Hon. Scott Tannas: Honourable senators,

Four strong winds that blow lonely

Seven seas that run high

All those things that don’t change come what may

But our good times are all gone

And I’m bound for movin’ on

I’ll look for you if I’m ever back this way.

These words are the chorus of a classic Canadian song, “Four Strong Winds,” written by Ian Tyson and first recorded by Ian and his wife, Sylvia Fricker, simply known to Canadians as Ian & Sylvia.

On December 29, Ian Tyson passed away and Canada lost a folk and country music icon.

He was a transplanted Alberta country singer-songwriter, who began by teaching himself to play the guitar while in hospital following a rodeo accident.

His music career began in the late 1950s when he joined the folk music scene in Toronto. He met his music and life partner Sylvia, and they formed a duo and recorded 13 albums.

The couple broke up, both professionally and personally, in 1975, and Ian moved back to Alberta to continue his music as a solo artist. He set about also to live his dream of owning a cattle ranch in the southern Alberta foothills and being a cowboy. He worked to gain the respect of both his fellow ranchers and environmentalists as an advocate of land stewardship and conservation.

Meanwhile, his music took a greater country feeling to it and he continued to write and record until 2015.

Ian Tyson was a Member of the Order of Canada and a member of the Alberta Order of Excellence. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame.

For his fans, “Four Strong Winds” will always be their favourite.

On a personal note, over the last 40 years, Ian became a familiar figure in my hometown of High River, which is about 20 miles from his ranch. He was humble. He was generous with both his time and his money. There’s a funny story that circulated for years in High River of a retail clerk — a young lady — who saw the name Ian Tyson on the credit card and said to him, “You look a lot like the famous Ian Tyson.” He said, “I get that a lot, but I don’t think I look like him anymore.”

To his family and all his fans, he will be deeply missed, but his music, which honours his Western roots, will live on always.

[Translation]