听 听 听Celtic rockers The Mudmen may be the most Canadian band ever, and they're coming to Arcola's Buddy's Pub on May 29 after two shows in Chicago.
听听听听 Led by bagpipe-playing brothers, Sandy and Robby Campbell, the Ontario-based band also includes Anthony Albanese, Jeremy Burton, Mario Bozza, and Steven Gore. Since they formed in 1998, the Mudmen have met and/or shared the stage with a veritable who's who from the worlds of Canadian music, movies, sports and celebrity.
听听听听 However, Sandy Campbell says, 鈥淎fter all of these years in a business that a lot of people see as glamorous-but what is in reality not an easy business- we keep our feet firmly on the ground and we really do believe that nice guys finish first.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淲e've been doing the Mudmen thing for about 15 years,鈥� says Campbell. 鈥淢y brother Rob and I started out as 'The Campbell Brothers.' We played with The Irish Rovers and John McDermott. We were signed to EMI Records, and from there, things really seemed to take off.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淲e worked with Mirvish Productions in Toronto, and I remember, we were with all of these Canadian icons at the Walk of Fame ceremony-Eugene Levy, Martin Short, Paul Schaeffer, The Guess Who, Gordon Lightfoot, William Shatner, and Gordie Howe, to name a few-on the red carpet in downtown Toronto, and although we were with these people, we were still digging holes by day and sleeping in a factory.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淭hat's how we came up with our name. My brother and I did brick work when we were young, and even in Toronto, we were known as two guys who would get the job done. We'd dig a hole with our hands if we had to, to complete the job.鈥�
听听听听 The Campbells' work ethic extends to the band, as the Mudmen's full tour schedule includes concert halls, theatres, and smaller venues like Buddy's Pub.
听听听听 鈥淲e tailor our show to the audience and the venue,鈥� says Campbell. 鈥淲e are categorized as Celitic rock, but we're also veering into a more country sound with some songs. When we started, we were more of a party band, but if we're doing an all-ages show in a 500- seat theatre, we'll take a look at the audience and try and tailor the show to them.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淲e're doing more shows in theatres,鈥� says Campbell. 鈥淎nd we recently played the Saskatchewan Highland Games in Regina, and we're heading down to play the Gaelic Park Festival in Chicago for two days, before we head back to play our show in Arcola.鈥�
听听听听 The band are also Grey Cup veterans. 鈥淲e've played four Grey Cups, and we're playing in Winnipeg this year,鈥� says Campbell. 鈥淲e've played two in Toronto, one in Calgary-which was great.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淎nd of course, we played at the Brandt Centre in Regina the year the Riders won the Grey Cup. It was a helluva good party.鈥�
听听听听 In addition to playing at Grey Cup, The Mudmen have crossed the continent and in Canada, have played at the Canada Day celebrations on Parliament Hill twice, and also performed at the Governor General's Awards in Ottawa, the Canadian Country Music Awards, several Briers, Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium, and Dauphin's (Manitoba) Country Fest, to name a few.
听听听听 鈥淲e will show up and play,鈥� says Campbell. 鈥淎t one festival, there was a tornado and no one had to play, because of the weather. (The organizers) were amazed that we even showed up. We were getting paid whether we showed up or not. But that's how we are. We work hard, we show up, and we keep our word.鈥�
听听听听 Playing high-profile events also leads to encounters with high-profile people, and Campbell is overwhelmingly positive about The Mudmen's musical colleagues and other famous people they have met.
听听听听 鈥淭he Irish Rovers and John McDermott were fantastic people when we first started out and toured with them. So was John McDermott.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淛ohnny Reid is so loved, because he's a great person. He's a good talker, a wonderful person, and he always finds time for people,鈥� says Campbell. 鈥淚 suspect that's getting more challenging for him to do, as he plays bigger arenas. But I know he still does a meet-and-greets and stuff like that.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淕eorge Canyon is another good guy, too. We played Commonwealth stadium with him for all of the gold medal-winning Olympic hockey teams, including Sydney Crosby. 鈥�
听听听听 鈥淐eline Dion and Sarah McLachlan are fantastic,鈥� he continues. 鈥淎t the Walk of Fame, we didn't expect Celine Dion to come over and talk to us, but she did.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淏oth Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman (of Guess Who fame) were great, too.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淲ayne Gretzky gave us a half an hour of his time. He's a nice guy, and so is Mark Messier. When we did the Hockey Night in Canada anthem, Don Cherry and Ron McLean were really good to us. They're both great guys, and Ron McLean especially is a nice guy, and he says he's one of our biggest fans, which is great.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淲e played Bob and Doug McKenzie's anniversary show for the CBC,鈥� adds Campbell. 鈥淎nd we've also opened for The Guess Who, Nazareth, Finger Eleven, Bif Naked, Econoline Crush, and David Usher.鈥�
听听听听 One of the group's high-profile gigs stood out, because of its importance to their mother, who raised two bagpipe-playing boys on a farm about one hour outside London, Ontario.
听听听听 鈥淥n Parliament Hill, we played in front of the Queen,鈥� says Campbell. 鈥淎fter when you get to meet her, she shakes your hand, and in that moment, we knew we were going to make our mom proud.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淚t's one of those gigs you play where you know you accomplished something that day,鈥� he laughs.
听 听 听鈥淲e love Canada,鈥� says the Ontario native. 鈥淏ut I have to say that Saskatchewan and Alberta are the two provinces that have supported us the best.鈥�
听听听听 鈥淲e've played a lot in a lot of different places across this country, and small towns have kept us alive throughout our career. Places in Saskatchewan like Grayson, Meecham, Quill Lake, Big River, Wadena, and now Arcola. We're looking forward to entertaining people there.鈥�
听听听听 The Mudmen perform at Buddy's Pub in Arcola, Friday, May 29. Tickets are $20 at the door.
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