Yogi & Friends "Haywire" (1982-?) (LP)
(Produced by Yogi Klos & Norbert Dupasquier)
Canadian fiddler Ihor ("Yogi") Klos (1944-2013) fronted this four-piece band, working through fiddle classics such as "Orange Blossom Special" and Charlie Daniels' "The Devil Went Down To Georgia," along with oldies like "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke That Cigarette" and "Tennessee Waltz." Of particular interest is a non-country number that rounds things out, "Ukranian Medley" which doubtless gives us a clue to Klos' family background, as well as bassist John Nekrep's, although Yogi himself was born in Austria, and grew up in Manitoba. This album was recorded at Maddock Studios, in West St. Paul, and captures one of several bands that Klos performed with... He tried working in Nashville for a while, but found the Canadian vibe more congenial, and established himself as a regional and national artist, playing both country and Eastern European music.
York County Boys "Blue Grass Jamboree" (Arc Records, 19--?) (LP)
Art Young "Autumn Leaves" (Eagle Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Clements)
A longtime fixture on Winnipeg, Canada's country scene, singer Art Young started his career as a child performer in the vaudeville circuit as part of a sibling band called the Young Trio, along with his brother and sister. Somewhere along the line he got into country music, and by the 1960s was playing with a group called the Country Gems, which also featured steel player Wayne Link, Elmer Nault on lead guitar, and Ken Flamand on bass. This album came out years and years later, and features a wealth of original material, including a couple of regional pride songs ("Manitoba In The Fall" and "Girl From Saskatoon") a few cover songs, and an homage to the Man In Black, called, simply "Johnny Cash."
Art Young "I'm Still Your Dear Old Daddy" (Downs Record Company, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Clements)
A delightfully unpretentious album featuring a now-middleaged Art Young on a short-lived label from Winnipeg, just singing plain-old country music, no muss, no fuss. He has a modest voice, nothing to write home about, but he uses it well, crooning out one understated country tune after another. Likewise, the arrangements are simple and to the point, with clean, satisfying pedal steel riffs by Al Gain and Ron Halldorson, matched to equally straightforward backing by the rest of the band. A lot of original material, with five songs written by Art Young, including the title track, which is an homage to his daughter Cori, who sings along on the chorus, ala Conway Twitty and Joni Lee. This is a nice record. Not earth-shattering, but consistently pleasant and completely sincere. Recommended!
Neil Young "After The Gold Rush" (Reprise Records, 1970)
(Produced by Neil Young, David Briggs & Kendall Pacios)
A landmark hippie rock record, this album has a distinctive, acoustic-based folk and country feel... Heck, he even covers Don Gibson's "Oh, Lonesome Me," brilliantly transforming the bouncy country classic into a mopey, opiated dirge. There's a little bit of the grating electric rock that he's also known for, but for the most part this is a mellow masterpiece, one of those wonderful records that always seem too short, though perfect for playing over and over again. One of my all-time faves, in any genre.
Neil Young "Harvest" (Reprise Records, 1972)
(Produced by Neil Young, Elliot Mazer, Henry Lewy & Jack Nitzsche)
Led by the smash pop hit, "Heart Of Gold," this acoustic-based classic cemented Neil Young's place in the '70s pop firmament and helped define the country-rock genre. A sweet, mellow album -- includes the evocative "Out On The Weekend," the retro-sexist "A Man Needs A Maid," the politically-charged "Alabama" (appreciated at the time; a bit of a drag now...) and one of my favorite of his songs, the irresistible "Old Man," in which the hippies confront their own mortality and (worse still!) middle-age. Great record.
Neil Young "Harvest Moon" (Reprise Records, 1992)
(Produced by Neil Young & Ben Keith)
Neil Young "Sugar Mountain: Live At Canterbury House 1968" (Reprise Records, 2008)
Legions of Neil Young fans will rejoice at the legit, major-label release of these live, folk-club recordings from 1968, when Young was just escaping the orbit of the Buffalo Springfield band, but clearly headed for greater things. It's an intimate set, with great sound quality. There are several classics, performed in crisp acoustic versions -- "Mr. Soul," "Broken Arrow," "The Loner," "Birds" -- and lots of discursive, offhand stage banter (listed in the parlance of the times as "raps" on the album, and thoughtfully sorted out in the mix as separate tracks, so you can just hear the music, if that's your preference...) Highlights include "Sugar Mountain" and "Birds," but it's the whole snapshot-of-the-artist angle that's the real attraction here, with Young laughing at his own jokes, forging an intimacy with his rapt, receptive audience, sharing his then-current bag of tricks. It's pretty groovy, and a nice look at his early career...
The Zlamal Sisters "Lilian And Manon" (Condor Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Joe Bob Barnhill & Gene Rice)
Canada has long had a vibrant love of country music, often tinged with strong regional pride and songs extolling the great Northern expanse. Some artists, of course, became well-known down south, but for every Hank Snow there are literally thousands of other musicians who never made it to Nashville, or never even tried. At any rate, the Canadian country scene is huge, and deserves to be celebrated in its own right. I'm pretty sure I'm only scratching the surface here, and welcome any recommendations, additions or corrections. 
