more info at:
http://www.zoomerradio.ca/events/sto...ve-zoomerhall/
and TORONTO SUN article:
Duncan Fremlin collected some colourful stories touring with Stompin’ Tom Connors.
The co-founder and banjo player of backing band Whiskey Jack for 25 years — off and on — has written a book, My Good Times with Stompin’ Tom, about working with arguably the most patriotic of Canada’s country-folk musicians who passed away in 2013.
“He’s a really interesting Canadian character — he’s sort of bigger than life,” said Fremlin, 69, a native of Sault Ste. Marie who’s lived in Toronto for the last 50 years.
Fremlin pulls no punches about what life was like on the road with the tough taskmaster who liked his motel rooms cheap, his beer warm, his smokes frequently and all band members within walkie-talkie distance and able to stay up all night.
Oh, and smoking pot was grounds for dismissal.
We caught up with Fremlin down the line from his holiday in Barbados:
Q. What’s the deal with the all nighters?
A. I think he just liked having somebody around. Occasionally, his wife, Lena, would come on the road and she’d be with him, but for the most part it was pretty much the band who had to stay up. Once he started, if there was a guitar in the room and a case of beer, we were in for the long haul. He loved to party. Some nights, it was just playing chess. Other nights, playing checkers. Other nights, just sitting around talking.
Q. You write about almost getting fired in 1993 when the band decided to go ahead without him to a tour stop in Quebec City. Why was that a big deal?
A. I knew we were poking the bear. But we had been on the road for a couple of months at that point and we needed a breather. And we said, ‘To hell with it, we’re just going to do it.’ And we did it and we suffered the consequences.
Q. And that was preceded by Stompin’ Tom “borrowing” your unlocked banjo to “teach you a lesson.” Correct?
A. I got so pissed off with being treated like a child at that point. Anyway, it was really a good thing because it really redefined our friendship. I stood up to him. He respected that. He really liked that fact that I did that. We were good buddies after that for the rest of his life. He didn’t want ass-kissers around him.
Q. Why was Stompin’ Tom anti-pot?
A. He comes from a generation, very traditional. Just like in the military, you can drink beer, but you can’t smoke pot. It’s the same kind of mind set. We were fine with that. I assumed he didn’t want us to rub his nose in it and I certainly didn’t want him to catch us but there was no way he was going to control us all of the time. We had to have our pleasures, too.
Q. When will Whiskey Jack — slated to host the 6th Annual Stompin’ Tom Birthday Celebration on Jan. 31 at the Zoomer Hall stage in Toronto’s Liberty Village — go back out on the road?
A. This coming year we’re going to do a big tour of northern Ontario. It’s going to be stories and songs of Stompin’ Tom, but our special guests are going to be The Good Brothers, Cindy Church and Russell deCarle from Prairie Oyster.