Arthur

Arthur "Bubs Brown"

Arthur "Bubs" Brown Born in Kentville, NS in 1941, Arthur Brown, nicknamed ‘Bubs,’ at an early age, was taught guitar basics by his father, Arthur Sr., when he was 12 years of age and music became his life from then on. He gave his first public performance a year later, a spot on a variety show broadcast on closed circuit radio to the local TB Sanatorium. At first he played old-time country but so rapidly did his grasp of the adaptability of his chosen instrument, the guitar, develop that at 14 he was hired by Dutch Mason’s Rock ‘n Roll Band as their lead guitarist to tour with them throughout Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Ontario, winning wide acclaim wherever they played. They were the first rock band ever to play Saint John’s Lily Lake Pavilion. In 1963 Bubs left the band and returned to Kentville, to marry and raise a family, while playing nights and weekends with a number of local bands. The lure of the bright lights beckoned again, however, and in 1970 he joined Bob Murphy & Big Buffalo, with whom for three years he backed such celebrities as George Hamilton IV, Myrna Lorrie, Freddie McKenna, Dick Damron, Gary Buck and Al Cherny, and appeared with them on CBC-TV’s Countrytime and a CTV Country Music Special. During his tenure with them, they also recorded an album at RCA studios, Toronto and later won the ‘Big Country Best Canadian Band Of The Year Award’ in 1972. In 1974, Bubs moved to NB and was immediately sought after by a number of bands that knew of his guitar versatility. For a time he played with Al Sherwood’s Fredericton based band that backed international stars like Wilf Carter, Hank Snow, Gordie Tapp, Dick Curless, Jim and Jesse and many others, and then with the band, Buckshot, who opened for Dave Dudley, Carol Baker and other international stars. After that, he played lead with Stone Ridge and in 1998 joined the house band at Barb Prosser Winder’s Country Junction. He also backed many New Brunswick music stars and gospel artists at recording sessions.