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PRESS REVIEWS
THE TRUCKS
twang — "No Trucks with
Categories" by Neville Stewart
Dear Twang
Thought I'd drop you a line and explain why you haven't heard from me in a while.
You see, I was going to do a story on an Edmonton group called "The Trucks" and things just kind of got
away on me. At first it looked simple enough, but it wasn't. Let me explain.
First I tried to find out who "The Trucks" are ... I mean you know like in journalism school, "who",
"what", "when", and whatever those other two are.
So I went to find out "who" and that's where the trouble started. I heard that the Martineau brothers
(guitarist Dave and drummer Paul) and bassist Fred LaRose form the core of the group, but that isn't the entire
line-up. There are others.
The band is usually augmented by some of Western Canada's finest players ... guys like steel guitarists Stan Stewart
and Dan Marshall, fiddle players Tony Michael, Calvin Vollrath and Mysen Szott, or guitarists Richard Chadwick
and Don Mac ... and there are even more. They add different people, depending on the kind of music they're playing.
And that was the next problem ... trying to find out "what" these guys play. A club owner I met says
"Oh yeah, The Trucks ... I saw them on Much Music, backing the Bud Talent contestants during Country Music
Week." Then another guy tells me he saw them with Rodney Brown, playing reggae. And a DJ said "The Trucks?
They're playing on some new blues albums I just got in." So then I meet a TV producer who says The Trucks
did the music for a sports documentary and they just finished a Christmas Special. So much for narrowing down "what"
kind of music they play or "where" they play it.
Ok, so I figured as a last shot I would list some of the people the band has worked with or backed up. I thought
that this would show a lot about their "musical direction" (as the pop music writers say.) Well now,
this was where I really hit the ditch!! I mean, the list was amazing ... just listen to some of these names ...
the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, k.d. lang, Ian Tyson, Ronnie Hawkins, Al Cherny, Wilf Carter, Dick Damron, Sneezy
Waters, Laura Vinson, Amos Garrett, Emmylou Harris, Guy Clark, Fenton Robinson ... it was hopeless!! They seem
to have worked with almost everybody you ever heard of and in every style.
So anyway, I figure now that maybe doing a story on The Trucks wasn't such a good idea after all. I mean how do
you write about a three/four/five/six/seven piece band that plays country music/r&b/reggae/blues in clubs/concert
halls/videos/on records and television, in Canada and in Europe. Oh, did I mention the European tours?"
Anyway, forget the story on "The Trucks". Instead maybe I'll do something simple like a piece on "the
Lithuanian influence in country music". How does that sound?
By the way, could you please send my next cheque here to the Royal Hotel. Call and let me know what you think of
the "Lithuanian" idea. If I'm not in my room, have them page me in the bar.
Fondest regards,
Neville Stewart
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