Murray McLauchlan
Encyclopedia
Murray McLauchlan, CM
(born June 30, 1948) is a Canadian
singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist, and harmonica player.
, Scotland
, he emigrated to Canada with his family when he was five years old. At 17, he began playing at coffeehouses in Toronto's Yorkville area and later attended Central Tech as an art student before deciding to become a full-time musician. He is best known in Canada for his Canadian smash hits "The Farmer's Song" and "Down by the Henry Moore", which was about a sculpture in front of Toronto
's city hall, where students met in the '60s and early 1970s. McLauchlan has had success in the pop, adult contemporary, country, and folk-music fields, with such songs as "Child's Song," the Juno Award-winning "The Farmer's Song" (1973), "Hurricane of Change" (also 1973), "Do You Dream of Being Somebody" (1975), and "Whispering Rain" (1979).
In 1987, Murray appeared on the children's television show, Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show singing his Juno-Award-Winning The Farmer's Song. He appeared in Season 4 of The Elephant Show on the "Urban Cowboy" episode.
Murray holds a commercial licence with instrument rating and endorsements for multi-engine aircraft and seaplanes. In the late 1990s Murray was flying commercial airplanes as a "bush pilot" in Northern Canada. He starred in a television special called Floating over Canada, in which he piloted a Cessna 185 float plane across Canada. This special was broadcast on U.S. public television on PBS, as well as in Canada on CBC.
In 2004 Murray helped form a group known as "Lunch At Allen's
" featuring Murray, Marc Jordan
, Cindy Church
and Ian Thomas
. Formed as a result of meeting in Toronto for lunch at Allen's restaurant after Murray's heart bypass surgery. Two CDs have been released as a result of this collaboration: Lunch at Allens (2004) and Catch the Moon (2007).
s throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and been nominated for a total of 23 JUNO Awards.
In 1993, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada
.
In 1998, Pengiun (Viking Books) released his autobiography The Ballad of Murray McLauchlan: Getting Out of Here Alive.
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
(born June 30, 1948) is a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist, and harmonica player.
Biography
Born in Paisley, RenfrewshireRenfrewshire
Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfrewshire, the others being Inverclyde to the west and East Renfrewshire to the east...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, he emigrated to Canada with his family when he was five years old. At 17, he began playing at coffeehouses in Toronto's Yorkville area and later attended Central Tech as an art student before deciding to become a full-time musician. He is best known in Canada for his Canadian smash hits "The Farmer's Song" and "Down by the Henry Moore", which was about a sculpture in front of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
's city hall, where students met in the '60s and early 1970s. McLauchlan has had success in the pop, adult contemporary, country, and folk-music fields, with such songs as "Child's Song," the Juno Award-winning "The Farmer's Song" (1973), "Hurricane of Change" (also 1973), "Do You Dream of Being Somebody" (1975), and "Whispering Rain" (1979).
In 1987, Murray appeared on the children's television show, Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show singing his Juno-Award-Winning The Farmer's Song. He appeared in Season 4 of The Elephant Show on the "Urban Cowboy" episode.
Murray holds a commercial licence with instrument rating and endorsements for multi-engine aircraft and seaplanes. In the late 1990s Murray was flying commercial airplanes as a "bush pilot" in Northern Canada. He starred in a television special called Floating over Canada, in which he piloted a Cessna 185 float plane across Canada. This special was broadcast on U.S. public television on PBS, as well as in Canada on CBC.
In 2004 Murray helped form a group known as "Lunch At Allen's
Lunch At Allen's
Lunch At Allen's is a band consisting of four Canadian artists of folk, country, and popular music. The band was formed as a result of meeting in Toronto for lunch at Allens restaurant after one of the members' heart bypass surgery.-Members:...
" featuring Murray, Marc Jordan
Marc Jordan
Marc Jordan , is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, session musician, and actor. Covering a wide variety of genres, he has written songs for a number of well-known artists, including Diana Ross, Rod Stewart, Cher, Bette Midler, and Josh Groban...
, Cindy Church
Cindy Church
Cindy Church is a Canadian country and folk artist. Church released three studio albums on Stony Plain Records and was nominated for Best Country Female Vocalist at the Juno Awards in 1995 and 1996. She is also a member of the award winning group Quartette....
and Ian Thomas
Ian Thomas (Canadian musician)
Ian Thomas is a singer, songwriter, actor and author. He is younger brother to famed comedian and actor Dave Thomas.-Career:...
. Formed as a result of meeting in Toronto for lunch at Allen's restaurant after Murray's heart bypass surgery. Two CDs have been released as a result of this collaboration: Lunch at Allens (2004) and Catch the Moon (2007).
Awards
He has won 10 Juno AwardJuno Award
The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...
s throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and been nominated for a total of 23 JUNO Awards.
In 1993, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
.
In 1998, Pengiun (Viking Books) released his autobiography The Ballad of Murray McLauchlan: Getting Out of Here Alive.
Albums
| Year | Album | Chart Positions | CRIA | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN Country | CAN | ||||
| 1971 | Song from the Street | 38 | True North True North Records True North Records is a Canadian independent record label. It was founded in Mississauga, Ontario in 1969 by Bernie Finkelstein. On December 17, 2007, True North was acquired by an investment group led by Linus Entertainment... |
||
| 1972 | Murray McLauchlan Murray McLauchlan (album) Murray McLauchlan was a 1972 album by Canadian singer-songwriter Murray McLauchlan.- Track listing :# "No Time Together Today"# "Lady Soul"# "I Wanna Watch You Move"# "Old Man's Song"# "Billy McDaniels"# "Lose We"# "Quiet Places to Come Home To"... |
38 | |||
| 1973 | Day to Day Dust Day to Day Dust (album) Day to Day Dust was an album by Canadian singer-songwriter Murray McLauchlan, released in 1973.-Track listing:All songs by Murray McLauchlan.# "Hurricane of Change" – 3:06# "Revelations" – 4:44# "Linda, Won't You Take Me In" – 2:57... |
13 | |||
| 1974 | Sweeping the Spotlight Away Sweeping the Spotlight Away (album) Sweeping the Spotlight Away was a 1974 album by Canadian singer-songwriter Murray McLauchlan.- Track listing :All songs by Murray McLauchlan.# "Down by the Henry Moore"# "The Next In Line"# "Honey, Let's Get Up and Dance"# "Shoeshine Workin' Song"... |
34 | |||
| 1975 | Only the Silence Remains Only The Silence Remains (album) Only the Silence Remains is a 1975 album by Canadian singer-songwriter Murray McLauchlan. It was released as a double album. McLauchlan is accompanied by Dennis Pendrith on bass guitar.-Track listing:-Personnel:... |
39 | |||
| 1976 | Boulevard Boulevard (Murray McLauchlan album) Boulevard was a 1976 album by Canadian singer-songwriter Murray McLauchlan.-Track listing:All songs by Murray McLauchlan.# "Harder to Get Along" – 5:10# "Train Song" – 5:37# "Met You at the Bottom" – 5:03# "La Guerre, C'est Fini Pour Moi" – 5:16... |
14 | Gold | ||
| 1977 | Hard Rock Town | 33 | |||
| 1978 | Greatest Hits | 57 | Gold | ||
| Live at the Orpheum (promo only) | Columbia | ||||
| 1979 | Whispering Rain | 14 | 42 | Gold | True North True North Records True North Records is a Canadian independent record label. It was founded in Mississauga, Ontario in 1969 by Bernie Finkelstein. On December 17, 2007, True North was acquired by an investment group led by Linus Entertainment... |
| 1980 | Into a Mystery | 18 | 61 | ||
| 1981 | Storm Warning | 45 | |||
| 1982 | Windows | ||||
| 1983 | Timberline | 22 | |||
| 1984 | Heroes | ||||
| 1985 | Midnight Break | 94 | |||
| 1988 | Swinging on a Star | 24 | Capitol | ||
| 1991 | The Modern Age | ||||
| 1996 | Gulliver's Taxi | True North True North Records True North Records is a Canadian independent record label. It was founded in Mississauga, Ontario in 1969 by Bernie Finkelstein. On December 17, 2007, True North was acquired by an investment group led by Linus Entertainment... |
|||
| 2004 | Lunch at Allens | Capitol/EMI | |||
| 2006 | The Songbook: New Arrivals | ||||
| 2007 | Catch the Moon: Lunch at Allens | ||||
| Songs from the Street: Best of Murray McLauchlan | True North True North Records True North Records is a Canadian independent record label. It was founded in Mississauga, Ontario in 1969 by Bernie Finkelstein. On December 17, 2007, True North was acquired by an investment group led by Linus Entertainment... |
||||
| 2010 | More Lunch at Allens | Linus | |||
| 2011 | Human Writes | True North True North Records True North Records is a Canadian independent record label. It was founded in Mississauga, Ontario in 1969 by Bernie Finkelstein. On December 17, 2007, True North was acquired by an investment group led by Linus Entertainment... |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN Country | CAN | CAN AC | |||
| 1972 | "Jesus Please Don't Save Me" | 44 | Song from the Street | ||
| 1973 | "Lose We" | 13 | Murray McLauchlan | ||
| "The Farmer's Song" | 8 | 6 | 3 | ||
| "Hurricane of Change" | 9 | Day to Day Dust | |||
| 1974 | "Linda, Won't You Take Me In" | 28 | 15 | 12 | |
| "Shoeshine Workin' Song" | 15 | 59 | 13 | Sweeping the Spotlight Away | |
| 1975 | "Do You Dream of Being Somebody" | 16 | 9 | ||
| "Maybe Tonight" | 10 | ||||
| "Down by the Henry Moore Down by the Henry Moore "Down by the Henry Moore" is a single by Canadian artist Murray McLauchlan. Released in 1975, it was the fourth single from his album Sweeping the Spotlight Away. The song reached number one on the RPM Country Tracks chart in Canada in August 1975.... " |
1 | 12 | 1 | ||
| "Little Dreamer" | 15 | Single only | |||
| 1976 | "On the Boulevard" | 25 | 45 | 4 | Boulevard |
| 1977 | "Love Comes and Goes" | 77 | Hard Rock Town | ||
| 1978 | "Straight Outa Midnight" | 88 | |||
| 1979 | "Whispering Rain" | 27 | 24 | 15 | Whispering Rain |
| "You Can't Win" | 89 | ||||
| "Somebody's Long Lonely Tonight" | 41 | ||||
| 1980 | "Don't Put Your Faith in Men" | 24 | Into a Mystery | ||
| "Try Walkin' Away" | 53 | 11 | |||
| 1981 | "If the Wind Could Blow My Troubles Away" | 45 | 26 | Storm Warning | |
| 1983 | "Never Did Like That Train" | 18 | 20 | Timberline | |
| 1984 | "Red River Flood" | 18 | |||
| "On the Subject of Loneliness" | 26 | ||||
| "Everything Reminds Me of Loving You" | 37 | ||||
| "Sayonara Maverick" | 60 | Heroes | |||
| "Railroad Man" | 19 | ||||
| 1985 | "Song for Captain Keast" | 32 | |||
| "I'm Best at Loving You" | 13 | Midnight Break | |||
| "When You Become a Memory" | 16 | ||||
| 1986 | "Me and Joey/Golden Fields" | 34 | |||
| 1989 | "Love with a Capital "L"" | 12 | Swinging on a Star | ||
| "Please Don't Call It Runnin' Away" | 35 | ||||
| 1990 | "Swinging on a Star" | 23 | |||
| 1991 | "The Modern Age" | 75 | 63 | 21 | The Modern Age |
| "So I Lost Your Love" | 26 | ||||
| 1996 | "Secrets in Your Heart" | 38 | Gulliver's Taxi | ||
| 1997 | "No Change in Me" | 48 |
Further reading
- Adria, Marco, "The Importance of Being Murray," Music of Our Times: Eight Canadian Singer-Songwriters (Toronto, Lorimer, 1990), pp. 103–20.
- Murrary McLauchlan, Getting Out Of Here Alive-The Ballad Of Murray McLauchlan (Viking 1998) ISBN 0-670-87659-3
- Murray McLauchlan Biography at Maple Music
External links
- Murray McLauchlan at The Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...