Blue
Northern
Vancouver,
British Columbia
1977
- 1982
Members
Garry
Comeau ~ Fiddle, Vocals
Billy
Cowsill ~ Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
Brady
Gustafson ~ Drums
Larry
McGillivray ~ Drums, Vocals
Ray
O'Toole ~ Lead Guitar, Vocals
Lee
Roy Stephens ~ Bass, Vocals
Jimmy
Wilson ~ Pedal Steel, Guitar, Synthisizer, Accordion, Dobro
In
Memory of
Billy
Cowsill
Recordings:
45
Can't Make No Sense/Chain Ya Down/Missin' You/Too Late To Turn Back (45
rpm 12" EP) (1979)
45
Too Late To Turn Back/Half As Much (1980)
45
You're Not The Same Girl/You Got Me Where You Want Me (1980)
45
100%/ (1981)
45
Can't Stop/Be My Girl (1981)
LP
BLUE NORTHERN (1981)
All the
recordings
were on Polydor Records, except the EP which was on Quintessence
Records.
The core of the group at first was centered around bassist Lee Roy
Stephens,
fiddler-singer Garry Comeau, steel guitar/ keyboard-man Jimmy Wilson,
and
drummer Brady Gustafson. By late 1978 guitarist Ray O'Toole had
joined
the
group, who were now getting a lot of attention from the media. A
new arrival (from the USA) became a fan, and began sitting in on a
regular
basis, and he too became a member of Blue Northern. His name is
Billy
Cowsill, from The Cowsill family band in the late 1960's ("Hair",
"Indian
Lake" "The Rain, The Park, & Other Things" and all that, proto
Partridge
Family). He was a perfect fit.
The group recorded a few tracks at Don Tarris' Buttertree Studio, in
Richmond,
and released 4 songs on a 12" blue vinyl EP in 1980, complete with a
blue-tinted
cover. Two of the songs were by Ray O'Toole, and two were by
Billy
Cowsill. The radio picked Ray's "Can't Make No Sense" as the one
to play, and the group had a national hit on it's hand. Polydor
Records
scooped up the band, and sent them back into the studio while a second
single was released. It was Ray's "Too Late To Turn Back", a song
he had done when he was a member of Shakedown a couple of years or so
earlier.
It too was a hit. The group toured, and played concerts in halls
like the Orpheum Theatre in Vancouver and other similar halls across
Canada.
The group did some TV show (this was before MTV) Polydor released the
self-titled
album in early 1981, and a couple of more singles followed. Both
were O'Toole's songs, and both were hits.
