"The Stampeders" are back - remembering dances at old Lambton Street arena in Kincardine

So, Grandma and Grandpa, remember when you went to the Summer Thursday Night Teen Dances at the old Lambton Street Arena, Kincardine, in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s? “The Stampeders” are back. Read on.

I have had an old trumpet for 52 years and finally gave it to a lad up the road who thought he would like to learn how to play it. It belonged to Paul Rimstead, the “Toronto Sun” feature writer who came up to play his trumpet along with his friends, John “Stony” Stone, Mike Palmer, et. al., in the Empire Furnace and Stove Jazz Band at the 1970 Old Boys/Girls Reunion. Their last gig during the weekend, was on a flat bed truck on the street in front of the old arena.

I found the trumpet under the fire escape steps on the Monday following the reunion. I told Mike about it but he never picked it up. So, thinking about the old horn conjures up many memories about music events that happened in the old arena and I would like to share some with you old-timers who may like to reminisce about them along with me.

Back in the ‘60s the Kincardine Agricultural Society brought in the famous “Don Messer and The Islanders” band for a show on a Saturday night  before the fall fair. The arena floor was packed with spectators and the old-time, down-east music the band played was fantastic – the people were tapping their feet.

So, in the second set, the two famous singers, Charlie Chamberlain and Marg Osbourne, were on chairs sitting a tune out and Don Messer was on the fiddle playing  with his orchestra. The place was rockin’ and all the musicians were stompin’ hard on our old four-section stage. They stomped so hard that the vibrations caused one of the eight-foot-by-four-foot plywood backdrops to come crashing down on top of Charlie and Marg. Charlie was okay and shook himself off, but Marg was hurt when the backdrop hit her on her shoulder and head. The show stopped, the ambulance was called and the attendants took Marg to the hospital.

Then, as they say, “the show went on” and the band finished its final set with Charlie back singing. I took  some flowers to Marg at the hospital the next day – she was still there but released later in the day. I received a nice note from her a week later for the flowers, and to let us know she was okay. What a wonderful lady – what a great singer – I bless her soul to this day that she didn’t sue me and the agricultural society (and that I didn’t get fired).

A couple of years later, the Kincardine Rotary Club brought in Stompin’ Tom Connors for a concert in the arena. What a fantastic show he put on! He lived up to his name and stomped all night with his silver-heel-capped black cowboy boots. This time the club had the stage backdrops anchored down securely so they would not fall on Tom. 

He always carried a 15-inch-by-15-inch piece of plywood that was one-inch thick for his stage stompin’. At the end of the evening, when he was changing in my office, he showed me his board - it was done – it now had a hole right through it with shards all over the place. Tom asked me if I wanted it. I said, for sure, and he signed it for me. I kept Tom Connors’ stompin’ board in my office for years until it was time to move up to the new community centre and then I forgot to take it with me!

The old arena eventually was demolished and you guessed it, Tom’s board went with it! It should have gone to the Bruce County Museum or the Paddy Walker House. Dang!

The best couples dancers in Canada used to dance every Saturday night at the Kincardine Beach Pavilion that Caddy Mullen owned and operated. In 1967, Caddy brought in the world-famous Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians Orchestra. The Pavilion was not big enough to hold the anticipated ticket-holders so he booked the old arena. 

The dance was a huge success – more than 1,200 people attended! I will bet if you were there, you have never forgotten that special evening dancing to Lombardo –it was magic! At the first intermission, mayor Floyd Weick presented him, a proud Italian, with a Kincardine black watch tartan jacket and for the rest of the night he wore it, waiving his baton while conducting his orchestra as if he were a proud Scot!

THURSDAY NIGHT TEEN DANCES

In the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, there was a window of about six or seven years where I operated Thursday Night Teen Dances for the kids in the old arena. The dances ran from 8-11 p.m. (so the neighbours could get some sleep). I worked with Tim O’Donnel, a young radio DJ from Kitchener, who had a side music-booking agency.

Over the years, we booked in some of the top rock groups in Canada, including “The Guess Who,” “The Staccatos” (later named “The Five Man Electric Band”), “The Stampeders,” “Lighthouse,” “Copper Penny,” “Down Child Blues,” and a host of others. 

The dances were so popular that kids from all the neighbouring towns often came to them. We probably averaged about 300 most nights, and made huge profits from the dances. I convinced the recreation board to talk Kincardine council into putting the funds raised from the dances into the summer playground programs for kids.

Because of this, the registration fee for a kid for the six weeks was only $10, and $25 for a family. We always had 150 kids signed up each summer for the playground program for two reasons - we had fantastic teen leaders and every family could afford the registration fees, thanks to the teen dances. It was sort of like the big kids in town helping the younger kids!

The biggest crowd we ever had was for “The Guess Who.” The band had just become famous – it was pictured in a grain field out at Winnipeg on the front page of the Saturday Toronto Star Weekly and on the following Thursday, the band was playing for a teen dance at the Kincardine Lambton Street Arena - unbelievable! I think there were more than 600 kids at that dance. 

After the dance, Burton Cummings, all dressed up in black, with black cowboy hat and boots, was sitting away back in the chair in my office smoking a great big cigar with one foot up on the desk, waiting to collect the band’s share for the night from me. Man, I wish I had a picture of him then – it’s still in my mind’s eye, though.

Over the years, I followed Burton’s and Randy Bachman’s careers – what great musicians! For the past 15 years, I have gone to bed Friday nights listening on my bedside radio to Randy on his Vinyl Café radio show from 11:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., on CBC Radio 1. I was always going to call into his show and ask him if he could remember his band gig in Kincardine in 1968. Too late now – his show closed down last Christmas.

The kids all behaved themselves at the dances – they knew if they didn’t, I would shut down the dances. I was the only one supervising them but I had my rink rats out in the crowd as my eyes and ears. I used to stand at the entrance as the kids streamed into the dances. There were a few times I turned away the odd teen who was a little too red eyed and stinking pretty from smoking weed or had been drinking, but that didn’t happen very often.

So, today, all you seniors out there, including Robin Riggin, Dave Dunlop, and Cathy Pym, who were teens 50 years ago or so, I want to give you all a big hug and a big thank you for being so well-behaved back in the day. Your grandchildren can well be proud of you – tell them I said that just for you!

“THE STAMPEDERS” IN OWEN SOUND

“The Stampeders” were always my favourite band. We had them back every year from 1970 through 1973 – they loved Kincardine. Radio stations are still playing their hits, such as “Sweet City Woman.”

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the band is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Friday, March 25, it is performing at the Roxy Theatre in Owen Sound. As I write this, there are 27 tickets left from the 400 being sold. I have mine - third row centre. If you happen to go to the show, make sure you come down and visit me in front of the stage at intermission. I will give you a fist pump and we can reminisce about how the teens in Kincardine raised enough money to support the kids to attend the summer playground program.

And finally, I would dearly love to thank all the people who lived in the eight houses close to the old arena when those teen dances were held for six years many moons ago. But I can’t – they are all gone. Imagine how many sound decibels those dear neighbours had to put with, for four hours every Thursday night. But they all knew the dances were a good thing for the kids. Would you believe I never received one complaint from any of the neighbours about the loud music. Bless them all!

Dalton and Betty Leach and their family lived in one of those houses on Huron Terrace. Betty is gone now but Dalton, now in his 90s, resides at Tiverton Park Manor. He was on the arena board for years and helped with all kinds of sports at the old arena. He was a big help to me in running the facility and I owe him a lot. 

Whenever I would be stewing about something falling apart or other problems, I would talk to Dalton and, invariably, he would help me and say to me, “Listen Keith, my man, THERE ARE NO PROBLEMS, JUST SOLUTIONS!” I took his advice to heart and it has helped me in so more ways right up to my old age. I passed Dalton’s advice for life onto all my kids and to this day, they will often say to me, “Remember Dad, no problems, just solutions!”

Dalton loves the Kincardine Scottish Pipe Band. If you see him this summer on main street in his wheelchair, please do me a favour. Go up to him, give him a smile, a fist pump and tell him that Keith Davidson sent you to thank him for being such a good man and for helping his community out so much in the old days. Thanks!