Song:Last Song
Album:The Edward Bear Collection
The Canadian band Edward Bear had a top five hit with Last Song in 1973. It was ironic as they split up soon after. Edward Bear started out in 1966 in Toronto's Yorkville coffee house scene which was a very fertile developmental area for musicians like Joni Mitchell, Neil Young etc. Drummer and lead singer Larry Evoy and keyboard player Paul Weldon decided to form a band with Craig Hemming on bass. They placed an ad for a guitarist and Danny Marks joined the band. Edward Bear was a bear in the Winnipeg zoo that influenced Winnie The Pooh. After a couple of high profile gigs at the Rockpile opening for The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Led Zeppelin, they signed with Capitol Records. Edward Bear was produced by Gene Martynec who produced a lot of local talent at that time. Their 1969 debut single You, Me and Mexico reached #3 on RPM in Canada. Marks and Hemming left the band and were replaced by Roger Ellis and Bill Loop. Their 1970 album Eclipse did not do well. But the single Masquerade from the 1972 album Edward Bear was a top ten hit in Canada. And then Last Song reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. By that time Weldon had left and Evoy decided to disband Edward Bear. When Last Song became a big hit, Evoy reformed Edward Bear with Bob Kendall replacing Weldon. They split up for good after the 1973 album Close Your Eyes was released. Evoy was into Scientology at the time and was annoying the band. You can get all of Edward Bear's hits on this comp. Larry Evoy went on to a brief solo career and then went into music publishing. He also owns a recording studio and breeds show horses with his wife. Paul Weldon designed the band's album covers and he went on to a graphic design career. Danny Marks is a guitarist and radio show host who plays Toronto clubs. Here's a video for Last Song by Edward Bear.
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