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A15

Nelson Hansen

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Speak Up

You can never accuse Dieppe's Jimmy Hadley of doing anything halfway. Maybe it's in the blood. Of the six men in his family, five became members of the RCMP (the only Canadian family to hold that distinction), the other became a sheriff while his sister married a Mountie.

Hadley has spent his adult life devoted to two things which he holds dear: his family and law enforcement. Now at the age of 54 and barely weeks into his retirement from the RCMP, Hadley is allowing himself to devote time to his lifelong passion for music.

For Hadley music has always played an important role in his life. Growing up on rockabilly, Elvis, Presley, Tom Jones and Roy Orbison, Hadley taught himself to play harmonica at the age of four and picked up the guitar not long after. As Hadley tells [here] family and a life in law enforcement were always top priority, but music was always part of the equation.

"Since I was four I've played music," he says, "and I don't think I'll ever stop playing music. I've been able to play music wherever I was posted with the RCMP." In fact, Hadley used his musical talents and his profile with the RCMP to help break down barriers between law enforcement and the community at large.

"Music is a great icebreaker, it knocks down walls. I'd play at fundraisers and community events. I think when they see a uniformed officer up there onstage holding a guitar and singing it makes you a little more approachable and it opens dialogue." Hadley goes on to explain that throughout his life music has been a form of therapy and stress relief for him, something he always goes back to at the end of the day.

Now with a law enforcement career in the not-so distant past, Hadley is branching out on a new adventure and following his dream of sharing his music with the public. With the same devotion he's given his family and the RCMP, Hadley isn't quite ready for the rocking chair.

While many retirees look forward to Alaskan cruises or endless rounds of golf, Hadley is cranking up the amps and sharing his love of rock 'n' roll. He's recently finished a 10-song CD of original material titled At Last and he's ready to embark on his rock 'n' roll journey Friday night, October 3 at 8 p.m. at Moncton's Théatre l'Escaouette. Backed by a full band including his son who is travelling home to help Dad out, Hadley will celebrate the culmination of a life-long dream by releasing a disc of music he's been waiting to share since the age of four when he picked up the harmonica.

For someone's first foray into the music world, At Last comes off as a remarkably polished recording. True to his roots in early rock 'n' roll, the recordings possess a sound quality that reminds you of the best of early rock 'n' roll right down to the "slapback" echo that gave rockabilly and hillbilly music such a distinct sound. (The best example of this is Elvis Presley's recording of Mystery Train at Sun Studios, I highly recommend it.) The songs reflect Hadley's devotion to family and touch upon missing his departed father, a reminder to a teenage daughter that he'll always be there for her, and of course a love song for his wife. Other than rock, Hadley's musical style also has touches of jazz and country sprinkled in for flavour. It's also very much a family affair with several instruments being played by family members or friends of the family. Also very much worthy of note is the fact that three of the discs 10 songs are written and performed in French.

Hadley isn't releasing the disc as a vanity piece, he's serious about playing for as many people as possible and sharing his love of music with whoever will hear it. He's already secured distribution via CD Baby and is running his own website www.jimmyhadley.com where listeners can hear clips of songs from the upcoming disc as well as keep track of any news and live appearances. Like I said, nobody can accuse him of doing anything halfway.

As Jimmy Hadley sums it up, when you've been waiting all your life to do something, maybe there's no other way.

"I've fulfilled my obligations to the RCMP and to my family and now I get to do something I've been working on all my life. I'm serious about this and now I'm living my dream." For more, visit www.jimmyhadley.com. Hadley releases his CD At Last Friday night, October 3 at Moncton's Théatre L'Escaouette at 8 p.m.

Note about this column: NB Beat staffers were given a few weeks off to be treated for "exhaustion" at a facility alongside Amy Winehouse, Lindsay Lohan and several Baldwin brothers. Staff are back at their desks and responding well to treatment. They're also looking to further promote New Brunswick's diverse music scene so if your act, venue or event would like to be featured in this column please feel free to e-mail the columnist at oneyearofnbmusic@yahoo.ca