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Wilf Carter (musician)

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Wilf Carter
Background information
Birth nameWilfred Arthur Charles Carter
Also known asMontana Slim, The Yodelling Cowboy
Born(1904-12-18)December 18, 1904
Port Hilford, Nova Scotia, Canada
OriginCalgary, Alberta, Canada
DiedDecember 5, 1996(1996-12-05) (aged 91)
Scottsdale, Arizona, U.S.
GenresCountry, western
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • musician
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar
Years active1930–1992
LabelsRCA Victor, Bluebird Records

Wilfred Arthur Charles Carter (December 18, 1904[1] – December 5, 1996),[2] professionally known as Wilf Carter in his native Canada and also as Montana Slim in the United States, was a Canadian Country and Western singer, songwriter, guitarist, and yodeller. He wrote over 500 songs.[3]

In 1971, Wilf Carter was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.[1] Widely acknowledged as the father of Canadian country music, Carter was Canada's first country music star, inspiring a generation of young Canadian performers.[4]

Early years

Carter was born in Port Hilford, Nova Scotia, Canada.[1] One of nine children, his father was Swiss.[5] He began working odd jobs by the age of eight in Canning, Nova Scotia. He began singing after seeing a traveling Swiss performer named "The Yodelling Fool" in Canning.[1] Carter left home at the age of 15 after a falling out with his father, who was a Baptist minister.[4][6]

In 1923, at age 18, after working as a lumberjack and singing with hobos in boxcars, Carter moved west to Calgary, Alberta, where he became friends with Pete Knight and found work on the Davis ranch, near Brooks, as a cowboy.[1] (In 1979, Carter was the grand marshal at the Calgary Stampede.) He made extra money singing and playing his guitar at dances, performing for tourist parties, and traveling throughout the Canadian Rockies.[6] It was during this time that he developed his own yodelling style, sometimes called an "echo yodel" or a "three-in-one".

Radio years (1930–1940)

"Down the Old Cattle Trail" by Wilf Carter

Carter performed his first radio broadcast on CFCN Alberta in 1930.[1] Soon after, he was heard locally on CFAC and nationally on the CRBC. Two years later, he was entertaining tourists as a trail rider for the Canadian Pacific Railway, who promoted horseback excursions into the Canadian Rockies.[1] Carter soon became very popular in the region.[6]

In 1933, he was hired as an entertainer on the maiden voyage of the British ship S.S. Empress.[1] Later that year, he stopped off in Montreal and made his first recording: "My Swiss Moonlight Lullaby" and "The Capture of Albert Johnson".[1] After signing with the Canadian branch of RCA Victor, "My Swiss Moonlight Lullaby" became the first hit record ever by a Canadian country performer.[7] That same year, Carter also wrote and recorded "Pete Knight, The King of the Cowboys," which also became a hit.[6]

For seven years (1934-1940) he hosted his own CBS country music radio program in New York City. His announcer was Bert Parks.[5] CBS changed his the name to "Montana Slim,"[1] to appeal to American audiences.[6] In 1935, Carter also performed on WABC radio. In 1937, Carter returned to Alberta, where he purchased a ranch. He continued to appear on CBC, NBC, and CBS until CBS dropped him in 1940.[6]

In 1940, Carter seriously injured his back in a car accident in Montana.[1] He was unable to perform for much of the decade,[1] but his popularity was sustained by the periodic release of new recordings.[6]

Recording sessions

He had a recording contract with RCA-Victor for five years (1947-1952) and then moved to Nashville where he recorded with Decca from 1954 to 1957.[8] At Decca, Carter used Owen Bradley's studio, featured a backing band that included Chet Atkins and Grady Martin. [citation needed]

He sold his ranch in 1949 and moved his family to a 180 acres (73 ha) farm in New Jersey.[citation needed]

Touring (1949–1985)

In 1949, Carter resumed live performances with tours in Canada and the United States.[1] In 1950, he attracted over 50,000 people during a week at the Canadian National Exhibition bandstand in Toronto, Ontario.

In 1953, Wilf Carter started touring with his own show called, 'The Family Show with the Folks You Know.' His daughters, Carol and Sheila, worked with him as dancers and back-up singers.[1]

In 1964, Carter performed for the first time at the Calgary Stampede.[1] He also became one of the most requested guests on the TV show hosted by Canadian country singer Tommy Hunter.

In the 1960s and 70s he toured with Hank Snow.[9]

In 1980, Country Music Queen Kitty Wells and her husband Johnnie Wright encouraged Carter to tour with them, which was billed as Carter's 80th Birthday Tour. From 1980 to 1985 he toured different parts of Canada.[10]

In 1985, Carter toured with Slim Whitman.[5]

Recordings

Wilf Carter recorded over 40 original and compilation LP records for RCA Victor including Nuggets of the Golden West, Christmas in Canada, Songs of the Rail and Range, Songs of Australia, Wilf Carter Sings Jimmie Rogers, and Let's Go Back to the Bible. In 1983, he re-recorded many of his most popular songs for Fifty Golden Years.

In 1988, Carter recorded his last album, What Ever Happened to All Those Years. In 1991, at age 86, he made his last concert tour, appropriately called 'The Last Round-up Tour', with shows throughout Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario, and Manitoba. He retired the following year, due to his loss of hearing. Wilf Carter died in 1996 in Scottsdale, Arizona, 13 days before his 92nd birthday.[11]

Business

In 1952, he moved, this time to Orlando, Florida, where he opened the Wilf Carter Motor Lodge, a venture that lasted only two years.

Honours and awards

In 1971, Wilf Carter was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.[1]

He was inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 1984, and the following year, he was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Juno Awards Hall of Fame.

He was made an Honorary Chief of the Stony Indian tribe.[12]

A video documentary was released in 2000, called The Last Round-up: The Wilf Carter Story, which examined Carter's distinguished career.

Legacy

He wrote hundreds of songs covering a wide range of themes, including traditional country western, cowboy, folk, and hobo songs. His recordings of "Blue Canadian Rockies" and "You Are My Sunshine" are among the most popular.[6] Fellow Canadian country artist Ian Tyson considers Carter an influence on his music.[13] Another Canadian artist, Stu Davis, acknowledged the importance of Carter's mentorship early in his career and credited him with securing Davis's first recording contract with Sonora Records in New York.

Discography

Year Album CAN Country
1960 "The Dynamite Trail"
1960 Songs of the Calgary Stampede
1962 Reminiscin' with Wilf Carter
1962 By Request
1963 Old Prairie Melodies
1964 Let's Go Back to the Bible
1964 Nuggets of the Golden West
1965 Christmas in Canada
1965 Yodeling Memories
1965 32 Wonderful Years
1966 God Bless Our Canada
1966 Golden Memories
1967 If It Wasn't for the Farmer What Would City Slickers Do?
1967 Waitin' for the Maple Leaves to Fall
1968 Hittin' the Track
1968 How My Yodeling Days Began
1968 Songs of the Rail and Range
1969 The Best of Wilf Carter
1969 Balladeer of the Golden West
1970 Sings Songs of Australia
1970 Away Out There
1971 Walls of Memory
1972 My Heartache's Your Happiness
1973 40th Anniversary Special
1973 Wilf Carter's Best / Wilf Carter's West
1974 The Wilf Carter Souvenir Album
1978 Walkin the Streets of Calgary
1979 I'm Happy To-day
1980 My Home on the Range 14

Charted singles

Year Single CAN Country Album
1973 "Shoo Shoo Shoo Sha-La-La" 60 My Heartache's Your Happiness
1976 "Have a Nice Day" 27 Have a Nice Day
1988 "What Ever Happened" 91 What Ever Happened

Other singles

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Colin Larkin, ed. (1993). The Guinness Who's Who of Country Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 67/8. ISBN 0-85112-726-6.
  2. ^ "Country Music Star Wilf Carter Dead at 91". Apnews.com. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
  3. ^ "Encyclopedia Of Country, Western, & Gospel Music P0301".
  4. ^ a b Eder, Bruce. "Wilf Carter Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved January 14, 2012.
  5. ^ a b c "COMING SHOW ANOTHER 1ST FOR MUSICIAN". Orlando Sentinel. April 9, 1985.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h "Wilf Carter". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on February 3, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  7. ^ "The Yodeling Cowboy".
  8. ^ "Wilf Carter Biography, Songs, & Albums | AllMusic". AllMusic.
  9. ^ Whispering Pines, p. 111
  10. ^ "Wilf Carter – The Anthology – CD | Rocklands Entertainment".
  11. ^ Carter, Wilf. The Yodelling Cowboy. Toronto: Ryerson, 1961.
  12. ^ "Cowboy Country TV".
  13. ^ "Billboard". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. November 23, 1974. Retrieved August 5, 2021 – via Google Books.
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