Ron Sillito up for two music awards

Toni Lucas, Pincher Creek Voice

Ron Sillito, still singing

Ron Sillito, formerly of Pincher Creek, is up for two Indie Channel Music Awards Awards - Best Male Country Artist and Best Country Recording for 'Bottle on the Table' to be presented in Hollywood, California on April 29. This will be the first annual presentation of this awards ceremony, and it is awarded by a judged panel.

Sillito was one of the finalists out of 1,000 artists submitted for Best Country Recording. "It was an honour to be nominated." Greg Caldwell from Austin Texas is also up for Best Male Country Artist as well as two other awards, and the two artists are old friends.  "Greg is a wonderful singer."

"There is getting to be more and more stations all over the world that play nothing but indie music. I wish this could have happened 35, 40 years ago." Said Sillito. Speaking To Sillito, you can hear how his strong melodious voice would be chosen for an award.

Sillito lived in Pincher Creek around 1963-65 and 1971-73 and did a lot of playing all around Pincher Creek, Crowsnest Pass and Lethbridge, as well as throughout Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Dennis Carney wrote the songs 'Pocket Full of Dreams', 'Buckskin and Leather', and 'How's Lovin' on Sillito's album 'Pocketful of Dreams'. Carney is also a previous Pincher Creek resident who currently lives in Red Deer. Barry Brown of Toronto wrote one song, 'Maple Hill Way", and the rest were written by Sillito. The album got national distribution at the time of it's original recording in 1976. This was Sillito's second album, the first was 'Living Loving People' in 1969.


"This particular album that I sent to Indie Music was recorded in 1976. Most of the songs on there, Dennis and I wrote," said Sillito. Bottle on the Table, (The one up for the award) I wrote in 1972, I think. I wish I had released it as a single in 77 or 78, it might've been a hit, judging how (popular) it is now on Facebook and Reverb Nation."

Ron's voice is mellifluous and filled with emotion on the album, and the songs are true story songs. The first band Sillito started was in 1959. The first song he played on stage was 'White Sports Coat' by Marty Robbins. "A number of people have said that I sound like Marty Robbins. I don't think I sound anything like Marty Robbins, but I am honoured that many people think I do," he said.

In 1969 Sillito started a band called The Outlaws, but then Willie and Waylon's band of the same name came along. "So I started "Ron Sillito and The Best of the Badmen". I was reading a Wild West Magazine, and it had a heading called 'The Best of the Badmen', talking about outlaws like Jesse James. I thought that would be a great name for a band."

"I like traditional Country music like Marty Robbins, Waylon Jennings. Johnny Cash. "You don't hear as much of the steel guitars, banjos, and fiddles in country anymore."

Family and music go hand in hand in his life. His father was a drummer and singer and Sillito was also influenced by his Uncle Floyd, who is 85 years old and still entertains privately. "I remember when I was a kid growing up in Calgary, he had his own radio show with CFCN and also traveled with the Son's of the Pioneers for a while, as a lead singer for a while. We used to have a family reunion every year from my fathers side, there was 15 in that family. It got so big (multi-generational and extended family) and almost everybody plays, or sings it was a great time." Because of the size of the reunions, it became easier to have smaller family gatherings.

Sillito has three supportive children plus grand children and great-grand children. "My son's wife is pregnant and in another 4 months I will have another granddaughter." He and his first wife divorced in the 70s, his second wife died of breast cancer in 1996. "That was really tough on the kids," he said. At the age of 70, he has met and been influenced by a lot of different musicians.

"I did a tour with Ronnie Milsap in the early 80s, he was such a great guy. He taught me a lot." Candy Martin was an impersonator that Sillito admired. "He would just holler out into the audience, 'Who do you want to hear now?' and then start to sing it, like they did. He was amazing." Sillito met Hank Williams Jr. in a place where Sillito worked with the house band in Omaha, Nebraska. Hank was 18 or 19 years old at the time and he backed up Martin Rainwater.

"I didn't get drafted till I was 24." Being drafted in 1965 into 525th Military Police Company, at Fort McPherson, Georgia in Atlanta did not seem to slow down his musical career. "I spent a couple years as a Military Policeman, and was also in the special services travelling and entertaining in the services. I really enjoyed that. I got to meet guys like Joe South. (Walk a While in my Shoes, Games People Play), George Green (There Goes my Everything), and Gary Lewis and the Playboys, (Judy in Disguise). "If you have some talent, you have options (in the military)," said Sillito.

Sillito was laid up four and a half years ago because of a head-on collision, He has had to walk with crutches or a cane since then. One ankle may require an amputation as a result of the accident. Sillito still plans on recording music and is still writing songs, but touring is still up in the air until his medical problems are addressed. All of Sillito's upcoming music will be released through BMI Canada under D-Ron Music.

"I've a lot of friends and fans in the Pincher Creek area," he said. He made contact with a number of people on the Facebook page 'You grew up in Pincher Creek if you remember ...'. "When I do get going again, I want to tour that whole area." He has maxed out with 5000 friends on Facebook, so he now has to send new Facebook friends to his fan page.

Ron Sillito's can be found on Reverb Nation and iTunes. You can Purchase Pocketful of Dreams on CD Baby.

Links:
Ron Sillito at indiemusicchannel.com
Ron Sillito at cdbaby.com