Ronnie Hawkins

Ronnie Hawkins (born Ronald Cornett Hawkins on January 10, 1935 in Huntsville, Arkansas) was an American‑born rock‑and‑roll pioneer who spent the bulk of his six‑decade career shaping the sound of Canadian music. He grew up in a musical family—his father was a barber, his mother a schoolteacher, and his uncles and cousins toured the Southern honky‑tonk circuit—so by age eleven he was already performing at local fairs and even shared a stage with Hank Williams as a teenager. After a brief stint at the University of Arkansas and six months in the U.S. Army, Hawkins formed the first incarnation of his band, the Hawks, and ventured north to Canada in 1958, where his high‑energy shows, back‑flips and the famous “camel walk” made him an instant sensation on Yonge Street. His 1959 single “Forty Days” (a re‑working of Chuck Berry’s “Thirty Days”) cracked the U.S. pop chart, and he recorded more than twenty‑five albums for labels such as Roulette, Columbia and Atlantic, delivering raw rockabilly versions of “Who Do You Love?”, “Susie Q” and “Mary Lou”. Beyond his own recordings, Hawkins earned a lasting legacy as a talent scout and mentor. He hired future members of The Band—Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Robbie Robertson, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson—who cut their teeth in his backing group before striking out with Bob Dylan. He also gave early breaks to Robbie Lane, Pat Travers and many other Canadian artists, while his clubs such as the Hawk’s Nest and later the Rockwood Club became hotbeds for rock legends like Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Roy Orbison. In the 1970s he appeared in films, hosted the TV series Honky Tonk, and was honored with a Juno Award for Making It Again (1984). His contributions were recognized with a 2005 honorary degree from Laurentian University, induction into Canada’s Walk of Fame (2002), and appointment as an Honorary Officer of the Order of Canada (2013). Hawkins remained an active performer into his 80s, touring 150 shows a year in his 60s and recording until his death on May 29, 2022 in Peterborough, Ontario, leaving behind his wife Wanda, three children and a profound imprint on North‑American rock history.