Country music singer-songwriter Gene MacLellan was born in Val d'or, Quebec, in 1939. Raised in Toronto, he played in a rock band named Little Caesar and the Consuls and moved to Prince Edward Island in 1964, where he appeared on the television programs Singalong Jubilee and The Don Messer Jubilee. It was on one of these shows that he met up-and-coming singer Anne Murray, who went on to record "Snowbird," the song that made his reputation and won him a Juno Award for Composer of the Year. After taking a break from the music industry for five years, he performed sporiadically throughout the 1980's, mosly in settings like churches, prisons, retirement homes and benefit shows. After his death in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, in 1995, he was inducted into the Canadian Country Music Association's Hall Of Fame.

These three tracks are from MacLellan's epynomous 1970 album. "Death of the Black Donnellys" tells the story of Canada's infamous Donnelly family. Ramblin' man lament "Thorn In My Shoe" was a minor hit for MacLellan, and "Snowbird" is hugely famous, having been covered by, in addition to Murray's version, Elvis, Chet Atkins, Loretta Lynn, Perry Como, Hank Snow, Bing Crosby, Percy Faith, Rita McNeil and Mark Eitzel.

Death Of The Black Donnellys
Thorn In My Shoe
Snowbird