Stampeders bring 70s hits, new songs to Niagara
The song Sweet City Woman is the embodiment of early 1970’s musical exuberance.
And its manic banjo and soaring lyrics of dizzying passion are as catchy as any tune from that era.
Rich Dodson, The Stampeders’ lead guitarist and songwriter, remembers it all gelling in joyous inspiration in 1971.
The band had relocated to Toronto from Calgary a few years earlier. They were in a happy place, wearing cowboy hats and soaking up all the Big Smoke had to offer.
A few years before, they’d played at the Montreal Expo — that experience added a “bon, c’est bon” element to the lyrics.
“It was special hearing it in the studio, especially popping that banjo off,” said Dodson, of going in that country-rock style. “We thought, ‘this really is pretty cool, wow this works.’”
“And it just fell into place. It was an exciting time .. things were happening, we were getting lots of bookings, it was an up-time for us,” he said in an interview with The Standard.
“It was just a great time to be young, in the music game. There was all this buzzy music floating around.”
The realization a massive hit was on their hands came shortly afterward, outside the verandah of Dodson’s Toronto rental.
“A car pulled up by my place. There was Sweet City Woman blaring on his radio, and this guy was just bopping and tapping his hand on the dash, he was right into it,” he said.
“It was the neatest feeling — CHUM radio was playing it, and the song was just going through the roof.”
On Oct. 30, The Juno Awardwinning Stampeders make St. Catharines’ Performing Arts Centre their next stop as part of an Ontario-wide fall tour.
Dodson said he believes it’s their first gig played locally since that 1970s heyday.
The Stampeders are known as a relentlessly touring band that had a secure place in Canadian — and often international — airwaves in the 1970s.
Songs familiar to any radio listener then include Wild Eyes, Carry Me, Monday Morning Choo Choo, Oh My Lady and the horndrenched Playin’ in the Band. It can also be startling to hear one of their old classics again and re-discover it as a Stampeders work.
“People will hear Wild Eyes and say to us, ‘oh my god is that actually you?’” Dodson said, with a chuckle.
Along the way, they’ve been recognized by the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) for lifetime achievement and racked up numerous top singles in Canada and the U.S.
“We had a good manager, and all the infrastructure in place to be songwriters. We’d go to rehearsals and get excited about playing the next gig — it was just a simple existence,” he said.
The trio, which also consists of Kim Berly on drums and Ronnie King on bass, had disbanded by 1977. They reformed as a group in 1992 on a ‘what are they doing now’ segment of the Dini Petty Show, with a follow-up Calgary Stampede performance sealing the comaback.
“I always thought we’d get back The Stampeders FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre, St. Catharines. Oct. 30 at 7:30 p.m. $55, (tax and facility fees included, service charges extra), box office 905-688-0722
Including photos and music clips visit www. shantero.com or www.stampeders
together at some point,” Dodson reflected.
“We weren’t too sure what was going to happen, if anyone was going to come out, or if anyone remembered,” Dodson said. It was also the start of the Internet, with the Stampeders swiftly gaining an online presence, “where we could bring it back to life.”
“You can’t turn down the cash, it’s a great way to spend your retirement and we still write new stuff,” said the 69-year-old Dodson. “We’ve also got a bunch of stuff in the can and we’ve got to do a new album. It’s on the bucket list.”
The touring schedule works well, said Dodson, with band members flying in from their Canadian homes, and making it work.
“Once you get going, there’s the adrenaline (on stage and it’s) is very doable … it’s a lot simpler than the old days of the two five-ton trucks and 10 roadies,” he said. “The band sounds great, everyone’s health is decent and we’re all singing and playing well.”
He said a highlight during this round of gigs in generally midsized theatres and centres is “reconnecting with the old fans,” with a noticeable younger contingent present.
“We’ll do the old hits … have a few new tunes for the audience. We’ll interact and hopefully have some fun with the audience,” Dodson said. “We look forward to the date there.
“If it’s not really fun, why do all this?