CANADA IS sung by Roger Whittaker. Born March 22, 1936 in Nairobi, Kenya, of British parents, Whittaker is a very talented and wonderful British singer, songwriter, guitarist and whistler, with worldwide record sales of over 55 million (according to Wikipedia). In 1985, Roger Whittaker was acclaimed as Germany's most successful recording artist singing in German even though Whittaker speaks no German.
CANADA IS From the Album "Around the World with Roger Whittaker" Publisher: Nairobi Music Canada. Side A: TS-1982 (TS-1982-A) 3:20 (P) 1982 Tembo Music Canada. The following comment from Roger Whittaker is quoted at DI Forums Web posting Oct 27th, 2006, 04:16 PM: "CANADA IS was written by two young Canadians: Eric Robertson and Steve Hyde. To me it is special... very special. It sums up in words and music my feelings for a country I have visited and enjoyed so many times. I have sung it on countless occasions in concert since it was first recorded in 1974 and every time, without exception, it has been emotionally and movingly received. In all my world travels, it is quite the loveliest tribute to any country I have ever heard. It is appropriate to release it as a single now. To Canada - Thanks for all our good times. I salute your future." ~ Roger Whittaker
The following email arrived on March 31, 2008:
You probably missed it in the local news, but there was a report that someone in Pakistan had advertised in a newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed a Canadian ... any Canadian.
An Australian dentist wrote the following editorial to define what a Canadian is ... so they would know one when they found one.
A Canadian might be English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, or Greek. A Canadian can be Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Australian, Iranian, Asian, Arab, Pakistani or Afghan.
A Canadian may also be a Cree, Métis, Mohawk, Blackfoot, Sioux, or one of the many other tribes known as native Canadians.
A Canadian's religious beliefs range from Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu or none. In fact, there are more Muslims in Canada than in Afghanistan. The key difference is that in Canada they are free to worship as each of them chooses. Whether they have a religion or no religion, each Canadian ultimately answers only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.
A Canadian lives in one of the most prosperous lands in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms which recognizes the right of each person to the pursuit of happiness.
Canadians are generous and they have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need, never asking anything in return.
Canadians welcome the best of everything, products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best services and the best minds. But they also welcome the least - the oppressed, the outcast and the rejected.
These are the people who built Canada. You can try to kill a Canadian if you must as other blood-thirsty tyrants in the world have tried, but in doing so you could just be killing a relative or a neighbour. This is because Canadians are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, can be a Canadian.
The above email is also accessible from Expat Expert Blog at What is a Canadian?