![Country legends Larry Mercey (left) and Johnny Burke (right) will join fiddler Shane Guse and owner Paul Weber at the Commercial Tavern in Maryhill next weekend for a show of Canadian Country Music Hall of Famers.[Submitted]](https://www.observerxtra.com/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/post_arts_halloffame.jpg)
The Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame will be well represented at the Commercial Tavern in Maryhill next weekend. Hall of Famers Johnny Burke and Larry Mercey will take the stage August 30 for an afternoon of traditional country tunes, accompanied by award-winning fiddler Shane Guse. Commercial Tavern owner and country musician Paul Weber will back them up with help from his brother and sister.
“It’ll be their old and some not so old hits that they’ve had,” Weber said. “There will be a lot of stories about the old days on the road, when the road was actually a road. Every week we’d be moving to a new job and traveling the country. So just a lot of good time stories, about how they picked certain songs, or how certain songs were written. It’ll be just a really good day of laughs and great songs.”
Weber’s calling it the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame Show. He’s been thinking of putting together the show for a couple years, but got serious about it when Burke was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2012. The Mercey Brothers, which Larry was a part of with brothers Ray and Lloyd, were inducted in 1989.
“To get in the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame is really quite an honor, especially as an artist. So there’s guys who their whole lives are country music, travel the country, coast to coast, Europe and all over the place, just to garner the recognition it takes to be inducted. It takes a long time. It’s a long process. Your peers nominate you, but it’s a pretty good selection of people you go up against,” Weber said.
Weber met Burke and Mercey when he was touring himself. They’ve performed together before, but not like this, and not at the Commercial. He says country music shows like these don’t get big crowds like they used to, but they’re already seeing people call for advance tickets for this show.
“It’ll be a great show. And it’s a chance to see two of the pioneers of Canadian county music together,” Weber said.
Originally from Rosaireville, New Brunswick, Johnny Burke moved to Toronto in the ‘60s and played in a variety of bands before going it on his own. He has recorded 14 albums in that time.
His single, Wild Honey, won song of the year in 1978. Another song country fans can expect to hear is Love Don’t Grow on Trees.
“We just pick and sing and have some fun,” Burke said.
He says they’ll do some cover songs from artists like George Owen, George Strait, and Merle Haggard – the old, traditional country.
Burke was asked to attend the Country Music Awards in Halifax later this year, where he’ll induct the 2015 Canadian Country Music Hall of Famer, Dianne Leigh.
“It’s a big deal,” Burke says of being inducted. “It’s quite an honour because so far there are only 54 members in it. I’m thinking more than half are dead. The criteria is quite strong, what you have to do in your career. I’ve been playing music since 1960, so 65 years I’ve been doing this. Still another 45 years to go.”
While out East he plans to do a mini tour. He’ll also be playing at the Marmora Country Jamboree on Sept. 11 and a few shows in Northern Ontario this fall.
“I just enjoy working with Paul and Larry and the band,” Burke said. “It’s a fun night for me. It’s always a lot of fun because when you work with these people for years it’s not work actually. It’s more like a party.”
The 75-year-old adds, “I’m quite busy and I’m enjoying it.”
Lead singer of The Mercey Brothers before they disbanded in 1989, Larry Mercey brought together George Lonsbury Jr. and Al Alderson to create The Larry Mercey Trio in 2005. He now performs with them and solo. The Mercey Brothers won six Juno awards in their day.
Now, Mercey’s looking forward to getting together with Weber and Burke, who he doesn’t see very often.
“The Commercial is the only place like that, that you can go and hear country music at all that I know of. I’ve been in the country music business almost 60 years myself, I really want to see that continue as long as it can. There’s a lot of people like myself in my age group that still love country music, that kind of country music, the old country,” Mercey said.
Some familiar tunes you might hear include Hello Mom, Who Wrote the Words, She Feels like a New Man Tonight, and You’re Still in these Crazy Arms of Mine.
As for what it meant to him being chosen as a Canadian Country Music Hall of Famer, he says, “To me it’s the acknowledgment of your peers of what you’ve done all your life and you were successful at it.”
He’ll perform some Christmas shows later this year as he usually does, but he’s particularly looking forward to getting together with Burke and Weber next weekend in Maryhill for an afternoon of good old-fashioned country.
“You hear a lot of people say, well you can’t hear music anymore, there’s no place to go. Well there is a place to go and it would be great for them to come out and support the show,” Mercey said.
Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at the door or by calling the Commercial Tavern at 519-648-3644. The doors open at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, August 30, with the show running from 3-6 p.m.
