The Rankin Family
Encyclopedia
The Rankin Family is a Canadian
musical family group from Mabou
, Cape Breton Island
, Nova Scotia
. The group has won many Canadian music awards, including 15 East Coast Music Awards, six Juno Award
s, four SOCAN
Awards, three Canadian Country Music Awards and two Big Country Music Awards
.
.
The first Rankin Family band formed in the 1970s when siblings Geraldine, Genevieve, David, John Morris, and Raylene Rankin began performing at local weddings and dances in Cape Breton. As the older siblings went away to college and university, the younger siblings Jimmy, Cookie and Heather took their places.
These five siblings - Jimmy, John Morris, Cookie, Raylene and Heather - released their own independent cassettes The Rankin Family
(1989) and Fare Thee Well Love
(1990), featuring original songs and a combination of traditional jigs, reels and Celtic folk songs. Their television debut was on the CBC
variety show On the Road Again
in 1989.
EMI
's re-release of Fare Thee Well Love in 1992, went quadruple platinum, selling over 500,000 copies; the title track was a Top 40 singles in Canada.
On September 17, 1999, after recording the song "Jimmy Mo Mhile Stor" with The Chieftains
for their album Tears of Stone
, the group issued a press release stating that they would no longer perform as a group in order to pursue independent interests and careers.
Less than a year later, John Morris Rankin was killed in a car accident in Cape Breton on January 16, 2000.
Jimmy Rankin has continued to write songs and has released four solo albums: Song Dog
(2001), Handmade (2003), Edge of Day
(2007), and Forget About the World
(2011). Raylene Rankin has also released a solo album, Lambs in Spring (2004). When not performing on their own, the three sisters run The Red Shoe pub in Mabou.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
musical family group from Mabou
Mabou, Nova Scotia
Mabou -Mȧbu is a small Canadian rural community located in Inverness County on the west coast of Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island. The population in 2001 was 1,289 residents....
, Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America. It likely corresponds to the word Breton, the French demonym for Brittany....
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
. The group has won many Canadian music awards, including 15 East Coast Music Awards, six Juno Award
Juno Award
The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...
s, four SOCAN
Society of Composers, Authors, and Music Publishers of Canada
SOCAN is the Canadian copyright collective for the right to communicate to the public and publicly perform musical works...
Awards, three Canadian Country Music Awards and two Big Country Music Awards
RPM (magazine)
RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,...
.
Career
The Rankins come from a family of 12, all of whom would entertain the neighbours musically every third weekend as part of a ceilidhCéilidh
In modern usage, a céilidh or ceilidh is a traditional Gaelic social gathering, which usually involves playing Gaelic folk music and dancing. It originated in Ireland, but is now common throughout the Irish and Scottish diasporas...
.
The first Rankin Family band formed in the 1970s when siblings Geraldine, Genevieve, David, John Morris, and Raylene Rankin began performing at local weddings and dances in Cape Breton. As the older siblings went away to college and university, the younger siblings Jimmy, Cookie and Heather took their places.
These five siblings - Jimmy, John Morris, Cookie, Raylene and Heather - released their own independent cassettes The Rankin Family
The Rankin Family (album)
The Rankin Family is the debut album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. The album was originally self-released by the siblings in 1989...
(1989) and Fare Thee Well Love
Fare Thee Well Love
Fare Thee Well Love is the second studio album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. The album was originally self-released by the siblings in 1990...
(1990), featuring original songs and a combination of traditional jigs, reels and Celtic folk songs. Their television debut was on the CBC
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
variety show On the Road Again
On the Road Again (TV series)
On the Road Again is a Canadian television series which aired from 1987 until 2007. Wayne Rostad was the program's host for its entire run. The series consisted of interview and documentary segments from various Canadian locations....
in 1989.
EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
's re-release of Fare Thee Well Love in 1992, went quadruple platinum, selling over 500,000 copies; the title track was a Top 40 singles in Canada.
On September 17, 1999, after recording the song "Jimmy Mo Mhile Stor" with The Chieftains
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a Grammy-winning Irish musical group founded in 1962, best known for being one of the first bands to make Irish traditional music popular around the world.-Name:...
for their album Tears of Stone
Tears of Stone (album)
Tears of Stone is an album by The Chieftains, released in 1999. Each track features a different female guest artist or group, with the exception of Jim Corr of the Corrs and Jimmy and John of The Rankins...
, the group issued a press release stating that they would no longer perform as a group in order to pursue independent interests and careers.
Less than a year later, John Morris Rankin was killed in a car accident in Cape Breton on January 16, 2000.
Jimmy Rankin has continued to write songs and has released four solo albums: Song Dog
Song Dog
Song Dog is the first album by Jimmy Rankin, released on August 14, 2001 .-Track listing:# "Followed Her Around" – 4:02# "Midnight Angel" – 3:59# "Drunk and Crucified" – 3:52# "Lighthouse Heart" – 4:10# "Wasted" – 4:21...
(2001), Handmade (2003), Edge of Day
Edge of Day
Edge of Day is the third album by Jimmy Rankin, released on May 8, 2007 .-Track listing:# "Stranded" – 3:38# "Slipping Away" – 3:48# "Got to Leave Louisiana" – 3:31...
(2007), and Forget About the World
Forget About the World (album)
-External links:*[ Forget About the World] at Allmusic...
(2011). Raylene Rankin has also released a solo album, Lambs in Spring (2004). When not performing on their own, the three sisters run The Red Shoe pub in Mabou.
Members
- Jimmy RankinJimmy RankinJimmy Rankin is a Canadian country and folk artist. A member of The Rankin Family, Rankin has also released four solo studio albums. As a solo artist, Rankin was named Roots Artist of the Year in 2002 by the Canadian Country Music Association...
– vocals , guitar - Cookie Rankin – vocals
- Raylene Rankin – vocals
- Heather Rankin (1989- ) – vocals
Former members
- John Morris Rankin – (1989–2000) piano, fiddle
- Geraldine Rankin – One of the original founders of the group, Geraldine Coyne (Rankin) died January 10, 2007, the result of a brain aneurysm, at her home in Calgary. Geraldine had not performed with the group since prior to the first recordings being released.
Discography
Studio albums- 1989: The Rankin FamilyThe Rankin Family (album)The Rankin Family is the debut album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. The album was originally self-released by the siblings in 1989...
- 1990: Fare Thee Well LoveFare Thee Well LoveFare Thee Well Love is the second studio album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. The album was originally self-released by the siblings in 1990...
- 1993: North CountryNorth Country (album)North Country is the third studio album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. It was released by EMI on August 24, 1993. The album peaked at number 1 on the RPM Country Albums chart. A revised version was released in the United States in 1994...
- 1995: Endless SeasonsEndless SeasonsEndless Seasons is the fourth studio album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. It was released by EMI on August 29, 1995. The album peaked at number 6 on the RPM Country Albums chart.-Track listing:#"As I Roved Out" – 3:37...
- 1998: UprootedUprooted (The Rankin Family album)Uprooted is the fifth studio album by Canadian folk music group The Rankins. It was released by EMI on April 28, 1998. The album peaked at number 30 on the RPM Top Albums chart.-Track listing:#"Movin' On" – 3:34...
- 2007: ReunionReunion (The Rankin Family album)Reunion is the sixth studio album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. It was released by EMI on January 16, 2007. The album peaked at number 50 on the Canadian Albums Chart.-Track listing:#"Departing Song" – 3:32...
- 2009: These Are the MomentsThese Are the MomentsThese Are the Moments is the seventh studio album by Canadian folk music group The Rankin Family. It was released by MapleMusic Recordings on February 3, 2009...