Canadian Music ~ Edward Bear

Edward Bear was a Toronto-based Canadian pop-rock group. The band is best known for its chart-topping singles, "You, Me and Mexico", "Last Song", and "Close Your Eyes". I loved this band when I was a girl.

The Edward Bear Revue, later Edward Bear, was formed in 1966 by singer and percussionist Larry Evoy and bassist Craig Hemming. Craig Hemming was only with the band a short time. The effective founders were Larry Evoy and Paul Weldon. The name is derived from A.A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh, whose "proper" name is Edward Bear. At first the band had a bluesy, rock sound; at one point they opened for Led Zeppelin.

The band signed with Capitol Records in 1969 with a lineup of Evoy, guitarist/vocalist Danny Marks and keyboardist/vocalist Paul Weldon. Their sound moved toward blues and pop. They released an album, Bearings, that year. Their single, "You, Me and Mexico", was a Top 5 hit in Canada and charted well in the United States. Follow-up songs, "You Can't Deny It" and "Spirit Song" did not prove popular. Marks left the band the following year and was succeeded by guitarist/vocalist Roger Ellis.

The band recorded several albums; the songs were mainly written by the band members. There were several chart successes in the early 1970s, including "Fly Across the Sea" and "Masquerade". The band had its biggest hit in 1973, when "Last Song" charted at #1 in Canada and peaked at #3 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It was awarded a gold disc in March 1973 for selling over one million copies by the Recording Industry Association of America. "Close Your Eyes" was a Top 5 hit in Canada and also made the charts in the United States.

Edward Bear won a Juno Award in 1973 for outstanding group performance. By then, most of the band's original lineup had left. Evoy remained as the primary songwriter and organizer, rebuilding the band twice, until it finally was disbanded in 1974.

Evoy, who briefly embraced Scientology in 1973 (the band also recorded a jingle in 1973 for a Scientology TV commercial, and also mentioned it on the back cover of their 1973 album, Close Your Eyes), went on to a solo career, achieving a modest hit in Canada with "Here I Go Again," after which he retired from live performance and began running a small recording studio. Marks has continued a career as a blues guitarist and radio host. Weldon,a professional architect owned and operated the graphic design firm Stanford Designs for many years he also performs with a jazz combo and teaches at Seneca College in Toronto. Bill Loop, bassist in the early 1970s, resides in Southwestern Ontario and plays locally with various session musicians. He also teaches guitar. (Wikipedia)