Browse "Singers & Songwriters"

Robert Allen Curtola, CM, singer, songwriter (born 17 April 1943 in Port Arthur, ON; died 4 June 2016 in Edmonton, AB). Bobby Curtola emerged as a teen idol and dominated the Canadian pop chart in the 1960s. His string of hit singles, including “Fortune Teller” (1962), dominated the Canadian singles chart from 1960 to 1967 and sold more than 2 million copies worldwide. Curtola was one of the first Canadians to receive a multi-million-dollar contract to perform in Las Vegas. He also helped raise millions of dollars for charities as a host of various telethons. He was a Member of the Order of Canada, the RPM Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame and the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. He was posthumously inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2019.

With the critical and popular success of his music for the feature film Goin' down the Road (1970) and of his early LPs, Cockburn rose to national prominence and in 1972 made his first cross-country tour.

Bruce Douglas Cockburn, OC, singer, songwriter, guitarist, activist (born 27 May 1945 in Ottawa, ON). Bruce Cockburn is one of Canada’s preeminent singer-songwriters, guitarists and social-justice activists. His music blends folk, rock, pop and jazz, and typically addresses spiritual themes and global issues from a politically charged perspective. He has had 17 albums certified gold in Canada and three certified platinum, and has sold more than seven million copies worldwide. The winner of 11 Juno Awards from 31 nominations, he has also received the inaugural Allan Waters Humanitarian Award and the Allan Slaight Humanitarian Spirit Award, and been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. Recognized as “a latter-day wandering minstrel whose songs reflect the discontents of modern society,” he received the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, and was made a Member (1982) and Officer (2002) of the Order of Canada.

Bryan Adams' first single, "Let Me Take You Dancing," was a disco hit in 1979, and was followed by the albums (for A & M) Bryan Adams (SP-4800) in 1980 and You Want It - You Got It (SP-4864) in 1981. Of his other early singles, "Fits Ya Good" was popular in 1982.

Bryan Adams released his self-titled debut album for A&M Records in 1980, and he's remained with the label for his entire career.

Beverly Sainte-Marie, CC, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, social activist, philanthropist, visual artist (born 20 February 1941 on Piapot Reserve, SK). A pioneering and influential singer-songwriter, Buffy Sainte-Marie specializes in love songs and music with a political and social-activist focus. She was an important figure in the Greenwich Village and Toronto folk music revivals in the 1960s, and is perhaps best known for her 1964 anti-war anthem “Universal Soldier,” which was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005. She won a Golden Globe, a BAFTA and an Academy Award for co-writing the hit song “Up Where We Belong.” A Companion of the Order of Canada, she has been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame, the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame. She has received the Polaris Music Prize and the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, as well as multiple Juno Awards, Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards, lifetime achievement awards and honorary degrees.

Buffy (Beverly) Sainte-Marie. Singer-songwriter, guitarist, mouth-bow player, artist, teacher, b Piapot Reserve, Craven, near Regina, 20 Feb 1941 or 1942, of Cree parents; BA (Massachusetts) 1963; PhD (Massachusetts) 1983; honorary LLD (Regina) 1996, hon LLD (Carleton) 2008, hon D MUS (U of Western Ont) 2009.

Burton Lorne Cummings, OC, OM, singer, songwriter, musician (born 31 December 1947 in Winnipeg, MB).

Burton Cummings. Singer, pianist, songwriter, b Winnipeg 31 Dec 1947, honorary D MUS (Guelph) 2001. Cummings studied piano as a boy and sang tenor roles in Gilbert and Sullivan productions at high school.

Canadian Children's Opera Company (CCOC) (Canadian Children's Opera Chorus to 2008).

Canadian Country Music Association (Academy of Country Music Entertainment 1976-86). It was preceded by the 'Canadian Academy for Country Music Advancement' initiated in 1975 in Toronto by RPM magazine at the first Big Country Awards.

In 1940 a similar chorus was formed, again through the efforts of Bridle and the Star. Known as the Coliseum Chorus, it was led by Charles Peaker. Fricker was honorary conductor and made some guest appearances.

With his straggly, shoulder-length hair, torn blue jeans and red sneakers, Greig Nori doesn’t look like the sort of man to be wined and dined in elegant restaurants by smooth-talking business executives.

In all, Canadians claimed a record 12 Grammys at the 38th annual ceremony.

CANO. Franco-Ontarian folk-pop collective, active 1975-85. The founding musicians were members of the Coopérative des artistes du Nouvel Ontario (CANO), an agricultural and artistic commune established in Sudbury in 1970.

Cantata Singers of Ottawa. Mixed 45-voice choir founded in 1964 by conductor Gerald Wheeler. Brian Law succeeded Wheeler in 1965 and gradually increased the choir's membership from its original 16.

​Carly Rae Jepsen, singer, songwriter, guitarist (born 21 November 1985 in Mission, BC).

Carole Champagne, known as Carole Laure, OC, actress, singer, director, screenwriter, producer (born 5 August 1948 in Shawinigan, QC).

Catherine Ruth MacLellan, singer, songwriter (born 23 April 1980 in Burlington, ON). Catherine MacLellan is a contemporary folk-roots singer-songwriter whose recordings have won multiple East Coast Music Awards, Canadian Folk Music Awards, Music PEI Awards and a Juno Award. She is the daughter of “Snowbird” composer Gene MacLellan.

CBC Opera Company. Founded in 1948 to perform on the radio series 'CBC Wednesday Night'. Under the chairmanship of Charles Jennings the company was administered by Harry Boyle, Terence Gibbs (producer), Nicholas Goldschmidt (conductor), Geoffrey Waddington (music adviser), and Arnold Walter.