About as Canadian as a musician can get. I can't say I'm a country fan, but there was something uniquely infectious about his songs.

Sad news. Infectious is a good way to describe his music. RIP

He will live on forever with The Hockey Song.

I had to google it. Presented here for your nostalgic pleasure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxJvrD80nJ4

You know, I can't think of a single person I know who didn't grow up to appreciate his music. It was so simple that at first you tend to dismiss it but "infectious" is the right word.

Of course Bud the Spud (from the Bright Red Mud) is the defacto Stomping Tom song around here.

At times like this I'm reminded that, for all the shared interests and similarities between our two countries, there are cultural differences that don't cross the border.

It sounds like Peter had never heard of him and I know I haven't either.

I've noticed this before in discussions of other Canadian entertainers.

Maybe I'm just an ethnocentric pig, eh?

http://www.ctvnews.ca/entertainment/stompin-tom-connors-dead-at-77-1.1185264

Quote from above new link:

Connors also wrote a letter to his fans shortly before his death, to be released after he passed away:

Hello friends, I want all my fans, past, present, or future, to know that without you, there would have not been any Stompin' Tom.

It was a long hard bumpy road, but this great country kept me inspired with its beauty, character, and spirit, driving me to keep marching on and devoted to sing about its people and places that make Canada the greatest country in the world.

I must now pass the torch, to all of you, to help keep the Maple Leaf flying high, and be the Patriot Canada needs now and in the future.

I humbly thank you all, one last time, for allowing me in your homes, I hope I continue to bring a little bit of cheer into your lives from the work I have done.

Sincerely,

Your Friend always,

Stompin' Tom Connors

A little history - He got the name "Stomping Tom" (originally "That Stomping Guy") from my hometown, Peterborough, which he has deep connections with.

True Mark. Of course, I've never heard of a few American celebs that have been mentioned in eulogies on this board either.

The funny part of your statement is that in his biography, he reports that he only time he was in the US, he was deported as an illegal alien when he was hitchiking his way down to Nashville to try and meet his idol, Hank Snow.

Despite the fact he sold 4 million records, it was his life that is most interesting.
In short, he was a country/folk singer who related strongly to the common man. Probably because he grew up doing common man things in the old days like being a fisherman and a grave digger. He had a rough start. He actually spent time in jail as a small child while his mother served time. Constantly ran away from orphanages & his adopted family. He nearly died of starvation and drowning and survived a coma. His career was said to have started when he was a nickel short for a beer and the bartender agreed to serve him if he sang a few tunes. The stories are endless.

He looks (and sounds a bit) like a Canadian incarnation of Johnny Cash.

RIP Stompin' Tom

I've never heard of him.

He has been referred to as that many times.

I had always thought of Johnny Cash as an American incarnation of Stompin Tom!