Wilf Carter Biography | Canadian Country and Western Singer

Wilf Arthur Charles Carter

Born: December 18, 1904
Died: December 5, 1996
Place of Birth: Port Hillford, Nova Scotia

Major Notes:

Wilf Carter is who pioneered the modern yodelling cowboy song, a skill lost on many singers today.
His father was a Baptist minister and his mother wanted Carter to become a preacher too.
At age 13, he witnessed a vaudeville artist doing some yodelling and Carter decided that was what he too really wanted to do.
He left the farm work he was doing and literally became a hobo looking for work across Canada.
Wilf Carter worked as a lumberjack, a teamster, and finally as a cowboy where he learned to play the guitar.
He began writing his own songs and singing at local events, clubs, and anywhere he thought would give him exposure and experience.
Carter also joined a rodeo circuit where he could compete and still sing and yodel his now named "echo yodel".
In 1926, he sought a singing job at a local radio station but was informed he had no talent.
He stuck to his objective, however, and in 1930 was able to land his own radio show in Calgary.
Soon Wilf Carter was known as "The Yodelling Cowboy" and working for the Canadian Pacific Railways.
CPR used him to entertain on long train runs through the Rocky Mountains and on their cruise line ships.
Around the same time, he was invited to make a record for RCA-Victor Records in Montreal.
When he returned to continue his work with CPR, he found the songs he recorded were being radio played.
This increased his popularity and inspired Carter to write and record more songs.
By 1934 he had moved to sing on New York's CBS network under the name "Montana Slim".
Whether he was called Wilf Carter or Montana Slim, his records continued to meet with success.
In 1940, Carter was involved in a car accident which made it impossible for him to tour for a period of nine years.
During this period, he was able to continue writing and recording songs.
When he went back to touring, he was much on demand for radio and personal appearances on television, then a new media.
Wilf Carter retired in 1988 after having been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

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Major Notes:

Wilf Carter is who pioneered the modern yodelling cowboy song, a skill lost on many singers today.

His father was a Baptist minister and his mother wanted Carter to become a preacher too.

At age 13, he witnessed a vaudeville artist doing some yodelling and Carter decided that was what he too really wanted to do.

He left the farm work he was doing and literally became a hobo looking for work across Canada.

Wilf Carter worked as a lumberjack, a teamster, and finally as a cowboy where he learned to play the guitar.

He began writing his own songs and singing at local events, clubs, and anywhere he thought would give him exposure and experience.

Carter also joined a rodeo circuit where he could compete and still sing and yodel his now named "echo yodel".

In 1926, he sought a singing job at a local radio station but was informed he had no talent.

He stuck to his objective, however, and in 1930 was able to land his own radio show in Calgary.

Soon Wilf Carter was known as "The Yodelling Cowboy" and working for the Canadian Pacific Railways.

CPR used him to entertain on long train runs through the Rocky Mountains and on their cruise line ships.

Around the same time, he was invited to make a record for RCA-Victor Records in Montreal.

When he returned to continue his work with CPR, he found the songs he recorded were being radio played.

This increased his popularity and inspired Carter to write and record more songs.

By 1934 he had moved to sing on New York's CBS network under the name "Montana Slim".

Whether he was called Wilf Carter or Montana Slim, his records continued to meet with success.

In 1940, Carter was involved in a car accident which made it impossible for him to tour for a period of nine years.

During this period, he was able to continue writing and recording songs.

When he went back to touring, he was much on demand for radio and personal appearances on television, then a new media.

Wilf Carter retired in 1988 after having been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.