File: robinsonpeter06-oh-keithrobinson_M.mp3
Speakers:
PR – Peter Robinson
KP – Curator Ken Perlman
KP – Tell me about your father's musical activities. I believe he was a prominent musician on the island.
PR – His name was Keith Robinson; he was known for two things: doing music and being at Canadian Tire from the first one being built to the last one being built. I run into all kinds of people that say, "Oh look, I played with your father." When I was talking about coming here – He played at the Northram Hall, which was a potato warehouse down the road here. And they would travel up from Charlottetown to entertain, and I doubt there was even a sound system; he'd have the amplifier sittin' behind us here and his guitar. And I remember him saying they would clean the warehouse, but it had a wooden floor; it wouldn't be up against the cement. And the air would circulate under this wooden platform they had. They would clean this out the best they could for the big Saturday night music thing and then halfway through, he said they have to stop because the people dancing would bang the floor, right, and the dust would rise. So they'd go about half way through and take a break and let the dust settle and sweep it up, and then keep goin' (laughs). So he had traveled and that's where I knew Pete Doiron from, because he had played with...
KP: From Summerside
PR: From Summerside. And Lowen MacCauley, Ches Cooper.
KP: Ches Cooper, you said he had played on the radio with [your father]…
PR: Yeah, in the CFCY Studios.
KP: Can you talk a little about Ches Cooper's show and what they did or was this before your time.
PR: I can remember going into the studio. I think by the time I got there, they had started CBC-TV and they shifted from – It kind of took the emphasis off the radio. TV kind of became popular. Even though it was black and white. He would go up and - He'd entertain at least two nights a week.
KP: Your father would?
PR: Yeah. 'Cause I marveled – he would work 8:30 to 5:30 every day, he worked Friday till 9:00 and then go play at 10. Then he'd get up the next morning and work all day Saturday till 5, play Saturday night, and then he'd be up getting us to church on Sunday morning.
