Hugh Hagood Hardy, (February 26, 1937 – January 1, 1997) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

composer, pianist, and

vibraphonist The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist,' ...

. He played mainly jazz and easy listening music. He is best known for the 1975 single, "The Homecoming" from his album of the same name, and for his soundtrack to the ''

Anne of Green Gables ''Anne of Green Gables'' is a 1908 novel by Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery (published as L. M. Montgomery). Written for all ages, it has been considered a classic children's novel since the mid-20th century. Set in the late 19th century, t ...

'' and ''

Anne of Avonlea Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

'' films.

Early life

Hardy was born in

Angola, Indiana Angola is a city in Pleasant Township, Steuben County, Indiana, United States. The population was 8,612 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Steuben County. Angola was founded by Thomas Gale and Cornelius Gilmore on June 28, 1838 ...

. His mother was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

citizen. Hardy came to Canada as an infant settling in Brantford and grew up in

Oakville, Ontario Oakville is a town in Regional Municipality of Halton, Halton Region, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Lake Ontario between Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton. At its Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census population of 213,759, it is List of tow ...

. He received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree from

Trinity College, Toronto Trinity College (occasionally referred to as The University of Trinity College) is a college federated with the University of Toronto, founded in 1851 by Bishop John Strachan. Strachan originally intended Trinity as a university of strong Angl ...

, and studied music privately in Toronto with

Gordon Delamont Gordon Arthur Delamont (27 October 1918 – 16 January 1981) was a Canadian music educator, author, composer, and trumpeter. He is best remembered for his work as an educator, having helped shape the talents of dozens of notable musicians in Toro ...

. As a young man he participated in bebop jam sessions on Gerrard Street in Toronto. In the 1960s he played vibraphone in the bands of

Martin Denny Martin Denny (April 10, 1911 – March 2, 2005) was an American pianist and composer best known as the "father of exotica." In a long career that saw him performing up to 3 weeks prior to his death, he toured the world popularizing his brand of l ...

Gigi Gryce Gigi Gryce (born George General Grice Jr.; November 28, 1925 – March 14, 1983), later Basheer Qusim, was an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, clarinetist, composer, arranger, and educator. While his performing career was relatively short, ...

Herbie Mann Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet (incl ...

, and

George Shearing Sir George Albert Shearing, (13 August 1919 14 February 2011) was a British jazz pianist who for many years led a popular jazz group that recorded for Discovery Records, MGM Records and Capitol Records. Shearing was the composer of over 300 t ...

Career

Hardy performed with Herbie Mann on the latter's 1961 recording ''

Herbie Mann at the Village Gate ''Herbie Mann at the Village Gate'' is a 1961 live album by jazz flutist Herbie Mann which was his third album for Atlantic Records, the main label for much of his career. The album was recorded at legendary club The Village Gate.Liner notes to At ...

''. The session includes the jazz standard "Comin' Home Baby" & the Gershwin classic, " Summertime". This version of "Summertime" was later "covered" by the 90's rock group Sublime in their hit song "Doin' Time." Hardy released a number of singles in the early 1970s. His single "Just a Little Lovin'" appeared on the RPM Adult Contemporary chart in 1971, and "The Garden Path" was on the chart in 1972. Hardy's tune "The Homecoming" was used 1972 as music to a TV commercial for

Salada tea Salada tea is a Canadian brand of tea currently sold in Canada by Unilever and in the United States by Salada Foods, a division of Redco Foods, Inc. History The Salada tea business was founded in Toronto in 1892 by Montreal-born businessman Pet ...

. It was later included on an album of the same name. Hardy set up an independent record label, Isis, through his Toronto company, Hagood Hardy Productions, and released "The Homecoming" as a single in 1975. It climbed the charts, rising to 14 in Canada, and in the US number 41 on the pop and number 6 on the easy listening charts, and was certified Gold in Canada, where it reached number one on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart. Hardy won Juno Awards in 1976 and 1977 as instrumentalist of the year, and in 1976 as composer of the year. He was named instrumental artist of the year by ''Billboard'' magazine."Hagood Hardy"
at ''

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; french: L'Encyclopédie canadienne) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with the support of Canadian Heritage. Available fo ...

''. Hardy wrote the scores for the 1982 film ''

Mazes and Monsters ''Mazes and Monsters'' (also known as ''Rona Jaffe's Mazes and Monsters'') is a 1982 American made-for-television film directed by Steven Hilliard Stern about a group of college students and their interest in a fictitious role-playing game (RPG ...

'', the 1985 film ''

'' and the sequel, ''

''. In 1992, he was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. In the 1995 provincial election he was the candidate for the

Ontario Liberal Party The Ontario Liberal Party (OLP; french: Parti libéral de l'Ontario, PLO) is a political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. The party has been led by interim leader John Fraser (Ontario MPP), John Fraser since August 2022. The party esp ...

in the riding of

York South York South was an electoral district (or "riding") in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1904 to 1979. The riding is notable for the 1942 federal by-election in which newly elected Conservative leader Ar ...

and faced local MPP and

Premier of Ontario The premier of Ontario (french: premier ministre de l'Ontario) is the head of government of Ontario. Under the Westminster system, the premier governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority the elected Legislative Assembly of On ...

Bob Rae Robert Keith Rae (born August 2, 1948) is a Canadian diplomat and former politician who is the current Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations since 2020. He previously served as the 21st premier of Ontario from 1990 to 1995, leader of the ...

. The Ontario Liberals faltered in the election, and Hardy lost to Rae.

Family

His great-uncle was

Arthur Sturgis Hardy Arthur Sturgis Hardy, (December 14, 1837 – June 13, 1901) was a Canadian lawyer and Liberal politician who served as the fourth premier of Ontario from 1896 to 1899. Early life Born in Mount Pleasant, Brant County, in 1837, Hardy was th ...

, a Liberal politician who served as

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

's fourth premier from 1896 to 1899. Hardy died from lymphoma in January, 1997, at the age of 59; he was survived by four children."Partiers Bring in New Year; Deaths of two arts icons sound more sober note"
''Brandon Sun'', January 2, 1997, Brandon, Manitoba, Canada

Selected discography

with

*''

'' (Atlantic, 1961) *''

Herbie Mann Returns to the Village Gate ''Herbie Mann Returns to the Village Gate'' is a live album by American jazz flautist Herbie Mann recorded in 1961 for the Atlantic label but not released until 1963.963 Year 963 ( CMLXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * March 15 – Emperor Romanos II dies at age 25, probably of poison admini ...

*'' Right Now'' (Atlantic, 1962) *''

Brazil, Bossa Nova & Blues ''Brazil, Bossa Nova & Blues'' (also released as ''Brazil Blues'' and ''Jazz Impressions of Brazil'') is an album by American jazz flautist Herbie Mann recorded in 1962 for the United Artists label.The Homecoming ''The Homecoming'' is a two-act play written in 1964 by Harold Pinter and first published in 1965. Its premières in London (1965) and New York (1967) were both directed by Sir Peter Hall. The original Broadway production won the 1967 Tony A ...

'' (Attic, 1975) *''Maybe Tomorrow'' (Attic, 1976) *''Tell Me My Name'' (Attic, 1977) *''Reflections'' (Attic, 1978) *''As Time Goes By'' (Attic 1980) *''The Christmas Album'' (Attic, 1980) *''Love Me Closer'' (Attic, 1982) *''Chasing a Dream'' (Duke Street, 1983) *''Night Magic'' (Duke Street, 1985) *''Hagood Hardy'' (Duke Street, 1986) *''In My Heart'' (Duke Street, 1992) *''Morocco'' (Sackville, 1989) *''After Hours'' (Isis, 1995) *''Alone'' (Isis, 1995) *''Between Friends'' (Isis, 1996) *''My Song'' (Channel, 1996)

References

*
Canadian Parliament Citation
in

Hansard ''Hansard'' is the traditional name of the transcripts of parliamentary debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries. It is named after Thomas Curson Hansard (1776–1833), a London printer and publisher, who was the first official print ...

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, Hagood 1937 births 1997 deaths American emigrants to Canada Canadian male composers Deaths from cancer in Ontario Deaths from lymphoma Ontario Liberal Party candidates in Ontario provincial elections Easy listening musicians Members of the Order of Canada People from Oakville, Ontario Trinity College (Canada) alumni University of Toronto alumni People from Angola, Indiana Juno Award for Songwriter of the Year winners Attic Records (Canada) artists Revolver Records (Canada) artists 20th-century Canadian composers Juno Award for Instrumental Album of the Year winners 20th-century Canadian male musicians