Gary Van Buskirk

Photo taken inside Harpo's Nightclub. Gary was born in Saskatchewan and his family moved to the Westcoast in the early 1950's eventually settling in the Fairfield area of Victoria. His dad was a professional musician who played multiple instruments and was known as the “Banjo King of Canada” during the 1930's. Growing up, Gary and his siblings Joy and Jay had musical instruments put in their hands with Gary originally playing trumpet which still has to this day even though he doesn't play it. As a teenager, Gary was also a promising amateur boxer reaching the finals of the B.C. Golden Gloves competition. Listening to his sisters transistor radio, he received a serious dose of Chuck Berry and The Everly Brothers so when he got a job as a delivery boy, his pay cheques were spent on 45's of Seattle groups like Don and The Goodtimes, The Sonics and The Viceroys from their shows at Hudson Bay's Saturday dances on the fourth floor. Before long he was haunting teen dances at the Club Tango, Sirocco Club, Crystal Gardens and others put on by Russ Freethy, a local promoter who remembers seeing Gary as being "serious about music" from the first time they met. In 1972, Donovan was in to... more...