Twist and Shout

Black and white photomontage featuring a smiling Red Robinson and early 1960s Rock and Roll stars including Jerry Lee Lewis playing piano, Buddy Knox playing electric guitar, Bobby Curtola singing into a microphone, Roy Orbison playing electric guitar and Conway Twitty smiling into the camera.

Photomontage showing Red Robinson and some of the rock and roll stars he brought to perform at the Aggie Hall in Ladysmith during the early 1960s.

In the 1960s, Red Robinson, a well-known Vancouver-based disc jockey and one of the first to play rock and roll over Canadian airwaves, brought in ‘big name’ stars and their bands to Ladysmith. The town was one of their stops while touring British Columbia’s smaller communities.

Oblique colour photograph of a two-story rectangular gable-roofed building built into a slight slope, the lower story being below grade at the upper end of the building. Walls are clad with medium brown wooden shakes and feature four rectangular ‘portrait’ windows in the upper story. The roof is dark grey asphalt shingles. At the downslope end a prominent set of steps leads to the upper story entrance.

Ladysmith’s Agricultural Hall in 2022 was the scene of many dances throughout its 100-year history.

Red had worked with the organizers of the Teen Town dances and knew the local dance scene well. He advertised his events through his radio show.

Ladysmith, being roughly equidistant from Nanaimo to the north and Duncan to the south, became a “must” stop for Red’s Parade of Rock And Roll stars. Another attraction was that Ladysmith did not have a 10 p.m. curfew like Nanaimo had at the time. The Agricultural Hall, locally called ‘The Aggie Hall’, had a large enough stage and dance floor to accommodate the crowds.

Colour portrait photograph of a smiling clean shaven young man with red-blonde hair cut above the ears parted on the left side and with a prominent swept back fringe wearing an orange sweater, light yellow shirt and dark green narrow tie looks directly at the camera The words “Thanks to You” feature prominently in white flowing script in the top left corner and the words DARYL QUIST are printed in yellow uppercase simple font along the base.

45 rpm single record slip cover of Daryl Quist’s 1963 song “Thanks To You”.

Imagine dancing to the likes of Buddy Knox, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis and Canadian Music Hall of Famer Bobby Curtola! You could – because they all performed here at the Aggie Hall in Ladysmith. Buddy Knox entertained many a party doll. Roy Orbison – Only the Lonely. Goodness gracious! Jerry Lee Lewis, frustrated by the piano, which was hopelessly out of tune, pushed it off the front of the stage to crash on the floor and then proceeded to play his guitar all evening – a rare experience. Bobby Curtola, with a string of Canadian Top 10 records to his credit, swept them off their feet.

Rock and Roll Greats (captions available in FR and EN). Enjoy this video with a transcript (EN)

The arrival of large groups of young people from rival communities at the dances led to confrontations. On at least one occasion, police dogs were brought in to separate the warring factions.

Despite the problems, these dances were a regional highlight.

Colour photograph of a large group, many clad in t-shirts and shorts, in a sports ground on a beautiful summer evening dancing and listening to music.

“Buddy Holly Tribute” at the Aggie Hall, 2022.

Changing tastes – 1950s – early 1960s Trippy Times