Aboriginal artists featured on Saskatchewan centennial CDs

Page 4

The works of a number of Aboriginal recording artists are among those featured on a series of CDs that celebrate Saskatchewan's centennial year.

Saskatchewan Centennial: No Boundaries is the title of the project being put together by the Saskatchewan Recording Industry Association (SRIA) to recognize artists who have had an influence on the provincial music scene.

According to Lorena Kelly, program manager for the SRIA and executive producer for the centennial CD project, the SRIA had initially planned to produce a two-CD compilation of Saskatchewan recorded music, but the project has expanded and will now feature four CDs.

"We are very pleased with the way it turned out," said Kelly. "This project is to really introduce people to the talent that has come from Saskatchewan."

The first two-CD set, which is already available, features songs and artists in the pop/rock and country/folk genres. Most music stores in the province are carrying the CDs, but they can also be ordered online at www.spiritriver.com. The suggested retail price for the CDs is $15 for one or $25 if you buy both.

"These prices are actually quite cheap because there are 19 tracks on one and 20 on the other," said Kelly.

While plans to put together a centennial CD have been in the works for a couple of years, work to put the project together didn't begin in earnest until this past fall when Kelly began researching Saskatchewan's music history. After months of research and hundreds of phone calls, Kelly had a list of more than 100 artists to consider for inclusion in the project. With each CD only having room for 70 minutes of music, that list had to be narrowed down considerably, even with the addition of two more CDs to the project.

In selecting the artists, Kelly tried to pick artists who made the most impact on the province's music industry-those that have achieved national or international success, or who have been trailblazers. The artists chosen had to be from Saskatchewan, or have lived in the province for a lengthy period of time.

Because the sound quality of older recordings isn't comparable to the quality of newer recordings, Kelly decided to divide the songs, putting the pre-70 selections together on the third and fourth CDs, and focusing on the songs recorded from the 1970s to the present on the first two CDs.

The first CD of the collection includes pop and rock selections, while volume two contains country and roots recordings.

The third CD will feature old time music like jigs and polkas, as well as popular music of the era. The fourth CD will feature jazz, classical and instrumental material.

"The rock/pop CD is quite mainstream so it will appeal to the majority of people, especially the youth, because there's really a good mix of radio rock-type sounds with a lot of songs that have been released to radio," said Lorena Kelly. "We tried to have something for everybody."

On the rock/pop volume, people can expect to hear music from Eekwol, a young Aboriginal hip-hop artist from Saskatoon. Eekwol is known for her drive to promote her hip-hop and Aboriginal culture and is currently one of the main artists of an up-and-coming independent label, which she co-owns with her producer/brother, Mils.

"She is making huge waves in the hip-hop market because she is absolutely an amazing hip-hop artist. Plus she's female and plus she's Aboriginal," said Kelly. "She's so innovative in so many different ways and we really needed a role model like that in the community."

Also on the rock/pop and country/roots volumes, people can hear music from other Aboriginal artists such as Breach of Trusts, Brian Sklar, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Chester Knight, John Arcand, Tom Jackson and Winston Wuttunee.

Artists such as The Northern Pikes, Colin James, the Waltons, Streetheart and Wide Mouth Mason are also featured.

While doing the research for the project, Kelly said she was surprised to learn how many well-known artist are from Saskatchewan.

"We are hearing about all of these people that we didn't know they were born in Saskatchewan, so it was kind of a nice surprise."

A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the CDs will go to the artists involved, with the remainder going to cover the cost of producing the CDs.

In the meantime, Kelly is continuing to search for more Saskatchewan artists to feature on the third and fourth CD, and would welcome any suggestions that people might have. She said she is especially interested in lesser known artists who haven't been on the radio or on TV but who have still done some important groundbreaking work.

For more information on the centennial CD project, e-mail lorena@saskrecording.ca or visit, www.saskrecording.ca.