This is Canada's very own, "Kid Hawk".
The son of Canadian music icon, Rompin' Ronnie Hawkins, has flown into cyberspace and is ready to rock your world in the Hawkins' family tradition! Covering classic tunes from the 50's up to today's top hits along with an amazing selection of original tunes, Rockin' Robin offers us a breath of fresh air with his most recent incoming flight. Watch for the 2008 release of Kid Hawk's new cd - IT'S MY TIME!
Many thanks to all of the following musicians that were involved in the making of Kid Hawk's new cd - IT'S MY TIME! You guys are all awesome!
Brent Bailey, Rob Phillips and Peter Howe-Keyboards, Doug Hewie, Mark Holden & Rick Baker-Drums, Rod Cobel-Bass, Rick Morrison-Saxophone, Buzz Thompson-Harmonica & Slide Guitar, Don Walsh-Harmonica
POST-SHOW REVIEW - APRIL 22, 2008 - FROM THE PETERBOROUGH EXAMINER
http://www.peterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=996140
Hawkins rocks the house; Blues are big at CD launch party
Robin Hawkins takes a step toward the traditional with the release of his new record, "I'ts My Time" which he premiered before an impressive turnout at Showplace Peterborough last night.
Interspersing his blues compositions with some nods to his venerable roots, Hawkins seemed to hit the right note with the audience.
Though the sound quality at times left something to be desired, Hawkins and his crack band showed well, and when Hawkins took a couple of brief turns outside the blues he so comfortably inhabits, the audience was ready to follow, and pleasantly surprised.
Nobody will ever accuse Robin Hawkins of lacking enthusiasm or not working hard for his audience. From the jump, Hawkins was alight, striding the stage and soloing on his seafoam green Telecaster. Opening the show with the Stevie Ray Vaughn ripper "The House is Rockin'" set the appropriate tone for the night.
The rhythm section laid down a line that Hawkins nimbly ran up and down upon. From the record, "She Drives Me Crazy" was a full-throttle blues assault, which immediately preceded the rock-a-billy rave up "40 Days," one of father Ronnie's big hits.
The throwback roots rocker "Can't Stop Rockin" featured some hot keyboard licks from Shai Perr, who along with Brent Bailey were replaced by Rob Phillips and Terry Blankley for a couple of numbers. Phillips showed his chops on Hawkins' "Pretty Girls," also taken from the album.
Hawkins switched gears next with his fine tribute to his native soil, Arkansas. This mid-tempo country turn sweetly explored the gauzy nostalgia of a home long left, but fondly remembered and elicited a noticeable swell from the audience.
"She's Mine" fell apart a bit at its ending and was followed up with "It's You I Need," a tune reminiscent of Howlin' Wolf's classic "Spoonful."
The title track, "It's My Time," shows Hawkins a devotee of the blues rock idiom, well versed in its conventions.
"You're the One" was another step outside the usual from Hawkins. Evocative of early electric Dylan and the Band (imagine that) this love song again hit the mark with the crowd.
Ronnie was cajoled up to the stage to run the band through a couple of his monster hits, "Who Do You Love" and "Mojo Workin," which brought a nice close to the evening.
Opening for Hawkins were a slew of the areas better known musicians. First up was Ken Tizzard playing the lovely tune "Cover Me" from his latest release. Part of the Hawkins rhythm section, Terry Blankley on piano, Doug Hewie on drums and Wylie Harwood on harmonica, performed Blankley's "Falling Back in Love with You."
Buzz Thompson and his tight band were next up with a soulful rendition of "Mustang Sally," and remained on stage to back up Beau Dixon's take on the Isley Brothers' "It's Your Thing."
The gravelly voiced character known as Sab next commandeered the stage for his fine tune about friendship, which he dedicated to the Hawkins boys. Chris Partland made an appearance and did a real nice job of his original "Northern Wind."
The whole crew returned the stage for a romp through Ben E. King's "Stand By Me," orchestrated by Sab, who was overflowing with bonhomie.
Overall, the evening was a success for Robin Hawkins, whose MySpace page shows many dates upcoming in the area in the near future, affording old fans and new an opportunity to see the man at work.
Jonothan Fiddler is a freelance reviewer for The Examiner
Article ID# 996140
April 18, 2008 - A note from KID HAWK:
I would like to thank the Two Paddys in Ireland at Kick-Ass Country on Dundalk FM 100 and online at www.dundalkfm.ie for adding my songs Arkansas & Real Love to their rotation. May the luck of the Irish be with us all and I hope to make Canada proud!
KID HAWK
News Article from: mykawartha.com/news/article/28224
"Robin Hawkins’ fire burning hot as ever
Date: 2008-04-08
By Paul Rellinger
'Early on, I was a little too passive but I’ve learned you really have to get out there and promote yourself. It’s never ending.'
When a personal milestone is achieved, the tendency is to surround ourselves with friends and family to celebrate its attainment.
Such a celebration can be simple, the setting being a living room or back patio deck. Or it can be something much more public in scope, involving a spacious stage before an equally large seating area.
Robin Hawkins has opted for the latter and for good reason.
On April 21 at Showplace Peterborough, Hawkins will be surrounded by friends as
he “officially” releases It’s My Time, a CD of original work
penned and performed by the veteran rock ‘n’ roller. And, yes, family will be front-and-centre as Hawkins’ famed father Ronnie, who will introduce his son.
“It’ll be a Last Waltz kind of thing...lots of local faces and some from out of town; I’m really excited about it,” says Hawkins.“Recording is all good, I really enjoy it, but live performance is still a big deal for me.
“And the bigger the room, the better.”
The evening’s first set will see
Chris Partland, Ken Tizzard, Thornley Sab, Buzz Thompson, Brent Bailey, JP Hovercraft, Beau Dixon, Shai Peer, Al Black and Wylie Harold perform while
the second set is set aside for Hawkins and his band and selections from It’s My Time.“It’s hard to define the new CD,” assesses Hawkins, 43, close to 30 years removed from when he first picked up a guitar, played with his dad’s band and set his life on its current course.
“I love all styles of music. I hate classifications. This CD is blues and some country and some rock-a-billy. A little bit of everything I really like to play. There’s even Forty Days, which was big for Dad.”Rarely, if ever, without a gig somewhere, Hawkins is a working musician in every sense of the word. He just recently finished a string of sold-out shows at The Corral in Oshawa. At the other end of the spectrum are regular Friday night appearances at Burnham Mansion.
“I really like the large theatre shows. It’s much different than the bar scene and all the issues that go with that. And the bigger the venue, the better. I really want that.”
Hawkins has traveled a long road, from a serious car wreck in his mid teens which saw him leave high school, to
playing across North America and even in France at the Cannes Music Festival. His father, he notes, asked him what he wanted to do. When he answered that he wanted to give the music thing a shot, he says the
support was strong and constant.
“I feel blessed and cursed at the same time,” notes Hawkins. “It’s been tough at times but I still love doing what I do. No regrets. Early on, I was a little too passive but I’ve learned you really have to get out there and promote yourself. It’s never ending. I’ve really developed a sense of the importance of the business side of music. There’s a lot you need to do. Getting up on stage and playing isn’t enough on its own. It’s full-time, promoting yourself, your music and all the rest.”
Ahead, notes Hawkins, lies a busy summer of touring and festivals, mostly in Ontario. And, of course, re-affirming for countless music fans that
he is Robin Hawkins first, Ronnie Hawkins’ son second.
“Dad’s been great, very supportive, but I’ve been doing this for a long time. I’ve always worked, people seem to enjoy the music and I still enjoy playing. That’s pretty good.”Tickets to Hawkins’ April 21 CD release party cost $20 at the Showplace box office or call 742-7469."
Article ID# 973868 from the Peterborough Examiner online at: http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=973868&auth=WERNER%20BERGEN
Robin Hawkins CD release set; Showplace concert with some friends
Posted By WERNER BERGEN
Robin Hawkins is releasing his new CD "It's My Time" at Showplace Peterborough on April 21.
The son of legendary rocker Ronnie Hawkins, Robin Hawkins has been performing since was 14 and he started touring with his dad's band at age 16.
The CD release concert will feature Robin Hawkins in the second half of the show. The first half will star old friends like Buzz Thompson, Brent Bailey, both members of The Hawks, Chris Partland, of the Partland Brothers Band that toured a lot with Ronnie Hawkins, Sab (musician Peter Sabourin nicknamed the King of the North by Ronnie Hawkins), J.P. Hovercraft, Beau Dixon and Ken Tizzard (formerly of Thornley and The Watchmen.
The CD will be a compilation of the best of Robin Hawkins.
"It will be a great opportunity to learn about the different styles of music over the last decades," said Hawkins, 43, in an interview. "It's pretty cool," he said referring to the special guests that will be performing, especially pointing to Partland.
"My music is hard to compartmentalize with so many styles," said Hawkins.
He has been touring Southern Ontario with his band, but hopes the release of this CD will allow him to move on to other parts of Canada.
The band includes Shai Peer, Rod Cobel, Doug Hewie and Wylie Harold.
The band will be playing festivals, blues bars this summer.
Hawkins said the music will range from blues to country with pop.
Hawkins's early years were spent in Mississauga before the family moved to Stoney Lake.
He attended both Lakefield College School and Humberside High School. Injured in a car wreck, Hawkins said he had difficulty in school.
But his dad said "what are going to do," said Hawkins, so he started touring with Ronnie Hawkins at age 16.
"I was getting my chops down," said Hawkins, who said he started as a drummer at age 10 before switching to guitar. His first band was a high school band at Humberside called Temperance doing music by groups like Led Zeppelin.
He said he started to listening to his dad's blues albums and got hooked on bands like the Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Hawkins said his dad will make a special introduction at the start of the second half of the show.
Hawkins said there may be other special guests.
Concert facts:
- Who: Robin Hawkins
- What: CD release concert
- When: April 21 at 8 p.m.
- Where: Showplace Peterborough, 290 George St. N.
- Tickets: $20 in advance and available at the Showplace box office at 742-7469.
[
b]Excerpt from Peterborough Promotions at: www.peterboroughpromotions.com
Robin Hawkins has been a musician since the age of fifteen. Making his way by first playing as a guitarist in his father's band The Ronnie Hawkins Band, his travels have taken him from Vancouver to Newfoundland six times over, many US gigs in Arkansas, Tennessee, Florida, California and Michigan, and even includes performing in France at the Cannes Music Festival!
Throughout the years as a
guitarist and music director for Ronnie Hawkins,
Robin has also been playing in his own bands as a
lead singer and lead guitarist which has led to much recognition as a
great entertainer who has shared the stage with many important musicians including Trooper, Coney Hatch, The Spoons, Kim Mitchell, and many more. His musical style as a guitar player has been referred to as
"root sounds with a strong intensity". Robin has always been
writing songs and developing his own sound. His influences range from Johnny Winter to Three Days Grace to Blue Rodeo to INXS. His onstage comfort level is obvious in all sizes of crowds, from one hundred people up to tens of thousands as was in attendance at a recent New Years Eve Bash at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto !
Robin Hawkins also has the experience of
studio work as a producer (producing several of Ronnie Hawkins later albums and many local Peterborough acts) and now has several albums' worth of his own music to deliver to the world !
He has never been more ready than right now to unleash his potential as a
singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer. Be ready to Rock and Roll with a professional performer that has energy and soul...
Robin Hawkins...
the artist!
ROBIN HAWKINS has GUESTED WITH:
Buzz Thompson, Devin McManus, Earl Wilfong, Jay Cooper, Ronnie Hawkins, Leah Hawkins,
Randy McIlmoyle, Dawson McManus, Jericho’s Wall, Brent Bailey,...Shai Peer...(Levon Helm & Billy Ray Cyrus)
PETERBOROUGH Venues that
Robin HAWKINS has performed in:
The Legendary Red Dog, Clancy's, The Black Horse, Memorial Centre, McThirsty's Pint, The Icehouse, Burleigh Island Lodge, Puck 'n Pint (The), Burnham Mansion, Thirsty Canadian, Phoenix (The)
(The Dobro, Showplace Performance Centre)
Review excerpts from Acoustically Speaking, November 4, 2007 by: Howard Stacey
http://acousticallyspeaking.blogspot.com/ ROBIN HAWKINS BAND AT CHICAGO'S DINER!
"Anyone who was fortunate enough to attend Chicago's (Diner in Oshawa, Ontario) last Friday night to see
The Robin Hawkins Band will agree that
we just may have a new Canadian music icon on the horizon. Being the son of and working with his legendary father, Ronnie, since
Robin was fifteen years old,has obviously influenced his music and direction, but no more than,let's say, HP sauce influences a steak. The main course here is all
Robin... and as meaty, hearty, tasty and tender as you could hope for....
it was no surprise that the dance floor was full all night. With an intense, but satisfying mix of originals and covers(Forty Days,Bo Diddley/Who Do You Love, of course),
the audience and I were compelled to show our appreciation after each and every tune for Robin's refreshing and inventive vocals and blistering guitar solos. I'm sure that
daddy must be really proud of how his boy has accepted the torch and is blazing forward on his own path to the roots-rock hall-of-fame and once you
witness the experience yourself,I'm sure
you will agree.Great stuff, Robin and I'm
looking forward to doing it again soon!"
[
b]Excerpts from:
NewsDurhamRegion.com November 2007
http://www.newsdurhamregion.com/news/entertainment...
"...Robin is playing a series of gigs around town lately...
He's an inneressing chap too in his own right.
He grew up surrounded by musicians. At festivals, while all the rock star parents performed, he would hang with their kids, among them Dallas and Travis Good of The Sadies.
At about 15, he joined his daddy on the road and essentially hasn't left it. Over the years
he has played a variety of styles but has settled into a rootsier sound of late and covers some of the Hawk's tunes in his set..."
BIG SHACK PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS:
KID HAWK'S MUSIC CAMP
Work with the best!
Rockin' Robin Hawkins was born to rock and has worked throughout his professional career as a
Songwriter, Guitarist, Singer, Booking Agent, Manager & Producer. Now,
Kid Hawk is offering an amazing summer music recording opportunity to aspiring performers!
Robin has set up studios in both Peterborough and Oshawa,(within minutes from the Go Station and the 401) Ontario Canada and is now accepting applications to attend his summer camp.
For a small fee of $250,
Robin will provide the artist with four (two hour)sessions. Group Discounts and Hourly Rates are also available. Sessions may be private or group depending on the artist's skill and objectives. Sessions are flexible, Monday through Friday with one (two hour) session per week over four weeks.
Artists with interests in all genres of music are welcome to apply.
Kid Hawk's Music Camp focuses on songwriting and recording of the artist's own original song on a cd. This cd may be used as a demo for gigs and airplay, or as a keepsake for family and friends.
Robin works closely with every artist to provide inspiration and ideas. Various instrumentation may be added to the song at the artist's request to provide a full band sound using 24 track mixing and recording equipment.
If you are not satisfied after the first session, you will be billed for one session only and you are under no obligation for further sessions.
Kid Hawk's goal is to foster and inspire an appreciation for songwriting and recording in a relaxed environment for all ages.
Special Guests including musicians and songwriters of various genres as well as technical experts from the music world do appear to help out and offer advice from time to time. You never know who you might meet at music camp and we look forward to meeting you soon!
For more info or to apply for a spot in this year's summer camp please call Big Shack Productions at: 289-385-2703 or email: rockinrobin76@yahoo.com
Please Note: Guitar and Vocal Lessons are also available for $35 per hour or $20 per half hour session.
