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STAN ROGERS
Canadian national folk hero and an international folk legend, Stan Rogers inspired the Celtic music renaissance in North America. Pete Seeger calledStan Rogers one of the most talented young singers and songwriters in North America a few months before Stan died in an airplane crash in 1983. When CBC Morningside asked listeners to nominate a song as the second national anthem of Canada, the winner was Stan Rogers' classic Northwest Passage. Rogers performed his Maritime-style music on the folk circuit from Cape Breton to San Francisco, from the Arctic Circle to the Rio Grande River. This is the story of his life and music, complete with *
100 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2004
About the author
Chris Gudgeon
13 books22 followersCHRIS GUDGEON is an author, screenwriter, and the creator/producer of the hit television series "Ghost Trackers." He has contributed to dozens of publications ranging from MAD and The National Lampoon to Today's Parent. He has written thirteen books, including An Unfinished Conversation: The Life and Music of Stan Rogers; Consider the Fish; and the hilarious You're Not as Good as You Think You Are: A Demotivational Guide. Chris Gudgeon has also worked for Mattel Interactive, Disney's Creative Wonders, and he has developed websites for television shows. He lives in Victoria, B.C., with his three sons.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 17, 2022
Stan Rogers is one of my all-time favourite songwriters, so when I saw this book for sale at a second hand book shop some years ago, I snapped it up. It has taken me a while to get around to reading it, but I am glad I have finally done so.
For many people, I suspect - especially in Australia - Rogers is "the best songwriter you've never heard of." Gudgeon makes much of this, but with good justification. When Rogers died tragically in an aeroplane fire in 1983, at the amazingly young age of 33, he was on the verge of international stardom. His death meant it never came. I use the word 'amazing', though, because of how much he had already achieved at such a young age. Rogers was blessed with two extraordinary gifts - a sublime talent for songwriting and storytelling, and a magnificent rich, baritone voice. He was also a natural performer.
Gudgeon is not blinded by Stan Rogers' obvious talents, however. He remains balanced in his approach to his subject, giving credit where credit is due, but also not shying away from negative critical comments where they are appropriate. He is also surprisingly analytical, drawing the distinction between Rogers' various public faces and his true personality.
Most of Stan Rogers' songs, to my mind, are great. A few are utterly sublime, and a few are rather ordinary. In other words, he is human. There is an extensive array of song lyrics at the back of the book, together with some notes about each song. Quite a number were released after Rogers' death. A few have never been released. There are also some samples of Rogers' prose at the end of the book. He was venturing beyond songwriting into the writing of radio plays towards the end of his life. Who knows what he could have achieved if he had lived another forty or fifty years?
This book is thoughtfully written and well put together, though I would recommend a potential reader acquaint themselves with Stan Rogers' songs first. The book will then mean so much more.
For many people, I suspect - especially in Australia - Rogers is "the best songwriter you've never heard of." Gudgeon makes much of this, but with good justification. When Rogers died tragically in an aeroplane fire in 1983, at the amazingly young age of 33, he was on the verge of international stardom. His death meant it never came. I use the word 'amazing', though, because of how much he had already achieved at such a young age. Rogers was blessed with two extraordinary gifts - a sublime talent for songwriting and storytelling, and a magnificent rich, baritone voice. He was also a natural performer.
Gudgeon is not blinded by Stan Rogers' obvious talents, however. He remains balanced in his approach to his subject, giving credit where credit is due, but also not shying away from negative critical comments where they are appropriate. He is also surprisingly analytical, drawing the distinction between Rogers' various public faces and his true personality.
Most of Stan Rogers' songs, to my mind, are great. A few are utterly sublime, and a few are rather ordinary. In other words, he is human. There is an extensive array of song lyrics at the back of the book, together with some notes about each song. Quite a number were released after Rogers' death. A few have never been released. There are also some samples of Rogers' prose at the end of the book. He was venturing beyond songwriting into the writing of radio plays towards the end of his life. Who knows what he could have achieved if he had lived another forty or fifty years?
This book is thoughtfully written and well put together, though I would recommend a potential reader acquaint themselves with Stan Rogers' songs first. The book will then mean so much more.
July 4, 2016
Ever since discovering the music of Stan Rogers a good five years ago I have been enamored with the talent of this cultural giant and oft quested for whatever media I could possess related to him. What began as downloading all his albums from Amazon went to searching out original LP copies and now whatever scarce early RCA and CBC oddities are not yet part of my collection. Gudgeon's biography is the latest addition. It's an easy read, informative and paints a colorful portrait of Stan that other sources touch upon but typically lack the depth of information I desire. Most of all, I learned he was far more outspoken, brusque, and gregarious than the gentle and introspective artist I've grown to love and idolize over the years. This is not a bad thing, mind. If anything, I now view Stan as a more real, well-rounded individual; a regular guy with extraordinary talents. Oddly enough, and perhaps this is more attributable to my unhealthy thirst for knowledge of this legend than any shortcomings on the writing, I was left wishing the biography had gone even further into detail. Perhaps that isn't possible and those archives have already been mined. I will be extremely saddened when that point is truly reached; the point the reality of his premature passing takes complete hold and his life has given all its fruits, but until then I will continue learning all I can of this hero of mine and happily revisit every record regularly. They never will get old. RIP Stan, and thank you Chris for your enjoyable book.
September 2, 2014
This is an astonishing look at the man I consider Canada’s greatest songwriter, and simply necessary to read if you want a well-rounded look at the Canadian folk scene of the 1960s and ’70s. It assumes no prior knowledge of peripheral “characters” in Stan’s life, so short bios are actually given of many Canadian folk scene figures along the way (Valdy, Ian & Sylvia, Leon Redbone, to name a few). A word of caution, though: this book will break your heart. Rogers burned to death in an aviation accident at the age of 33. The accounts of his death and the aftermath amongst his friends and family are chilling. As well, from a musical standpoint, we learn that Rogers was never able to complete the five-album cycle that would have seen one album devoted to each geographical region of Canada. Albums about Québec and the Far North were both forthcoming at the time of his death. That I will never hear them is just soul-crushing.
September 26, 2011
Funny, I'm a huge Stan Rogers fan musically, but didn't know much about the person behind the music. I really liked this book because of the subject matter, not necessarily because of the author's skill at story telling.
I'd recommend this to any Stan Rogers fan, especially since the amount of material written about him is pretty slim.
Be warned though that the actual content of the book is only about 150 pages. The rest is song lyrics plus a couple of screenplays.
I'd recommend this to any Stan Rogers fan, especially since the amount of material written about him is pretty slim.
Be warned though that the actual content of the book is only about 150 pages. The rest is song lyrics plus a couple of screenplays.
February 10, 2011
Great bio of Canada's Bob Dylan.
August 21, 2014
presents a pretty fair picture of Stan.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews