HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1973-11-08, Page 15•
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Entertainment
ivienthers of a faMily sorne.
tines do oot see eye to eye.
Personality prohleMs often arise
between members of musical
groups. But vvhat happenswhen a
family becomes a musical
group?
• For theMercey • Brothers
family and music go together like
crackers in soup. Ray Mercey
says, "Sometimes one of us has
strong feelings, to do Something
certain way and the others don't
agree, but everything works out
for the best, anyway. We are
three separate people, but, being
brothers helps us to be a little
closer than . most members of
musical groups, I think."
Ray, Lloyd and Larry Mercey
were born in Hanover and, after
about fifteen years of music, they
are easilyone of the most popular
and sought after bands in
Canada. Their parents are both
deceased? perhaps lending all the
More to their closeness as
family and musical unit. "We lost
our father in February.. He was
58. And our mother died when she
was 43, about 14 years ago. Our
father used to try and get us all to
lean guitar chords. He played
guitar and our mother played
violin, so guos that is where we
all started to get interested in
Pelformitig. music. Filially, Lar-
ry becanie extremely!thterested
in it and got a job on the Barn
Dance prograra on CKNX
sion in Winghara. That's where
we both started to perform pub -
Six albums, dozens of televi.
sion, nightclub and stage appear-
ances throughout Canada and
Europe are orily • part of the
• Mercey Brothers' story. They
now have their own publishing
company, fan club (care of Mrs.
Peggy Jones, 21 Edmonton
Drive, Guelph, Ontario) and
recording studio.
Built in Elmira, now home base
for the group, the studio boasts
some of the finest recording
equipment in Canada. it began as
a place to practise and has mush-
roomed into a $250,000 16 -track
studio featuring soundproof
walls, floor and ceilings, good
atmosphere for creative record-,
ing and a talented engineer.
With 16 tracks the group can
isolate a guitar solo, drum beat,
base run and vocal performances
„
4011iir
13rt)thers in
separately and then mix them
together to produce p clean-cut,
noise -free recording spanking,of
quality.
As yet the studio, has not been
used to record any of the group's
albums as, it has just recently
been completed. The brothers
hope to find new talent for re-
cording purposes as well as have
seasoned professionals, such as
George Hamilton in for
sessions and possiblealba.uns and
singles.
Larry Mercey, guitarist and
vocalist, hopes the studio will
bringtn "people that we just flip
over." He is into the business
aspect of music and his future
ambitions are geared, to, the
"capacity of a producer, man-
ager and agent".
He says, "When I learned to
play the guitar; I learned
partially because people showed
me. I'm not looking to make
money from showing and helping
people. I'd just like to."
Giving a guiding hand to new
talent is the icing on the cake' for
Larry and hejloesn't want it to
get to the point where it stops
being fun. He says, "Any job that
DIRECTION IMPORTANT—Tom Knight, silhouetted in black, directs the Mercey
Brothers during a taping of a TV show. The Merceys work well with the other stage crew
members and entertainers during such tapings. (Staff Photo)
PLENTY OP EQUIPMENT—There is no shortage of the
best equipment at the recording of CHCH-TV Hamilton
whore the George Hamilton IV Show Is recorded. George
can be soon in the viewer of a color camera. Staff Photo
starts out beg fun and stimulat-
ing can become too routine, but
I'll jl.ist try not to let it get that
way."
PAST AND PRESENT:
The Mercey Brothers have
chalked up a list of credits a mile
long during their years tOgethet'
as a musical group. They have
made regular guest appearances
on such shows as Sing --along
Jubilee, Tommy Hunter Show,
Ian Tyson Show, Country -time,
Drop In and Video One. In radio
they have performed on the
Grand Ole Opry, the Tommy
Hunter Show and Ontario Place:
Presents, among •others.
Their live perforManceshave,
been welcomed in most of• the
,Clubs throughout Ontario. , .•
The group's newest single,
"Meant to Be With You",
and "Don't Disturb the Night",
greatest hits, and "Who ,.Wroteare "Hello Mom", one of their
the Words?", "The Day of Love"
major clubs and concert halls „
Cana-
dian Forces' Bases and SerVice
across Canada as well as Among their single recordings
promises even more gooa..10ten,s
ing and reflects a change towards'
a sophisticated, polished sound
that ranks with the top musicians
and vocalists of the world; •
The Mercey Brothers have
twice won the, RPM Gold, Leaf
Award honoring distinguished
Canadian music figures by bell.*
voted top country instrumental
vocal group of the year.
In 1971 the group won the Seair?-
wai' Award Which was set unin,
1960 toclffiow1&lge .Canadiak
performers who had cohtrihoted
greatly during the year to pro-
moting Canadian talent at home
and throughout the world.
With a past sparkling "With suc-
cess, what happens neact)C.
Larry says,' "Since.e are
doing the George Hamilton IV
Show at CHCH, we felt \that we
could do the shows and not flinch
more for the next couple of
months. We will be doing a con-
cert in Brockville shortly, and
after two more weeks of doing
just the shows we will go down to
New Brunswick for six days to do
shows for the Kidney Foundation
of Canada. We'll also be doing the
Ray Griff television show in
Ottawa. We haven't really got too
many bookings in December and
January because we want to do a
lot of recording and the television
shows.
NEW ALBUM:
Larry says of the new LP
recording, "It's the first album
we have ever used strings on and
it is middle of the road as well as
Please turn to Page 3
PAYS NO ATTENTION—Lynn Jones concentrates on her
music as a television camera gets into position for the next
shot. The studio is a maze of action and equipment while the
viewer only sees a cozy living room.
Staff Photo
ALL PROFESSIONALS—The Mercey Brothers command
respect. for their professional talents and manners and the
first to admit itis George Hamilton IV for whontthey are
.•
erce
or George Hamilt
...
•••- , • . , • , . •
regular guests on the George .Hamilton • JV Show; 'seen 4iti,
CHCH-TV Hamilton every week., , ' *, . (Staff Photo)
, ...• 1. •
• , .
..., , , . •• , , ..
. ,
•
•
•,r
You don't have to put on your
cowboy hat or tether your horse
t� the living room coffee table to
enjoy the new George Hamilton
IV show on CHCH-TV, Hamilton
The show is mit a hillbilly
jamboree, giddy -up and go affair,
butis made with professionals for
people who want good entertain-
ment. The North Carolina -born
star of the show says, "We are
not trying to kid anybody with
this show. We aren't pretending
to be a big country show or
jamboree. It's just a really
easy-going family, soft -sell en-
tertainment show with the accent
on country folk music. We aren't
trying to be artsy-craftsy. We
aren't ethnic, so it isn't a true folk
show and it isn't a true country
showln the sense that we don't
have a lot of hay bales scattered
around. There is no big emphasis
on barns and barnyards and all
that yahoo stuff. I think it is a
modern folk -country type of
show"
This is the show's first year and
everyone connected with it hopes
to see it become national enter-
tainment rather than being
viewed in mainly the Hamilton
area. The show will feature the
Mercey Brothers, the North
Country Band and Lynn Jopes as
regulars.
Mr. Hamilton says of th,regu-
lars, "The Mercey Br -Others
epitomize the country -folk type of
music and so does Lynn Jones.
Everybody in the show fits in
very well
-I would like to do an alburh
some time with the Mercey
Brothers at their new studio in.
Elmira. I think they are just a
tremendous group of guys. I was
on a tour of England last year and
the Mercey Brothers came over
as special guest stars from
Canada, and they really went
. over well. The people of England
like them and I think they will be
very popular over there"
Since George Hamilton IV and
the Mercey Brothers record for
the same company, RCA, and
appear on the same television
show, Mr_ Hamilton has lead a
chance to see the group in action.
"I think they are true profession-
als in every sense of the word.
They are very serious about their
music and they do it well and they
take it to heart. Tley work hard
at the business and they aren't
content just to rnake records and •
do shows. They are very hivolved
in all aspects of the music field.
They • have their own recording
studio and publishing Company •
and I think theyare totlly'
committed to Canadian music. •
Music isn't fun and games to
them. It's a life work and they are
very dedicated to ii."
Lynn. Jones has performed in
over 90 shows produced at CRCH
in her ten years as a singer. A
recording artist with Arpeggio
Recording Company, a division
of RCA, she has released one
album, Roses and Candy, and
should be cOming out with a new
one shortly.
Miss Jones will appear in all 26
Please turn to Page 2
TIME OUT—George Hamilton IV takes a break during the
taping of the show and watches as other performers on his
show rehearse before the numbers are recorded on color
video tape equipment. Staff Photo
GETTING READY—Larry Mercey gets a "new face" from
makeup artist Mrs. Jane Yeomans. Entertainers have
makeup reapplied frequently during the taping of a tee -
vision show. Staff Photo
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