THEY SAID IT
Past Juno honourees on Sask., music, shoes and more
Kevin Churko is one of many, many, many Juno honourees with ties to Saskatchewan. Here, we dive into our archives to hear from a few of them — on their home province, music, the industry, and the Juno Awards:
“For Christmas, my mother bought my older brother an old Lone Ranger guitar — probably cost $6 out of the catalogue. That’s what I learned on. … I can remember the threshing crews with the horses and hayracks and old threshing machines run by an old steel-wheeled tractor. Those crews were the cowboys, the heroes of my life. I’d listen at night and some guy would always be playing guitar by the bunkhouse.”
— Gary Fjellgaard (Rose Valley), six-time Juno nominee, speaking in 1986.
“I think that the land that you walked over as a kid is in your blood like a salmon. I love the prairies.”
— Joni Mitchell (Saskatoon), four-time Juno winner and 18-time nominee, speaking in April 1987.
“That we all used to sing together got me going on this idea … to have other children learn the songs that we all learned when we were younger.”
— Carmen Campagne (Willow Bunch), on her 1991 nomination for best children’s album.
“There’s so much pain going into this album, so it feels good for me now to do something positive with my life and look back on this and say, ‘This all happened, I’m right here and even though this happened it, never dragged me down.’”
— Joey Stylez (Saskatoon), speaking in 2008. The album, The Black Star, was nominated for the 2011 Aboriginal album of the year.
“I grew up with broken English; it was my first language. If I was slurring anybody, I’d be slurring my parents. Most humour is about people. We’re becoming over-sensitive. We have to learn to laugh at ourselves, then the good things will start to happen.” — Don Ast (Regina), a.k.a. Nestor Pistor, speaking in 1983, thrice nominated for comedy album of the year.
“We had been a band in Regina for three years and in our own city nobody would play our music. Now we have a label behind us, it’s gotten to the point that we can’t turn the radio on without hearing ourselves.”
— Keith Nakonechny (Regina), whose band The Waltons won best new group in 1994.
“To tell you the truth, the way we’ve always felt about awards shows is it’s nice to be included. … At that point, it ends with us. If you win, it’s a bonus.”
— Don Schmid (Saskatoon), in 1991. His band The Northern Pikes was nominated for three awards that year, including group of the year.
“I felt I had done enough in Saskatchewan. Over-exposure in my home province was always something that I had been afraid of. You can depend on your home province to back you but you can’t depend on it forever.”
— Glory-anne Carriere (Gravelbourg and Estevan), two-time Juno nominee, speaking in 1986.
“I found the music industry was no different from the motor car industry or the pickle industry. … You have to market and produce a good product that not only has appeal but it also has to be music which is put together properly.” — R. Harlan Smith (Central Butte), three-time Juno nominee, speaking in 1978.
“I’ve spent my whole life playing the wonderful stages of Canada in grassroots communities like the small towns in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Places Madonna and Michael Jackson would be insulted to be invited to have been my privilege to learn from, and boy, have I heard great music there.” — BUFFY SAINTEMARIE, (Piapot), on her 1995 Juno Awards Hall of Fame induction.
“For me, music has always been about healing — and not just with the songs but also with the humour and the tears and the resonance. You can weave magic with music.” — HEATHER BISHOP, (Regina), nominated in 1998, best children’s album.
“I thought of arriving at the Junos in a long, tie-dyed skirt, wearing a wig of long, straight hair, looking just like the West Coast folksinger they’d imagined me to be … And I wouldn’t wear shoes on stage. But I thought I couldn’t pull it off.” — CONNIE KALDOR, (Regina), on attending 1985 Juno Awards; nominated for most promising female vocalist of the year
“It’s quite crazy. It’s been a really incredible year. There’s so much support around Saskatchewan and so much support around Canada. I really cannot believe it.” — THERESA SOKYRKA, (Saskatoon), nominated in 2006 for pop album of the year (These Old Charms).
“This is probably the coolest thing I’ve ever done — I didn’t even put shoes on.”
— Jess Moskaluke (Langenburg and Rocanville), on her 2017 Juno win for country album of the year (Kiss Me Quiet).
“My grandparents can’t really make it to the shows. But something like the Junos is a familiar entity that, not only can they watch us but they know what it is. It’s also an old-timey format so they can relate to it.”
— Ewan Currie of The Sheepdogs (Saskatoon), in advance of the band’s 2013 Juno Awards performance in Regina.
“It’s an honour. I was pleasantly surprised.”
— Jon Ballantyne (Saskatoon), on winning best jazz album in 1990.
“The idea of music as a competition is kind of funny and I’m definitely not thinking that we’re going to take (the Juno) home.”
— Shaun Verreault (Saskatoon), about his band Wide Mouth Mason’s 2001 nomination for best rock album.
“It’s a bit weird to be the most promising group after 15 years.” — Kenny Shields (Nokomis), on his band Streetheart winning the most promising group award in 1980.
“Seeing our band’s name next to Royal Canoe, Arcade Fire, The Darcys — that makes it scary for me. It’s such an honour and privilege to be included .... ”
— Jeff Romanyk (Regina), whose band Rah Rah was nominated in 2014 for best alternative album (The Poet’s Dead).