Balfour "Balf" Bailey was born in Fredericton, New Brunswick on April 29, 1929.
He began playing drums in 1945 with the Air Cadet Band at age 16. About this time, Aubrey Hanson formed a band and Balf has been with him all these years.
Balf and Aubrey played for many country dances, shows, jamborees, radio, TV and public ceremonies.
He has been drumming about 55 years, mostly in country music.
He has performed with many fiddle players including Earl Mitton and Ned Landry and has backed up celebrities like Marg Osbourne, Gordie Tapp, Freddy McKenna and Doc Williams, to name a few.
He also played drums with the St. Andrews Pipe Band for seventeen years.
Other part-time bands Balf has played in were: Walter McGinn, Garnet Kelly, Audrey Barker, Paul Yerxa, Jimmy Foster, Gordon McAllister, Don McCAusland and Nick Devries. These were in big dance bands, jazz trio work, vaudeville, German oompa and Dixieland music.
Balf is married to the former Mavis Morehouse and they have three children – Peter, Heather and Karen.
Robert "Bob" Barry was born in Cross Creek, NB on June 23, 1927. His music career began when he started piano lessons at age 12 with the Sisters of Charity at Rosary Hall. He spent one year with them and then the next four and a half years he studied the Mill Conservatory Classical Music Program under Professor Smith. It was during this time that his love for country music started to emerge as he would turn on the radio and chord along with The Don Messer Show. Professor Smith soon realized that Bob’s interest was not in Classical studies, so he encouraged Bob to pursue his passion for country music.
Bob played with many local groups during the war years including his first country dance in Boiestown with Johnnie Larsen.
At age 21, Bob became the Director of St. Anthony’s Church Choir, a position he held for over 50 years.
In 1948 he joined the Earl Mitton band and enjoyed many happy years playing for dances and jamborees as well as performing on TV and radio. In the late 1960’s to early 1970’s, Bob formed a trio with Al Goguen and Al Troy. They played at various clubs throughout Fredericton until the mid ‘70’s when he joined Lloyd Crawford’s five-piece band.
In 1977 Bob’s work with the CNR took him out of the Fredericton area and for the next four years, he didn’t touch a piano until Aubrey Hanson “dug him out of the mothballs” in 198. Bob has enjoyed the past 17 fun-filled years playing with the group at various functions and finds it very rewarding when entertaining the shut-ins at nursing homes and hospitals.
Bob is married to the former Valerie Nearin and they have six children – Theresa, Susan, Brian, Sharon, David and Maureen.
Roy M. Alward was born on a farm in Lower Ridge in the Havelock area of New Brunswick on October 10, 1910.
Roy learned to play the Jews Harp as a young boy and later bought his first guitar for ten dollars and learned to play it in any spare time he could find. Later he was able to play the guitar, mouth organ and drums as a one-man band.
In 1939 when war broke out, he formed a small band. They played for entertainment and raised money for the war effort. They later increased the number to eleven and called themselves, “The Rainbow Ranch”. With his guidance they played for dances, concerts and many community events. Roy gave of his time and musical abilities to help others to become involved in the musical field.
He also had a love for horses and from scratch trained a pinto to do numerous tricks, kneeling, counting by stomping his hoof and answering numerous questions by nodding his head. He travelled and was a special attraction at many shows in the Maritimes with the logo, “Roy and his Famous Trick Horse, Scout”. During his lifetime he entertained many people with his music and trick horse.
Roy died on August 25, 1978.
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