The Cruzeros

The Cruzeros have come out of retirement to celebrate their recent induction into the BC Country Music Hall of Fame. From the late 1990’s through to their last tour in 2008, this Kelowna based band held a brilliant musical legacy nationally and abroad. Their three independently launched albums spawned 20 Top Forty hits on the national radio charts, eight videos on CMT, radio and internet airplay in USA, Europe and Australia, and command performances at innumerable concerts, festivals, and events. The band gathered a host of award citations, including a Juno nomination for Country Group of the Year, a Canadian Indy for Country Album of the Year, BC Country Music Association Awards for Group, Songwriter, and Album of the Year, and Canadian Country Music Association All-Star Band Awards for Special Instrumentalist of the Year.

The Cruzeros were formed by Barry Mathers and Curtis Tulman in 1985 under the name Sea Cruise which played top forty cover tunes and rapidly became popular on the pub and nightclub circuit in the BC Interior. They began writing and recording their own songs later that year. and for the next decade home-produced singles were played on local radio and television through videos produced by the BC Music Project. The band went on a tour of Mexico, and subsequently changed the name to The Cruzeros.

In 1995 the band received funding through FACTOR to produce an album, which they did with Vancouver producer Bill Buckingham. The self-titled album was released to radio in 1996 and its success earned them a 1997 JUNO nomination for Country Group of the Year. The rest is history.

Their concert lineup includes main songwriter and lead vocalist Barry Mathers on guitar and mandolin,Curtis Tulman on vocals, guitar, harmonica and saxophone, JUNO nominee Rachel Matkin on vocals and mandolin, Jim Ryan on vocals, bass and keyboards, Jay Swetlishoff on drums and Scott Thielmann on lead guitar.

The concert at Creekside Theatre will in part be dedicated to the memory of guitarist and long-time Cruzero Gary Smyth, who recently passed away and is dearly missed.