Valdy
| Valdy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Paul Valdemar Horsdal |
| Born |
1 September 1945 Ottawa, Ontario |
| Genres | Folk, country |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, musician |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1960s–present |
Paul Valdemar Horsdal, CM (born 1 September 1945 in Ottawa, Ontario[1]), commonly known as Valdy, is a Canadian folk and country musician whose solo career began in the early 1970s. He is known for "Rock and Roll Song", his first mainstream single released in mid-1972 on Haida/A&M.[2]
Biography
He is the son of portrait photographer Paul Horsdal and Lillian Horsdal (née West) a nurse and writer.[3]
He was a member of the London Town Criers during the 1960s and subsequently joined Montreal band The Prodigal Sons. Prior to beginning his solo career, he was based in Victoria working with various artists, including Blake Emmons.[2]
Valdy is the winner of two Juno Awards for Folk Singer of the Year and Folk Entertainer of the Year, and has received seven additional Juno nominations. His fourteen albums have achieved sales of nearly half a million copies, four of which are certified gold.[4] Of Canadian folk artists in the mid-1970s, only Gordon Lightfoot was more popular.[2]
His music was featured in the Steve McQueen film The Getaway. Valdy also appeared on the CBC TV show The Beachcombers as the environmental activist "Halibut" Stu. He also managed to secure a part in the reunion production of The New Beachcombers performing a song he wrote, "It's The Water," as part of a jug band.
Valdy lives on Saltspring Island in British Columbia, in a lake front home with his wife Kathleen Mary Fraser Horsdal, who is his creative advisor and is also a sculptor, a painter, a hospice counselor, a high school teacher, a chef and a drama coach, and their three dogs and one cat. His daughter by Lindsay Whalen, Chelah Horsdal, is an actress. He also has two adopted sons by a previous marriage to Penny Christie: Theo Horsdal and Yani Horsdal.
His live albums include Family Gathering (A&M) recorded at Massey Hall in Toronto for 1974 release, and 2003's Viva Valdy: Live at Last (Rack-On-Tour). In 1986, Valdy made a special guest appearance as himself in the popular 1980's Canadian children's television show, Today's Special (episode entitled: "trash"). Valdy continues to regularly tour across Canada.
On November 21, 2005, Valdy was awarded the National Achievement Award by SOCAN at the 2005 SOCAN Awards in Toronto. [5]
He was appointed a member of the Order of Canada in June 2011.[6]
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | CAN |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Country Man | 39 |
| 1973 | Landscapes | 39 |
| 1974 | Family Gathering | 35 |
| 1975 | See How the Years Have Gone By | — |
| 1976 | Valdy and the Hometown Band | 40 |
| 1978 | Hot Rocks | 65 |
| 1979 | 1001 | — |
| 1980 | Passport: Best of Valdy | — |
| 1981 | Valdy's Kids Record | — |
| 1986 | Notes from Places | — |
| 1988 | Classic Collection | — |
| 1993 | Heart at Work | — |
| 1996 | Smorgasbard | — |
| 1999 | Contenders (with Gary Fjellgaard) | — |
| 2001 | Valdy: Millennium Collection | — |
| 2003 | Viva Valdy: Live at Last | — |
| 2007 | Contenders Two: Still in the Running (with Gary Fjellgaard) |
— |
| 2012 | Read Between The Lines | — |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN AC | CAN | CAN Country | |||
| 1972 | "Rock and Roll Song" | 31 | 17 | — | Country Man |
| 1973 | "A Good Song" | 9 | 9 | — | |
| "Simple Life" | 22 | 16 | — | Landscapes | |
| 1974 | "Landscapes" | 87 | — | — | |
| "Renaissance" | — | 23 | — | Family Gathering | |
| 1976 | "Yes I Can" | 12 | 63 | — | Valdy and the Hometown Band |
| "Peter and Lou" | 15 | 58 | — | ||
| 1978 | "Dirty Old Man" | 38 | — | — | singles only |
| 1981 | "Easy Money" | 17 | — | — | |
| "Thank God He's a Stranger" | 28 | — | — | ||
| 1985 | "Sonny's Dream" | — | — | 17 | Notes from Places |
| 1993 | "Link in a Chain" | — | — | 36 | Heart at Work |
| 1994 | "Dreams About You" | — | — | 48 | |
References
- ↑ "Valdy – Biography". Valdy official website: Press Kit. Retrieved 2007-01-19.
"Want Ads: Births". Ottawa Journal. 3 September 1945. p. 12.
"Want Ads: Births". Ottawa Citizen. 3 September 1945. p. 12. - 1 2 3 "Valdy (biography)". Jam!/Canoe. Retrieved 2009-05-06.
- ↑ http://www.zoominfo.com/p/Paul-Horsdal/373224112
- ↑ "Career Bits". Valdy official website: Press Kit. Retrieved 2007-01-19.
- ↑ http://www.socan.ca/about/awards/2005-socan-awards
- ↑ "Appointments to the Order of Canada". Governor General of Canada. 30 June 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2011.