his role in the stage play "Hank Williams: The Show He Never Gave," where he portrayed Hank Sr. giving the fabled New Year's Eve show that never happened... Here, on his first solo album, Waters delivers a truly odd and unruly selection of hippie-era indie twang, with a strong folkie tendency, some honky-tonk parodies and a smidgen of soft, fusion-y jazz. His voice isn't particularly appealing -- whether because of his own limitation, or because he was parodying the genre, I'm not sure -- but some of the songs are curiously resonant, particularly on the album's second side. The title track, a hard-country novelty song, is kind of fun... Not sure I'd really recommend this one, but if you're digging deep into '70s alt-country, you might want to check it out.

Sneezy Waters "Sings Hank Williams" (Borealis Records, 1981) (LP)
Hey, I've never heard of him, either, but this is kind of a fun amateur-hour countrifying... Sneezy doesn't have the world's most amazing voice, but he has a friendly tone, and seems to be enjoying himself on these relaxed, rollicking renditions of a dozen old Hank, Sr. tunes, with a fine band backing him up. Originally released in 1981. Enjoyable!

Peter Webb "Melody Trails By The Surrey Cowboy" (19--?) (LP)

Al West "...And Friends" (West Productions, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Murray Fiesel, Dave Harle & Ken Hartfield)
A singer from southern Saskachewan, mostly singing cover tunes, also with some local Canadian content, including one original co-written by Al West and Don Young, called "People With The Power." The individual band members aren't listed, but some of his "friends" include a couple of guys who sing lead on one song each, Andy Elek (covering "Fraulein") and Reg Prince ("Today I Started Loving You Again"). The liner notes inform us that at the time Reg Prince was also in a couple of different bands, Jagged Edge and The Little Brown Jug.

Gordie West "Alberta Bound" (Westwood Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Gordon Davies)
The first album by Calgary native Gordie West, a youthful singer with an affinity for older country material. West was no novice: he'd been singing and playing in local bands since the early 1960s, but didn't take it seriously until around 1974, when he quit his day job as a power plant engineer, and started touring across Canada and the UK, including a lot of lounge and pub shows. While his voice wasn't very powerful or varied, he had an appealing presence, and though there's a lot of western and regional material (including three separate songs with "Alberta" in the title) there's also a modern flair with a little hint of rock'n'roll in the mix that positions West as an improbably bridge between old and new, between Hank Snow, say, and someone like Corb Lund... with perhaps a whiff of Slim Whitman in the mix as well. It's worth noting that despite all the Canadian lyrical themes, this was was recorded and released in the UK, with backing by a number of British country enthusiasts -- Stewart Barnes (lead guitar), Billy Bennett (rhythm guitar), Steve Hughes (bass), Gary Thistlewaite (bass and steel guitar) and Slim Pickins (dobro and steel), with Gordie West singing and playing acoustic. Some of this is fun, some of it's a bit thin... maybe best in small doses?

Gordie West "Love And Dreams" (Westwood Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Gordon Davies)
This second album on Westwood features mostly the same set of UK pickers... I guess Gordie West only made two albums, both for the Westwood label, although he continued to play shows for decades back in Canada -- most notably at the Calgary Stampede. Eventually he formed The Gordie West Band with bassist Mike Dygert and a floating number of additional musicians.

Honey West "Meet Honey West" (Paragon Records, 1969-?) (LP)
Ontario's answer to Tammy Wynette, Honey West had a pretty good run in the early 1970s, releasing at least a half dozen albums... Does anyone out there know more about this gal?

Honey West "A Touch Of Honey" (Paragon Records, 1969-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Bessey & Jack Boswell)

Honey West "Sweet Dreams" (Paragon Records, 1970-?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Bessey & Jack Boswell)
Includes a bunch of Tammy Wynette covers, plus other countrypolitan ballads...

Honey West "The Moods Of My Man" (Paragon Records, 1971) (LP)

Honey West "Country Soul" (Marathon Records, 1972) (LP)
This was her fifth album -- nice breezy stuff, pleasant though a little poppy. Honey West had a similar vibe to Nashville's Connie Smith, though not as much emotional or dynamic range. Still, if you enjoy countrypolitan-era "girl" vocals with a subliminal hint of girl-group pop, you might dig this Canadian cowgal. Most of the songs are "CanCon" (Canadian content) penned by folks like Terry Carisse, Arlene Gordon, Dave Peever, Bruce Rawlins and Wayne Rostad, and a version of Gordon Lightfoot's "Cotton Jenny." There are also some covers of American country hits, and while the liner notes don't include the names of those non-Canadian composers, you'll know the tunes: "Good Lovin'," Susan Raye's "LA International Airport," and (ugh) yet another rendition of "You Gave Me A Mountain." A little fluffy, but nice.

Honey West & Joe Firth "Getting Together" (Marathon Records, 1972) (LP)

Honey West "Silver Bells" (Marathon Records, 1972) (LP)
A straight-up set of Christmas standards; no originals as far as I can tell.

Honey West "In The Shadows Of The Past" (Marathon Records, 1973) (LP)

Carmen Westfall "Talk Around Town" (Reba Records, 1989) (LP)
(Produced by David C. Burt, Bob Doidge & Carmen Westfall)
There are a few surprises surrounding this album... First, it's remarkable to see an indie album like this being released so late in the game, even one with such transparent top forty aspirations (but good for you, Canada!). The next surprise comes with the strength of the album's opening track, the poppy, perky "Your Old Girlfriend," which showcases both Toronto's Carmen S. Westphal's performing chops and her songwriting skills... It's one of seven originals penned by Ms. Westfall/Westphal, with the album's remaining three tracks provided by Luke Gibson, Ian Fletcher Kemp and Nashville's Kix Brooks (whose "Why Wyoming" was also recorded by Holly Dunn, in 1987). Though generic and unsurprising, "Your Old Girlfriend" certainly fits into the late 'Eighties young-country sound, and Westfall seems plausibly able to hold her own amid the prevailing gal-singers of the time, and all the Faiths and Shanias to come. The tracks are perhaps not quite as polished or punchy as they could have been, but she had a pretty good set of pipes, and you could easily imagine her making it in Nashville, with the right set of circumstances. Things start to go sideways, though, on the album's third track, "Just A Matter Of Time," where midway through Westfall's vocals miss their mark, and apparently there was no budget for retakes, so the studio musicians follow suit, and mechanically plod through the rest of the song, and indeed, the rest of the album. The project goes from maybe being Canada's answer to Trick Pony to just another by-the-numbers clock-punching session, while the peppy energy behind Westfall's fluffy, anthemic choruses decays into mere repetition. It's still a relatively strong album, but the high points aren't maintained, and it ultimately misses the mark. It's worth noting that Ms. Westfall looks a lot younger on the front cover than the back, and her one-sentence liner note mentions that "Talk Around Town" had actually been recorded in 1986, and taken three years to come out... It's not clear if she's talking about just the title track or the entire album, but it the album itself took three years to make, that could explain some of the unevenness. Which isn't to say this disc isn't worth a spin -- indeed, any new bands looking to indulge in young-country nostalgia might find some fun songs to cover here.

Russ Wheeler & The Echo Valley Boys "Tragic Romance" (Banff/Rodeo Records, 1965-?) (LP)
Canadian bandleader Russ Wheeler (1933-2004) was born in Priceville, New Brunswick, but worked all over Canada, starting back in the early 1950s, including radio gigs in Ontario... He started his own band, The Echo Valley Boys, around 1956 when he relocated to Toronto and became a fixture on the East Coast Canadian country scene. This early album features a bunch of sentimental material, the type of tragedy ballads and sentimental songs favored by the Louvin Brothers and other old-school hillbilly artists.

Billy Whelan "Canadian Country Souvenirs Of The 1950's" (Cattle Records, 1984) (LP)
A Canadian country old-timer, Billy Whelan (1919-1987) started his professional career as a teen in Nova Scotia, and built his career playing on a series of local and regional radio stations in Halifax and throughout the Maritime Provinces. This album is a set of his classic recordings of the 1950s -- the Cattle LP liner notes list all twelve tracks as having been recorded in 1956 -- and though they probably first came out as 78rpm singles, all of these songs were previously included on the Banff Records LPs below... This is basically a reissue of the Country Memories album, with two additional tracks from the gospel collection that followed. Most of the songs were covers of well-known American hits, including standards such as "Anytime," "Bouquet Of Roses," "Letter Edged In Black," and "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You," with an obvious predilection for softer-style crooners like Eddy Arnold and Hank Locklin. Though long out of print, this '80s collector's edition is probably a lot easier to track down than the Canadian originals.

Billy Whelan "Country Memories With Billy Whelan" (Banff Records, 19--?) (LP)

Billy Whelan "Near The Cross With Billy Whelan" (Banff Records, 19--?) (LP)

The Whippoorwills "The Whippoorwills" (Canatal Records, 196-?) (LP)
(Produced by Dave Newberry & Art Snider)
An amiable country combo from Toronto, Canada. This album is mostly instrumental, though with some vocals -- the band included Max Dauphin on steel guitar, his brother Ray Dauphin (guitar), Ray Francis (rhythm guitar), Bill Taylor (drums) and John Tangelis on bass. I wouldn't exactly call them effete, though they do sound a little bit restrained, especially on the vocal tunes. Ray Dauphin seems to be the real star of the show, laying down some solid steel licks... Pretty swell stuff overall, with a bunch of originals penned by various band members.

Whiskey Ridge "Liquid Luxury" (Chokecherry Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Lewis Marten Peterson)
A Canadian country-rock trio from Swift Current, Saskatchewan, Whiskey Ridge featured lead singer R. C. Hummel, Brian Wiebe on bass, and Marty Nelson on drums. The album includes songs by J. J. Cale ("Call Me The Breeze" and "Tulsa Time"), Bob Dylan, The Eagles ("Peaceful Easy Feeling"), Merle Haggard ("Silver Wings") and Waylon Jennings ("Rainy Day Woman") as well as a couple of songs that were probably originals by the band, though there are no songwriter credits...

Whiskey Ridge "Movin' Up" (Garnette Records, 1985) (LP)
(Produced by Jody Everett Peterson, Sr.)
Amazingly this is an entirely different band than the group from Canada... These folks were a hardcore country covers band, self-proclaimed veterans of the "Nevada Circuit" who name-checked a number of hotels and casinos they'd played in across the state. With a mix of contemporary and golden oldies, and their agent's phone number on the back cover, this disc was very much meant as a calling card to get more work. The group included brothers Jim Harris (rhythm guitar) and Phil Harris (bass and vocals), along with Carl Bird (lead guitar), Linda Mowray (vocals), Tom Scott (drums) and Jimmy Youngblood on steel. They all took turns singing lead, with Phil Harris and Linda Mowray singing a duet on "Paradise Tonight." Overall, the band sounds charming though maybe a little frantic and kind of slickly produced. This was recorded at Sierra Nevada Recording, an independent studio in Reno, run by producer Jody Peterson, who'd recorded some cool stuff with artists such as Ernie Hagar and Merle Haggard, circa 1979-81. Phil Harris and Linda Mowray kept Whiskey Ridge together all through the '80s, and were still putting out singles as late as 1987, although the rest of the band's lineup was completely different by then. Phil Harris recorded at least one solo album, Here I Am, in 1989, with Linda Mowray chiming in on one of the tunes, and a couple of the songs written by his brother Jim. Ms. Mowray settled down around Reno, though I'm not sure what became of the Harris brothers.

Whisky Hollow "Population 4" (Rowdy Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Seddon)

Whisky Hollow "Lively Country" (Shotgun Music Corporation, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Steve Beach)

Whisky Hollow "We Know Better" (Shotgun Music Corporation, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Steve Beach)
Recorded and produced in Ontario, Canada, this album includes three songs written by lead singer Lew Wilde ("Barroom Devil," "Mason Dixon Line" and "Heart Of Dixie") along with one by lead guitar Guy Wilkes ("Keep On Tryin'") and a cover of Jerry Jeff Walker's "Mr. Bojangles." Also in the band are fiddler R. J. Nellzy, Pat Brousseau on bass, and Joe Allain on pedal steel.

Tony White "Good Ole Country Music" (RCA-Canada, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Kunkel)
Recorded in Calgary, this album features backing by pianist Ron Barnes, John Burg (steel guitar and dobro), Terry Kruger (banjo), Larry Kunkel (guitar), Lloyd Kunkel (bass), Jim Pepperdine on drums, and others...

Linda Whitehead "Sings Real Country!" (Circle M Records, 1988) (cassette)
(Produced by Clare Adlam & Linda Whitehead)

Chris Whiteley & Caitlin Hanford "Lovin' In Advance" (Troubadour Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Ken Whitely)

Ken Whiteley "Up Above My Head" (Boot Records, 1979) (LP)
An all-gospel set from multi-instrumentalist Ken Whiteley, who worked in Stompin' Tom Connors' orbit but also specialized in children's music albums, notably collaborating with Raffi throughout the 1970s and '80s. He and his brother Chris Whiteley also recorded together as members of The Original Sloth Band, recording several jug band albums under that name.

Wilf & Doug "The Country Million-Airs" (Hi-Lite Records, 19--?) (LP)

Brent Williams "On The Go" (Paragon Records, 1970-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Boswell & Bill Bessey)
Nova Scotia's Brent Williams started his career in the early 'Sixties, playing in some East Coast bluegrass bands, notably Vic Mullens' group, The Birch Mountain Boys, which included another Nova Scotian, Harry Cromwell, with whom he formed a successful duo act, Brent & Harry. They became Canada's first black country music stars, recording two albums in the late 'Sixties before Williams kicked off his solo career with this fine debut. He's backed by some Canadian studio pros, with Williams playing fiddle and guitar, Al Brisco on steel, Johnny Green (drums) and Ollie Strong (bass), working through a mostly-standards set including covers of "All I Have To Offer You Is Me," "Green, Green Grass Of Home," "Me And Bobby McGee," "Saginaw, Michigan," and others. The original songs include his own "Soft, Soft Shoulders" and "Stand Up Sleeping." The back cover reveals, perhaps unconsciously, the challenges Williams faced as a person of color recording in this era: the liner notes by Rex Glen go on and on about how Williams' career was stalled out, but his plucky spirit kept him going, and Glen hardly seems to notice the annoyance Williams felt when, predictably, he was asked to compare himself to Charley Pride. (" 'Oh well,' says Brent, 'It really doesn't matter. There is still room for negro singers in country music and Charlie (sic) made it before I did, unfortunately for me.' ") It probably doesn't help, keen observers may note, that we are also informed that Williams and his band were sponsored by a fried chicken restaurant in Toronto. Regardless, his career extended well into the 1980s and beyond, with some modest chart success mid-decade, after he switched to the Boot label.

Brent Williams "In You I Believe" (Paragon Records, 1971) (LP)

Brent Williams "Everybody's Beautiful" (Paragon Records, 1972) (LP)

Brent Williams "I Think I'll Make It" (J. Bash Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Bruce Ley & Len Sembaluk)

Brent Williams "I Wish You Were With Me Tonight" (Grand Slam Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Dallas Harms)

Buddy Williams "Farming" (RCA, 1977) (LP)

Chuck Williams & Wanda Williams "Born To Love You" (Big Chief Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Chuck Lawson & Donn Petrak)

Lefty Williams "Country Style" (Canatal Records, 1964-?) (LP)

Tim Williams "Writin' This Song" (Dyna-West Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Brooks)

Tim Williams "It's Enough To Be Remembered" (Dyna-West Records, 1983) (LP)

A. Frank Willis "Any Kinda Music" (Periwinkle Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Art Snider & Brian Mitchell)
This was the first solo album from Newfoundland-born A. Frank Willis, who also sang in a duo with his brother, Carson Willis, which was called The Willis Brothers (and is not to be confused with the older American hillbilly band of the same name. All but four of the songs are his own originals, punctuated by covers of Tin Pan Alley tunesmith Sammy Fain's "Secret Love," as well as rock songs from Chuck Berry ("Nadine") and the Rolling Stones ("Angie") as well as a version of "Rhinestone Cowboy," which at the time was a huge radio hit for Glen Campbell. Mr. Willis was billing himself as Mr. Versatile, dipping into various styles, though this set had strong country roots.

A. Frank Willis "Getting Myself Together" (Hare Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Les Ladd & A. Frank Willis)

A. Frank Willis "Welcome Aboard" (Hare Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Neil Bishop, Stan Dacus, Les Ladd & A. Frank Willis)
This album was recorded in Nashville with a whole slew of Music City pros... It looks like it was made in multiple sessions, with overlapping pools of musicians, most if not all of them being Nashville cats.

A. Frank Willis "Party Time: Live" (Hare Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Blair Packham & Sonny Tompkins)
Apparently Mr. Willis had set himself up as a one-man band, using foot controls to add percussion and bass to his guitar playing and harmonica. This album is made up of several medleys, mixing regional pride songs, novelty numbers and more straight country material, with a couple of songs penned by Mr. Willis, several more from Will Millar, and even a version of the hillbilly oldie, "I'm My Own Grandpa." Canadian TV host and accordionist Harry Hibbs also appears as a guest performer. The front cover provocatively cautions us that this is "recommended for adult audiences," but I wouldn't get your hopes up too high about that aspect.

A. Frank Willis "The Fifth Album" (Hare Records, 1987)
(Produced by Albert MacDonald)

Hal Willis "Mr. Lumberjack" (Arc Records, 1966-?) (LP)
One of Canada's foundational rockabilly artists, Hal Willis (ne Leonald Francis Gauthier, 1933-2015) -- like many 'Fifties rebels -- eventually settled into a more conventional country career, notably specializing in lumberjack-themed novelty numbers, including his signature song, Mr. Lumberjack, which was co-written with his wife, composer Ginger Willis (1925-2003). Though born in Quebec, Hal Willis moved to Nashville, where he and his wife found steady work as supporting artists for several big stars. As the duo Hal & Ginger, they toured with Patsy Cline, Elvis Presley, Webb Pierce and others. With a career spanning back to the late 1940s, Ginger Willis was perhaps more notable as a songwriter than as a performer, penning classics such as the Patsy Cline B-side "Walking Dream," the Bobby Helms divorce weeper, "How Do You Divide A Little Child," and "Just Ain't," a 1962 hit for bluegrass legends Flatt & Scruggs.

Hal Willis "Mr. Lumberjack, Volume 2" (Arc Records, 1967-?) (LP)

Hal Willis "Le Lumberjack" (Bonanza Records, 197-?) (LP)

Hal Willis "Santa's Clones" (Pearl International Records, 1998) (LP)

Hal Willis "Coast To Coast" (Pearl International Records, 2000) (LP)

Tom Wilson & Border Bluegrass "Electric Radio" (Rodeo Records, 19--?) (LP)

Eileen Wollerman "In The Style Of Barbara Mandrell" (Starburst Records-Canada, 1979)
Starburst Records was a fly-by-night cheapo label based in Peterborough, Ontario which specialized in country music 8-track and cassette tribute albums cut by lesser-known twangsters. This set of Barbara Mandrell covers is the only known release by the otherwise obscure Eileen Wollerman: one imagines this was her real name, though, because who would come up with "Wollerman" as a stage name. Which begs the question: did record anything else?

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