Reg Jones

Founder and Emcee of Westman Jams

Reg was born in Madoc, Ontario and started playing guitar at age 12. The first guitar he ever owned was a $6.95 Eaton's special that he claims was a no-name brand. His favourite acoustic guitars are a Martin HD-35 and Yamaha YG580 now that he is a connoisseur.

He loves all types of music but ranks bluegrass and classic country at the top. Lonesome River Band and The Dillards are the groups that come to mind when you ask him about bluegrass music. His favourite country musicians are the members of the group he played with for years around southern Ontario....Kathy Whalen, Bob Young, Gerard Freeman, Sheila Ervine, Ruth Johnson, Joe Saunders, Carl Wood, Pat Dowling and he includes all the special guests that jammed with them in the early years. He loves to watch and encourage the up and coming musicians and help them emerge into entertainers.

He has been a member of The Comets (not Bill Hailey &...), Moonshiner Hillbillies (a comedy group), Shutters and Boards, Canadian Country, The Dowlings, The Land o' Lakes Cruisers and more recently Harold and Friends and Guns On Fire.

He has performed at the Trent Valley Jamboree and the 25th Anniversary of the Land o' Lakes Cruisers and has opened for The Good Brothers, Tommy Hunter, Asleep At The Wheel, Prairie Oyster, Billy Rae Cyrus to name a few. One of the biggest thrills he remembers was being part of a recording session with the Cruisers where they arranged and recorded some of their own material.

His non-musical hobbies include woodworking, photography, amateur radio, & computers. Musically he also loves dancing, teaching and now the Westman Jams.

Direct quote from Reg:

"My favourite country project is, of course, the Westman Jams thingy we have now and listening to all of the musicians who appear every month from out of the woodwork. They just keep getting better all the time. I have witnessed some of the less skilled musicians get better and better with each passing month. Some of these folks haven’t played much in the past few years and very quickly they have improved so much with some of their old enthusiasm gained back. I love watching it happen right before my ears. To me Westman Jams is like a large house party taking place not unlike some of my memories from the Sundays at my grandparent’s house".

Reg is a newcomer to the Manitoba music scene in recent years but already feels right at home here and of course has been officially adopted by all of the musicians and wannabe musicians that have had the pleasure of knowing him. It is good that he doesn't want to return to Ontario because they can't have him back!

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