Time: noon-2 p.m.

Cover: none

Floyd Sillito www.myspace.com/floydsillito   has been playing traditional country music for over 50 years. He is a local favourite who has a regular gig at the Lethbridge Public Library.

For the last fifty years, western singer and guitarist Floyd Sillito has been entertaining Canadians with his own brand of easy listening country music. Floyd began his musical career early, having been born into a musical family, with 15 children. After a short time on the stage in Calgary, he moved on to Woodstock, Ontario, where he worked as a DJ for Radio CKOX, and toured extensively in southern Ontario with a country band. He returned to Calgary in the mid 50s, traveling with the Ray Little Radio Cowboy Show, and performing on CFCN Radio every Friday night for seven years with Tony and the Old Timers. In the early 60s Floyd returned east, where he performed solo on CJCS Radio in Stratford, eventually joining the western band, Country Cousins. For three years he also acted as emcee and lead singer for the summer television show, Western Roundup, on CKNX TV in Wingham, Ontario. While hosting Western Roundup, Floyd was approached by the CTV national network show, Carl Smith’s Country Music Hall, and asked to perform on that popular program. Spurred on by his success, Floyd formed the Perth Country Playboys, a band which achieved great popularity in the Stratford, Kitchener and London, Ontario area. The band performed with many Grand Ole Opry stars including Ray Price, Hand Thompson, Faron Young, and Sonny James. In the late 60s, with his nephews Lloyd and Larry Kunkel, Floyd started the Original Drylanders. For a while, Ray Griff performed with the Drylanders before going on to fame and fortune in Nashville. In 1969 Floyd and his family returned to Alberta, where he performed solo for a while, before forming a western trio, Country Fare. During this period, he recorded his first single which achieved the same kind of success as recordings he’d made previously with Country Cousins and with the Old Timers. Since then Floyd has been entertaining at performances all around Alberta and Canada.