I was born in the small coal mining community of Nordegg, Alberta, Canada. My father was a coal miner. I grew up listening to country music which has had a very strong influence on my identity and my life’s journey. I began singing when I could talk and from the age of three won many talent contests. I was always singing. It did not matter what I was doing or where I went, I was always singing. I would often go down to the school and sit outside and sing which became a major distraction for the students especially at exam time. I recall being chased away from the school by the principle on many occasions because the students would come to the open windows to hear me sing. I would sing songs made popular hits by Eddy Arnold, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Jimmy Wakely, and many of the other recording artists of that era. The first song I can recall singing was the song Jole Blonde. At the age of six or seven I would go to the hockey games to cheer on the home team and between periods I would go into the lobby and peo