Don Messer's Jubilee was a Canadian institution, and one of the top rated programs in the country's history during its run in the 1960s. It may have been off the air for forty years, but Scott Woods is bringing it back with Scott Woods' Old Time Jubilee, a tribute to the old show.
Woods says that doing the show was inspired by people he has met since doing an earlier Don Messer tribute show, since he received many requests to revisit that music. The enduring popularity of the show makes sense, because it was one of the biggest things in Canada when it was on the air.
"In 1964, they had higher ratings for Don Messer's Jubilee than for Hockey Night in Canada, to put it in perspective for anybody who doesn't know this iconic cultural figure."
The show will reunite Woods with people he played with in the earlier show. Tommy Leadbeater will sing the songs of Charlie Chamberlain and Bruce Timmins will be on guitar, playing the role Cecil McEachern did on the original, reunited from the earlier tribute. Also in the performance will be Lynda Lewis, singing the songs Marg Osborne sung, and Canadian Open Step Dance Champion Kyle Waymouth will also be joining the tour. Woods says that on or off stage the group is having a great time touring around the country together, and he does not have enough kind words to describe his fellow musicians.
Woods emphasizes that is a tribute, not a recreation, and the goal is bring back the spirit of the original and respect what Messer and crew accomplished, while also bringing their own personality into the show as well. For example, Woods is bringing his own trick fiddling to the stage, with forward flips and walking on barrels, something he says that Messer wouldn't do but is a big part of what he does as a performer. He notes that they will be using screens to show images from the original, and says that if someone comes to the performance unfamiliar with Messer, by the end they will get an introduction to the show.
"We're not impersonating, we're not imitating any of the characters from the Don Messer show. We're rather just evoking the memories through the music and the names."
There are many memories of the original among people around the country, even though the show has been gone for decades. Woods believes that people want to reconnect with their fond memories, and the show allows them to connect back to a simpler time.
For Woods himself, while too young to remember when the show was broadcast, he counts Messer as one of his three main influences for his own music. He notes that his dad would teach him and his siblings music in the style of Messer as a reward for practicing their lessons, and Messer's style remains a big part of his own music as he was developing his own music.
There are about 70 performances of the show, from P.E.I. to B.C. Woods says that he feels at home on the road, and has been touring with different shows and with fiddle contests since 1986. He says he's been across the country so many times that he's got friends wherever he is.
"I guess it's just in my DNA that I always travel and I always play music, and I don't think I would know what else to do."
The show will take place at the Royal Canadian Legion on May 22 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $25 for adults, $10 for kids, and available at the Legion or by calling 1-855-SCOTT-WOODS.
