Red Shea (born Laurice Milton Pouliot; May 9, 1938 – June 10, 2008) was a renowned Canadian folk guitarist. Over his career, he helped define the sounds of artists such as

Gordon Lightfoot Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music. He is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960 ...

and

Ian Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name in Sc ...

and Sylvia Tyson, and was a regular on the TV show of Canadian Country music singer

Tommy Hunter Thomas James Hunter, CM, O.Ont (born March 20, 1937) is a Canadian country music performer, known as "Canada's Country Gentleman". Career In 1956, he began performing as a rhythm guitarist on the CBC Television show, '' Country Hoedown''. ''T ...

Career

Shea was a self-taught musician. In Saskatchewan in the late 1950s, Shea formed the Red and Les Trio with his brother Les and bassist Bill Gibbs, making appearances on Country Hoedown, a CBC Musical variety show. Later, Shea played backup guitar with the Bluegrass band

the Good Brothers The Good Brothers are a Canadian country, bluegrass and folk music group originating from Richmond Hill, Ontario. The band's core members are Brian Good (guitar), his twin brother Bruce Good (autoharp) and younger brother Larry Good (banjo). B ...

, who were from Richmond Hill, Ontario. On the folk circuit, Shea befriended

, for whom he played lead guitar between 1965 and 1975. Shea was a “pivotal figure” in Lightfoot's early career, according to music journalist Jerry LeBlanc. His guitar solo in a live performance recording of "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" at

Massey Hall Massey Hall is a performing arts theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1894, it is known for its outstanding acoustics and was the long-time hall of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. An intimate theatre, it was originally designed to sea ...

in 1969 is particularly notable. Shea appears on several of Lightfoot's records, including ''The Way I Feel'', ''Did She Mention My Name'', ''Sit Down Young Stranger'', ''Summer Side of Life'', ''Sundown'', ''Cold on the Shoulder'' and ''Gord’s Gold''. Shea later joined the Ian and Sylvia Tyson's band The Great Speckled Bird, becoming musical director of the Ian Tyson Show in the 1970s. In the 1980s, Shea became band leader on the Tommy Hunter show, which ran until 1992.

Influences

Folk-rock artists such as

Dan Fogelberg Daniel Grayling Fogelberg (August 13, 1951 – December 16, 2007) was an American musician, songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is known for his 1970s and 1980s songs, including " Longer" (1979), " Same Old Lang Syne" (1980), and ...

and

Randy Bachman Randolph Charles Bachman (; born September 27, 1943) is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the bands The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. Bachman recorded as a solo artist and was part of a num ...

have cited Shea as a major influence, with Bachman remarking that “Red Shea was the ultimate extra guitar on Gordon Lightfoot’s records and stage performances. He augmented every song with some sparkle and magic and made Gordon sound and look good.”

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shea, Laurice 1938 births 2008 deaths Canadian folk guitarists People from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan