Townsman, 1991-07, Page 29As Executive Producer, Gary Buck
sets the stage for the many talented
amateurs who will appear on Prime-
time Country this summer.
blessed with success, with good
crowds in attendance, we can develop
a character and concept, an image and
personality that will be known pre-
cisely as Primetime Country."
The other stress, the committee
is putting on the project, is that the
show's quality be uppermost in their
minds. "We hope that we are present-
ing to audiences an attitude of profes-
sionalism through competent staging
and general excellence so the public
can walk away feeling well -enter-
tained," said Mr. Currie.
To achieve this goal, it is appro-
priate that the board has acquired the
services of Gary Buck, a Canadian
country music personality as execu-
tive producer and creative director. In
an earlier interview, Mr. Buck was
optimistic about Primetime Country
pointing out that there are several
such shows in the U.S. "There is a
category in [these shows] for people
who are not professional amateurs,"
he had said. "There are a lot of people
who have a regular job and perform
on a regular basis for pay, but their
whole living isn't derived from per-
forming. Primetime Country could
very well be a stepping stone for
them."
Mr. Buck, is himself no stranger
to the field of country and western
music, having been in the business
many years and been awarded Top
Male Singer in Canada five times. He
has proven himself a top country per-
former, releasing over 50 singles and
10 albums, in addition to writing and
recording commercial jingles for radio
and television. He has served four
two-year terms as International Direc-
tor of the Country Music Association
in Nashville, is founder of the Coun-
try Music Association of Canada and
is founder and president of the Cana-
dian Country Music Hall of Fame,
located in Kitchener.
He too sees the focus of Prime-
time Country as showcasing the tal-
ents of established performers and as
a starting ground for new entertainers.
"There's nothing quite like this in
Canada at this time," he said. "Wing -
ham's contributions to the Canadian
country music industry is well estab-
lished with a country music heritage
that lends itself perfectly to the devel-
opment of a permanent theme with
Primetime Country."
Auditions for young hopefuls
were last March. There were two
series, one in Wingham at the town
The calibre of young
talent showed they
were on the right track
hall and one in Kitchener. "We knew
then we were on the right track
because of the caliber of the young
and untried personalities from all over
southern Ontario who auditioned,"
said Mr. Currie. He added that many
of these were going to have exposure
this year, while the committee would
continue to keep tabs on the others,
maintaining contact with them for a
possible chance at the 1992 season.
"There is a wealth of magnificent new
talent out there."
After the thousands of hours of
planning, organizing and scrambling
the premiere concert, June 9, went off
with only a few minor gliches. Hun-
dreds of people took in the matinee
and evening performances and orga-
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TOWNSMAN/JULY-AUGUST 1991 27