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Norm
Walker's Web World: Main Link Page
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Prairie Pagan Music #01 -
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Who is Norm Walker?
| Norm Walker was born and raised
in a small south Saskatchewan (Canada) village called Melaval.
Much of his adult life has been spent in Regina and Moose
Jaw, Saskatchewan working as an electrician and teacher.
He spent a couple of decades closely involved with a folk
club and annual festival in Regina, Sask. This
was a period of immersion into the world of acoustic music
to which he was most drawn to.
As long he can remember, he
has been drawn to music, to other musicians and music recordings
of all descriptions. It was only destiny, and
a matter of time, that he would start singing, playing and
writing music based on the influences that shaped his life
on the Saskatchewan prairies. The music on the 2002
CD is a partial representation of the music that Norm plays
and sings.
Follow this link for a more
biographical information:
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So what kind
of music does Norm write and what are the influences?
| Almost all of the songs on
this cd are original compositions by Norm Walker himself,
having been created over a 15 year period. It
is Norm's view that very little music these days is truly
"original" in as far as almost all artists build on ideas,
musical and lyrical, that previous artists have put forward.
With that in mind, this CD contains a number of literary and
musical allusions. In a manner of speaking, this
is Norm's way of paying tribute to some of the artists and
traditions from whom he draws inspiration.
The music on Norm's new CD
generally has an acoustic approach but the styles of the
songs vary considerably as appropriate to the genre of the
stories told and also reflective of the range of music that
Norm listens to. Those musical tastes and influences
range from old traditional ballads and fiddle tunes, to
early 78 r.p.m. recordings of many types, to early rock
and roll music as well as a host of newer singer songwriters
that emerged since the 1950s.
If there is a commonality
of this collection of songs on the "T" Time CD, it is that
most of the songs are either stories in and of themselves
or they emerged from stories. Some are true stories and
others clearly are fiction or urban legends with little
basis in reality (except Norm heard some of them from a
friend of a friend who swears he knows the people involved).
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Why record an
album?
| This is only a method of disseminating
song material. This CD recording is in part a
response to many friends, family acquaintances and strangers
asking about some of these songs. Some would like
to re-listen to, or learn some of these songs; some would
like to pass them on to friends.
Recordings offer one method
of spreading around songs and ideas that appeal on a variety
of levels to many of people. In days past, songs
travelled by word of mouth, then in sheet music (broadsheet)
format, then early cylinders, 78s, extended play, 45 rpm,
LP records and later, cassette tapes. In the
first part of this millenium, the compact disc is the preferred
medium to distribute and preserve words and music.
Norm hopes that the songs in this collection may stand the
test of repeated listening for more than just a few friends
and family.
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So what kind
of stories and songs are we talking about here?
| There are seventeen original
songs (approximately 71 minutes) recorded on the "T" Time
CD. Seven are based on urban legends and folk tales;
two are science fiction based; three are seasonal (Groundhog
Day, Spring, and Christmas), two revolve around Norm's day
job as an electrician instructor, at least five are particularly
reflective and thought provoking and two or three are particularly
"prairie" theme based. |
Who are the supporting
cast members?
Follow this link...
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