Bill Usher is a Canadian drummer and percussionist. During the 1970s he was a member of the rock group Truck.
Background He played on Bob McBride's Sea of Dreams album that was released in 1973.Billboard, December 22, 1973 - Page 52 Canadian News, From the Music Capitals of the World, Toronto
He produced artist Mark Rust, whose recording won Calf Audio their 3rd Crown PZM competition.Billboard, October 6, 1984 - Page 41 Pro Audio/Video,Sound Investment, Calf: Winning Way With Mikes In 1986, he became a member of the CARAS nominating and voting committee.Billboard, April 19, 1986 - Page 76 Canada, Maple Briefs
He was also the president of Kids Records, a Toronto-based record label.Billboard, December 21, 1985 - Page 66 Seeking Space for Kids' Product BY Kirl La Ponte
Career 1970s For a brief period he was a member of Truck and played bongos and congas on their 1973 self-titled album.Discogs - Truck (9) – TruckArtistInfo - Truck In March 1977, Usher was part of Bruce Cockburn's band which also included musicians, Vob Bouchier on string bass and Pat Godfrey on keyboards. Cockburn and his band had embarked on a -month Canadian tour beginning at the Playhouse in Fredericton on February 20 that year.Billboard, March 12, 1977 - Page 109 Cockburn Tours The tour which was described by Billboard as extensive was completed prior to June that year.Billboard, June 4, 1977 - Page 73 Canada, Cockburn Gets New Recognition As Major Artist He played on Cockburn's Circles in the Stream album. In the Cash Box February 28, 1978, issue, the reviewer said that percussionist Usher supplies the spice.Cash Box, February 28, 1978 - Page 18 Album Reviews
1980s He produced The Travellers' Merry Go Round album which was recorded at The Grange in Toronto and released on elephant Records LFN-80-03 in 1980.RPM Weekly, Volume 33, No. 15, July 5, 1980 - Page 6 New Albums, The Travellers
In 1985, he was in the group Tuin which also Cheryl Hurwitz, Dave Maddox and Christopher Woitach.ArtistInfo - Turin
According to the June 28, 1986, article in Billboard, his company Kids Records had decided to cut its distribution deal with A&M Records because it was more economical for their office to handle it themselves due to its emphasis on libraries and specialty stores.Billboard, June 28, 1986 - Page 81 Canada Indies at Crossroads
In 1987, he won the Juno Award for Children's Album of the Year. In 2014, he received the Presenter of the Year award at the Pacific Contact booking conference and trade show in Burnaby.MusicBrainz - Drums! ~ Release by Bill UsherThe Golden Star, Apr. 22, 2014 - KHC’s Bill Usher takes Presenter of the Year honours
References
External links ArtistInfo: Bill Usher Discogs: Bill Usher