Music of the West
By Hugh McLennan
August-September 2008
 100 Years Too Late
Keith Ward
When Roy Warhurst called a while back to tell me a CD he’d produced for his neighbour, Keith Ward, was on its way – I knew it would be well worth the wait. One of the premium fiddle players in western music, Roy was lured by Dale Warren to join the Sons of the Pioneers in 1993, moving to Branson and adding the finest fiddle the group had since the days of Hugh Farr. Roy and Bob Nolan are the only Canadians ever to receive the Directors Wrangler Award from the National Cowboy Hall of Fame.
Since retiring from the Pioneers, Roy spends much of his time fly-fishing and producing music at his Crowsnest Pass home.
Keith has an easy-flowing, pleasant voice. Here he chose 10 songs, all examples of the best in traditional music of the West. The collection features seldom-heard classics such as Ten Thousand Cattle, Will There be Sagebrush in Heaven, and I’d like to be in Texas (for the roundup in the spring).
Roy accurately sums up the feel of this album in his liner notes: “Keith’s quiet, shy manner is refreshing after my years of living in the U.S. and being constantly bombarded by in-your-face music promoter types.”
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