小蓝视频 musician Roy Forbes said he's excited to be performing at the Brackendale Art Gallery again. "It is kind of like tradition."He and gallery owner Thor Froslev go back to 1976 when Forbes first played there, said Froslev. "He's been playing for 40 years and is just such a phenomenal performer, and top notch on the guitar," said Froslev.Forbes began his career in 1971 by leaving his hometown for Vancouver and opening for large bands such as Supertramp, Three Dog Night and Santana. He nabbed a 1999 West Coast Music award for his album Crazy Old Moon and has received two Juno nominations. When Forbes hits the BAG stage Saturday (Oct. 4), he'll be playing songs from his first album through to his most recent, Tunes for that Mother of Mine. "In 'An Evening with Roy,' I try to cover the whole gamma," said Forbes. "I have people who have grown with me and like to hear [the older] songs of course the newest album is near and dear to my heart."Mother of Mine is a collection of songs he and his mother used to sing while Forbes was growing up in his hometown, Dawson Creek. Forbes said it taps into a certain generation's DNA."My mom liked a particular tune from Neil Young that I would sit around the house playing, and so I included that. "And then there is a song called Spider that was actually written by me and a friend, who was a drummer in a band we had back then, so that made it on too."Presently Forbes is in the midst of writing songs for a new album, but says the process is slow because life gets in the way.He also hosts the radio show, Roy's Record Room, for an Alberta music station once a week, using music from his extensive and eclectic record collection. "When I left home I started to discover there was a musical past that I didn't know anything about, and it has been an exploration for me ever since. "So while I have to do this radio show every week, it really is just a selfish endeavour for me to keep searching to keep finding other stuff."The town of Dawson Creek recently presented Forbes with an honourary arts degree from Northern Lights College and named a street after him called Roy Forbes Drive. "The degree was totally unexpected. It was a tip of the hat to the work I have done," said Forbes. "A lot of my work stems from living in the North, you know wherever you grow up it is always a part of you, it never goes away. To me Northern 小蓝视频 still stamps my work."Forbes is also known for being a member of the band Ulrich, Henderson, Forbes (UHF) with Shari Ulrich and Bill Henderson. The group has two albums under their belt both self-titled. He has produced artists like Blu Hopkins, Connie Kaldor, Mark Perry and Jo Whitley. Forbes also sits on the board of the Songwriters Association of Canada where he participates as a resource leader for songwriting workshops across Canada.
