On With the Show
While other award shows flounder, the Junos are thriving by going big, local
Eric Volmers, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Spotlight
Juno Weekend begins on Thursday and wraps up with the Juno Awards Sunday at the Saddledome. Tickets are available at Ticketmaster
For members of The Stampeders, the 1972 Juno Awards began in less-than-luxurious fashion.
Decked out in leather, frilly shirts and offensively large bow ties, the frizzy-haired Calgarians waited behind the Toronto hotel where the ceremony was to be held for the limo to pick them up.
On their night of triumph, Rich Dodson, Ronnie King and Kim Berly -- who all lived in Toronto at the time -- hopped into the big black limousine for a 30-second ride around the building so they could arrive with an appropriate air of glamour without having to spring for an entire hour's rental.
"I think that was in our early years and we were trying to be frugal," says King. "We may well have all driven our cars to the parking lot with the intention of meeting an old fella named Lou who was in his 80s and drove (the limo) for us."
Despite the low-budget start, the Stampeders ended up doing OK for themselves, picking up awards for best group, best single for Sweet City Woman and best songwriter for Dodson.
The next day, Dodson's upset win was quite the scandal, with some observers apparently believing no Canadian other than Gordon Lightfoot had any business writing songs.
"There was a bit of an uproar that Lightfoot didn't win," says Dodson with a chuckle. "They felt he was a shoo-in to win again. But it was fine with me."
Yes, the Canadian star system of 1972 was somewhat sparse and more than a little insular. Still, it was considered a giant leap from the previous year's celebrations. The 1971 Junos -- still dubbed the Gold Leaf Awards -- attracted 100 people. Award founders Walt Grealis and Stan Klees met all guests at the front door and everyone was fed sandwiches whipped up in the kitchen by Grealis' mother.
Flash forward to 2008, when the Juno Awards descend on Calgary with all the glitz, glamour and subtlety of a Mardi Gras parade. Activities are planned for a straight week, manned by an army of roughly 1,200 volunteers in dozens of venues. Everyone from platinum-selling superstars such as Avril Lavigne, Celine Dion and Michael Buble to hip international buzz acts such as Feist and Tegan and Sara are scheduled to help celebrate in Calgary.
To meet with Canada's growing cache in music circles, Juno organizers have adopted a "bigger-is-better" mantra in the past six years. In stark contrast to award shows in the U.S. -- where the Oscars and Grammys face plunging viewership and increased cynicism from insiders -- Canadian music's biggest night has ballooned into a bona fide event.
"Each year, we try to build it beyond the two-hour or three-hour show," says Susanne Boyce, president of creative, content and channels, at CTV Inc. "It's not just getting glitzier. It's been about making it something that isn't just one night and something Canadians can embrace."
In 2002, CTV took over broadcasting the Junos and began using its marketing might and cross-media promotion to build upon what had traditionally been a pleasant, but staid Sunday night event on the CBC. The first step was taking the show on the road to Newfoundland, allowing newspapers throughout the country to run variations of "The Rock will be rockin' " headlines. It was a shrewd marketing move, and the Junos began travelling to a new city every year, allowing each municipality to inject its own dose of grassroots enthusiasm to the proceedings
On With the Show
While other award shows flounder, the Junos are thriving by going big, local
In the meantime, more facets of the CTV empire -- MuchMusic, MuchMoreMusic, eTalk, Fashion Television and MTV Canada for instance -- became involved in pumping up the show weeks before it was set to air.
"Hedley might find himself on MuchMusic and MuchMoreMusic might have Michael Buble on," says Boyce. "MTV would be a chat with Feist. Everybody is very excited to do Juno coverage."
And by all accounts, it seems to have worked. In 2002, the Junos enjoyed a 24 per cent boost in ratings from the year before. Since then, it has maintained an average of 1.4 million viewers per year. And while critics still complain that the awards are too sales-based and leave out a good chunk of worthwhile Canadian music, even the biggest cynics acknowledge the event has become a rare opportunity for hopelessly modest Canucks to go big and blow their own horn.
A lot of it isn't to my personal taste," says Michael Barclay, a Canadian rock critic and co-author of the 2001 book Have Not Been the Same: The CanRock Renaissance. "But I think it's important that Canada does have that star system. In the old Junos, producers and everyone would be crossing their fingers hoping Bryan Adams or Anne Murray would deign the Junos with their presence. But now, nobody is pinning all hopes on Nelly (Furtado) showing up. If she doesn't show, 10 more A-list stars will be there. In that sense, I think it's healthy."
For the Stampeders, who regrouped in 1992, having the Junos in their old home town is a touch bittersweet. A grassroots movement by fans to have the act perform -- or at least present an award -- at this year's ceremony fell on deaf ears.
But Dodson admits the bigger, more glamorous Junos are part and parcel of an industry that has grown beyond what anyone would have imagined in 1972.
"I remember when I started out, there was nothing Canadian that I could relate to -- it was all American bands or the Beatles," he says. "We do now have a star system and a history. Now bands can feel they are part of something. We have some roots now."
evolmers@theherald.canwest.com
1960s
The Junos (originally the Gold Leaf Awards) began in the 1960s when RPM Magazine began polling readers to identify Canada's best artists. In 1970 record label owner Stan Klees and Walter Grealis, RPM founder, planned the first awards.
1971
The Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, re-named the annual ceremony the Juno Awards, in recognition of the former CRTC chairman Pierre Juneau.
1975
Canadians watched the first televised broadcast of the Junos, hosted by Paul Anka, in 1975.
1981
During the 1981 awards ceremony, the most prestigious presenter of the evening was former prime minister Pierre Trudeau, who gave an award to singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell.
1996
The Junos marked 25 years with the release of a 4-CD box set album Oh What A Feeling: A Vital Collection Of Canadian Music.
2001
Television rights switched from CBC to CTV. The awards moved out of Toronto in 2002 and now change cities every year.
2006
Another broadcasting milestone was achieved in 2006 when the awards were televised around the world.
Canadian JUNO Awards article
Those were the days my friends. 
Lisa & Paul are looking very good. 
