Rich Man Hobo

Mike McLuskey is a bit of a "mystery man" in the Canadian music scene (sadly, he's not alone in the category); with very little publicity to support his one album release, and his lone single release. Even the label on which his album was released, Cynda Records, don't seem to know who the artist was since they have two different spellings for his name --- "McLuskey" on the album and the single; and "McCluskey" on their subsequent listing of album releases.

Mike McLuskey recorded his 1972 album "Rich Man Hobo" (Cynda-CNS-1019) at Toronto's Captain Audio Studios with Fred McKenna producing. The contents of the album include songs penned by Canadian songwriters, John Allan Cameron, Graeme Card, Don Freed, and Glen Reid, as well as the Jury Krytiuk/Mark Altman Canadian standard "Maritime Farewell". With that particular song, as well as the John Allan Cameron tune "Sit Down Mr. Music Man" and with Fred McKenna producing, one may deduce that Mike McCluskey hailed from the Canadian Maritimes, however nothing in the album's liner notes provides any information about the artist, Mike McLuskey.

The one known single (Cynda-CN 014) that emerged from the album was Mike McLuskey's version of the Goebel Reeves classic "Hobo's Lullabye" b/ w "Alone In Manitoba", one of the Graeme Card tunes. The album also contains versions of Jerry Jeff Walker's "Mr. Bojangles", the John Denver nugget "Take Me Home Country Roads", and the pop/folk classic "Streets Of London".

Mike McLuskey: guitar, vocals
Derek Granger: bass

Produced by Fred McKenna
Engineered by Jim Morgan
Recorded at Captain Audio, Toronto, Ontario

Cover photo by Art Stanton
Liner photo by John Rowlands

Museum of Canadian Music Musée de la Musique Canadienne Calgary Vinyl Music Museum Canada Museum of Recorded Sound Canada Music Museum Calgary Music Museum