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A group of New Brunswickers are pushing for a statue on the Saint John waterfront to honor a Canadian music legend and one of the port city’s own.
Charles Thomas Connors — popularly known as “Stompin’ Tom” for his habit of stomping his heel to keep rhythm — would have celebrated his 90th birthday this week. He is behind “The Hockey Song,” easily recognized by its chorus “the good ol’ hockey game,” regularly heard in hockey stadiums in the country since the early 90s.
Connors is already remembered for his contribution to the “Canadiana” genre, with a statue erected for him in Sudbury, Ont., in 2015, two years after his death. But Greg Hemmings and three others want to go further and have him remembered for where he was born and spent his early life — Saint John.
“When I think about artists that really represent the spirit, grit and pride of Canada, it’s Stompin’ Tom,” Hemmings said.
“His songs are Canada in the DNA … That really brings pride and it tells the story of this place. This is why [we] are determined to honor him as a Saint John son the way he should have been many years ago.”
Connors was born on Feb. 9, 1936, at the city’s General Hospital. While Hemmings and others still celebrated his 90th — with live music and cake — the group also sent a request to city council for an opportunity to present their idea.
“He spent his first few years here and they were hard years,” Hemmings said, referencing Connors’s autobiography.
Connors, as a child, lived in Saint John with his mother, who was Protestant, before they left in search for work. His father, who was Catholic, wasn’t very involved in his son’s life due to religious and other differences.
The statue would celebrate Connors’s legacy and his roots in Saint John, where he was born and spent his early years.
His mother was eventually jailed for stealing groceries, leaving Connors separated from his family and placed in an orphanage before he was adopted.
A Saint John story of ‘grit’
Hemmings calls Connors’s story one of “hardship” and “grit.”
“It’s definitely a Saint John story,” he said. “But it’s also about breaking through and making something great out of very humble beginnings. And I just think it resonates so much to Saint Johners.”
Mike Bravener, Jason MacLean and Scott Gogan round out the rest of the group pushing for the statue.
Connors is also known for his commitment to Canadian music. In 1978, he boycotted the Juno awards — going so far as returning the six he received — because the ceremony, he felt, was increasingly rewarding artists who spent more time working and living in the United States and other countries than Canada.
This protest continued until his death in 2013, before which he left instructions for the ceremony to not memorialize him afterwards. This history is a part of the push for the statue displayed in the city’s prominent waterfront area, where it would be seen frequently by both locals and tourists.
“What a neat story for our American friends who are visiting us on cruise ships to see this Canadian pride that has been going on for a very long time — before the “elbows up” movement started,” Hemmings said.
He said the group will be making their presentation to city council on Feb. 23. Some residents, like Rachel Coppens, think it’s a great idea and want to see them succeed.
“Definitely helps with kind of like revitalizing the harbourfront, too, by bringing some art and culture,” she said.
Resident Tim Harvey described Connors as a “local hero” to look up to.
“A lot of people into country music — older folk — really enjoyed that type of music,” he said.
“And a lot of his songs were about things that happened working in the woods around and in the Maritimes.”
Hemmings said the group has the ambitious goal to have a statue unveiled by October to coincide with a New Brunswick Country Music Hall of Fame event held for new inductees, which will happen the same month.
“Wouldn’t it be neat … because Tom is a country music legend,” he said.
In the meantime, if all goes according to plan, the group’s next step will be to find an artist for the statue.
“That’s gonna be really fun because obviously we would love it if we had a local option here,” Hemmings said.
