The Rankin Family

Infobox musical artist |
Name = The Rankin Family


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Background = group_or_band
Origin = Mabou, Nova Scotia
Genre = Country, folk
Years_active = 1989—present
Label = Capitol, EMI
Associated_acts =
URL = [http://www.therankinfamily.com/ www.therankinfamily.com]
Current_members = Jimmy Rankin
Cookie Rankin
Raylene Rankin
Heather Rankin
Past_members = John Morris Rankin

The Rankin Family is a Canadian musical family group from Mabou, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia.

Members

*Jimmy Rankin — vocals , guitar
*Cookie Rankin — vocals
*Raylene Rankin — vocals
*Heather Rankin — vocals

Former members

*John Morris Rankin (1989–2000) — piano, fiddle

History

The Rankins come from a family of 12, all of whom would entertain the neighbours musically every third weekend as part of a ceilidh.

The first Rankin Family band formed in the 1970s when siblings Geraldine, Genevieve, David, John Morris, and Raylene Rankin began performing at local weddings and dances in Cape Breton. As the older siblings went to college and university, the younger siblings Jimmy, Cookie and Heather took their places.Canadian Post, The Cape Breton Post, "Rankins Tour Postponed as Family Grieves", pg A2, Jan 13, 2007]

These five siblings (Jimmy, John Morris, Cookie, Raylene and Heather) released their own independent cassettes "The Rankin Family" (1989) and "Fare Thee Well Love" (1990) featuring original songs and a combination of traditional jigs, reels and Celtic folk songs. Their television debut was on the CBC variety show "On the Road Again" in 1989.

Their most successful album was EMI's re-release of "Fare Thee Well Love" in 1992, which went quadruple platinum, selling over 500,000 copies; the title track was one of the year's biggest Top 40 hit singles in Canada.

The group has won many Canadian music awards, including 15 East Coast Music Awards, 6 Juno Awards, 4 SOCAN Awards, 3 Canadian Country Music Awards and 2 Big Country Music Awards.

On September 17, 1999, after recording the song "Jimmy Mo Mhile Stor" with The Chieftains for their album Tears of Stone, the group issued a press release stating that they would no longer perform as a group in order to pursue independent interests and careers.

John Morris Rankin was killed in a car accident in Cape Breton on January 16, 2000. His truck that he was driving to a hockey game plunged into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, as he swerved to avoid a pile of salt on the road.CBC.ca http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2000/01/16/Rankin000116.html]

One of the original founders of the group, Geraldine Coyne (Rankin) died January 10, 2007, the result of a brain aneurysm, at her home in Calgary. Geraldine had not performed with the group since prior to the first recordings being released.

Jimmy Rankin has continued to write songs and has released three solo albums: "Song Dog" (2001), "Handmade" (2003), and "Edge of Day" (2007).

In November 2006, it was [http://www.cbc.ca/cp/entertainment/061102/e110234.html announced] that the four surviving Rankins -- along with John Morris's daughter Molly -- would be releasing a new album and reuniting for a cross-Canada concert tour. The tour was a great success, coast to coast.

Discography

Albums

ingles

External links

* [http://www.therankinfamily.com/ The Official Rankin Family Website]
* [http://www.islandviewcreations.com/rankins/ Official unOfficial Website]
* [http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/R/Rankin_Family/ Jam website page]

Notes