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The Dixie Flyers were a Canadian bluegrass band based in London, Ontario, Canada. The band first came together in 1974,[1] and became one of Canada's best known bluegrass bands.[2]
Dixie Flyers | |
|---|---|
| Origin | London, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | bluegrass |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Labels | Boot, Flat top |
| Website | dixieflyers |
Career
editOriginal members of the band were guitarist Bert Baumbach, mandolinist Ken Palmer, harmonica player Willie P. Bennett, bassist Brian Abbey and Dennis LePage on the banjo.[3] Although lead vocalists Baumbach and Palmer have been continuous members, over the years the band has seen a number of changes in the lineup.[4] Dixie Flyer band members have included:[2][5]
- Guitar: Bert Baumbach
- Fiddle: Gordon Stobbe, Peter Robertson (miscredited on at least one Boot Records album as "Peter Robinson"), and John P. Allen.
- Mandolin: Ken Palmer (died October 30, 2013)[6]
- Bass: Brian Abbey, David Zdriluk, Luke Maynard, and Chris Ingram
- Banjo: Dennis LePage, David Jack, David Talbot, Paul Hurdle, Walter Maynard, and Darin Parise
- Harmonica: Willie P. Bennett (died February 15, 2008) and Mike Ethelston
- Dobro: Al Widmeyer, Blair Heddle, Darin Parise
The Dixie Flyers played at the Carlisle Bluegrass Festival in 1975,[3] where they met Bill Monroe, and were subsequently invited to play at Monroe's Bean Blossom Festival in Indiana, USA.[7][8] The band also played at the Cambridge Millrace Festival[9] and the Blueberry Bluegrass Festival in Stony Plain, Alberta.[10] They also played several times at the Canterbury Folk Festival in Ingersoll, Ontario.[11] The band performed regularly at the Flint Folk and Bluegrass Festival in Michigan.[6]
The Flyers recorded a series of albums on the Boot Records label during the 1970s.[2] They were the hosts of a television show called Bluegrass Express on CFPL in London in 1985 and also took part in a weekly radio show for seven years.[12][3] The band appeared on the Tommy Hunter Show, and for a time managed the Back 40 Bluegrass Festival at Woodstock, Ont.[2]
After a last stand with The Flyers at the Elgin County international plowing match in the fall of 2010, Ken Palmer retired due to heart problems.[13] The band played on briefly without him before going on indefinite hiatus. On October 30, 2013, Ken Palmer died at the age of 65 after a bout of pneumonia contracted after a heart transplant.[14] A few months earlier, in the spring of 2013, the band had been inducted into the London (Ontario) Music Hall of Fame, with both Palmer and Baumbach in attendance.[8][15]
Discography
editAlbums:
| Name of Album | Label | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Light, Medium, Heavy | Boot Records | 1977 |
| For Our Friends | Boot Records | 1980 |
| Just Pickin' | Boot Records | 1978 |
| Cheaper to Lease | Boot Records | 1978 |
| Five by Five | Boot Records | 1981 |
| New Horizons | Stony Plain | 1984 |
| Business as Usual | Boot Records | 1987 |
| Live at the Wellington Tavern | Flat Top | 1990 |
| Right on Track | Flat Top | 2005 |
References
edit- ^ "Ken Palmer put the 'man' in mandolin –R.I.P." Torontomoon.ca. October 30, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e "The Canadian Encyclopedia". Archived from the original on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
- ^ a b c "London Free Press Columnist: Ames Reaney - Flyers mark 30 years of gi…". Archived from the original on 10 April 2013.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Celebrating 35 years of making music | Londoner". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
- ^ "Dixie Flyers Right on Track". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
- ^ a b c Thompson, Richard (November 4, 2013). "Ken Palmer passes". Bluegrasstoday.com. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
- ^ Adler, Thomas, Bean Blossom: The Brown County Jamboree and Bill Monroe's Bluegrass Festivals, p. 160, University of Illinois Press, 2011,
- ^ a b "Jack Richardson music awards". The London Free Press. February 26, 2013.
- ^ "Dixie Flyers land in Cambridge for bluegrass concert | guelphmercury". Archived from the original on 11 April 2013.
- ^ "Festival History — Blueberry Bluegrass & Country Music Society Festival". Archived from the original on 2013-04-15. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Dixie Flyers | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
- ^ "Ken Palmer has retired from the Dixie Flyers. Last fall. | James' Brand New Blog". Archived from the original on 2016-10-02. Retrieved 2016-09-28.
- ^ "Ken Palmer dead at 65 after catching pneumonia follow a heart transplant at University Hospital". The London Free Press. October 30, 2013.
- ^ "The Dixie Flyers Receive JRMA Hall Of Fame Honours – Country Music Association of Ontario". Cmaontario.ca. Retrieved October 13, 2019.