The Old Fogies, 1993-2000

by VFSS parent Jim Edmondson

Singing folk music has made our lives so rich; how do we share it with the next generation?

Being part of the VFSS community in the 1980s and ‘90s meant our kids got a good dose of ambient folk, just being around regular people singing all kinds of songs, in all kinds of environments. Singing in the car, singing before bed, singing on peace marches and at Folk retreats.

But at the VFSS Retreat in 1993, some of us had the idea to take it a step further and start a kids’ choir. The idea was to offer a folk music alternative to the commercial, mostly pop music, drivel available at the time. Right thenand there, VFSS parents Mary Sherlock, Madeleine De Little and Jim Edmondson gathered together the kids of VFSS and held our first practice. The kids named themselves “The Old Fogies.”

All the Old Fogies’ practices and gatherings were focused on fun and good collective singing about people’s real lives past and present. The group developed a large repertoire of folk songs, campfire songs and political songs. Some Fogie favourites were De Colores, I Like to Rise, I Love Chocolate, Shir l’Shalom, The Water is Wide, The Vacuum Cleaner, and The Fox.

For seven years, the Old Fogies sang at schools, folk festivals—CityFest in Vancouver and Folklife Festival in Seattle—and at political events. Singing at the People’s Summit on APEC in 1997, nestled in between Dr. Ramos-Horta and Maude Barlow, was a highlight!

The group took several field trips over the years, including cross-country skiing and a winter sleepover at Jim’s log cabin up on Hollyburn Mountain.

From some Old Fogies (now in their late 30s and early 40s):

• “Some of us were doing other singing activities . But the Old Fogies was different. The whole experience was broader than the music itself. This was our music group. We put it together. We took ownership of our songs which were relevant to us. It wasn’t top down. There was back and forth collaboration.”
• “ In contrast to popular music at the turn of the century, this was unplugged, improvisational, harmony singing. Many of us were brought up by parents who were into folk music. So we were already immersed in that. But the Old Fogies allowed us to look at that kind of music and decide if it really was for us. And, as a result, I think I’ll always have an appreciation of folk music and the power of collective singing.”
• “I’m actively involved with traditional folk music and probably always will be. The old Fogies played a part in making that happen for me”
• “I just treasure our Old Fogies times together. The singing, the sharing songs, lots of belly laughing and sometimes difficult decision making. I learned about group dynamics – how to navigate different wants and needs. And we didn’t shy away from the pride of performing well together and getting our songs out there.”
• “The entire repertoire of my new family’s songs and lullabies comes from the VFSS and the Old Fogies.”

The Old Fogies were: Liz Airton (now Lee Airton), Bevan Bartlett, Molly Clarkson, Devon Edmondson, Lauren Levy, Ciara Moran, Emily Rousseau, Sophie Sherlock, Michael Trevelyan, Michelle Vine, Ronan Volante (now Fern Vale Volante). And there were some other children who were part of it for a short time.

We, the kids’ parents, were known as Poofies, “Parent of Old Fogeys.” The choir ‘directors,’ in so far as the Old Fogies were directable, were Jim Edmondson and Andy Vine.

Leading the Old Fogies was a lot of fun and completely worth it.

Let’s see…a new generation of Old Fogies? “Grandparents of Old Fogies” would be…