|
Eastern Canada was home to Ken Davidson and his early musical career. Ken has been a true student of music all his life and has passed on his many talents and experiences to a new generation through teaching. Starting on the Hawaiian guitar at age 16, he went on to study and perfect the Spanish guitar technique and is also an accomplished fiddle and banjo player. Ken first played with Billy Reid and the Hawaiian Serenaders on CHNS radio while studying music at Acadia University. Soon after, he joined J.B. Ham and Sons of the South, a group from North Carolina.
The late 40’s saw Ken venture into a new area. He became a radio announcer at CKBW in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, followed by Sydney, NS, where his Ken Davidson Trio played on radio stations CJCB and CBI. He operated guitar schools in Corner Brook, Newfoundland and was a radio announcer at CBG in Gander. While in Bridgewater, Ken and his wife, Evelyn, started their family with the birth of their first daughter. His family eventually expanded to nine children.
During Ken’s time at CBG, he met the CFRA Happy Wanderers, who were on tour with Wilf Carter. That meeting led to Ken’s joining the group, moving to Ottawa and touring across Canada with the Wilf Carter Show. The move to Ottawa provided many opportunities for the talented instrumentalist. He stayed with the Wanderers until they disbanded and then moved to television with the Family Brown. Ken was also a regular member of Champ Champagne’s group which hosted "Take a Bow", a widely-acclaimed TV talent show. In addition, he was a popular studio musician, back grounding many CBC and CTV shows, including Graham Kerr’s Galloping Gourmet, and he operated his own music business, Ken Davidson Guitars Ltd. An invitation to perform his own "Scotch Boogie" on the Don Messer Show was one of the highlights of Ken’s career that allowed fans all across Canada to hear and enjoy his talents.
In 1978, Ken moved back to Nova Scotia to teach, play and write. In 1997, he was inducted into the Atlantic Steel Guitar Club Hall of Fame and, in 2000, he was further honored with an induction into the Nova Scotia Country Music Hall of Fame. Ken’s three LP’s and several 45-rpm records have been released on a compilation CD called "Speaking of Guitars ... Here’s Ken Davidson!". Before he passed away on October 20, 2001, Ken sent his very best regards to all the wonderful musicians in the various bands in the Ottawa Valley with whom he had the pleasure of performing over the years. He remembered them with great admiration.
A biography of Ken's life in music and entertainment entitled Ken Davidson: A True Gentleman of Music is available for $24.95 through Amazon.ca, or by contacting Ken's daughter Evelyn Crete at ecrete@sympatico.ca.
|
|
