Whether it's a concert on the Ross Street Patio, a live set at the Velvet Olive, or open-mic night at the East 40th Pub, chances are excellent that Carl Stretton is there, pulling the switches on sound.
For nearly 30 years, Stretton has been fine-tuning the music Red Deerians hear while working as a sound engineer at clubs, as a producer on recordings made by local artists, and as a bassist, guitarist and keyboard player at live performances.
Singer/songwriter Curtis Phagoo, who is also with band The Heartbroke Heroes, has known Stretton for 26 years, and considers him "a totally invaluable part of the culture of this city...
"In such a transient community, Carl has remained a constant" on the music scene, said Phagoo, "He's managed to form long lasting relationships with every generation of musician, music fan, venue, and many of the acts touring through Red Deer. Always ready to help, support, and enjoy all things music."
Playing it, listening to it, has always been Stretton's first love, although he arrived in central Alberta from Edmonton in 1985 to work in the electronics servicing field.
He believes it was his devotion to learning about electric guitars and basses led him to discover his affinity for electronic technology. "I had a good aptitude" and fixing electronics helped pay the bills, said Stretton.
But he always kept up his passion for music and involvement with local bands. Soon Stretton was stretching his skills into behind-the-scenes areas by learning to operate sound equipment. He began engineering for live sets at the Velvet Olive, the former Fratters and other bars and night clubs.
From 2004 to 2015 were "Red Deer's glory years," recalled Stretton — when the economy was humming along and the city had 20-30 live music venues. "Oil prices were good, Red Deer had lots of money and there was entertainment everywhere..."
He has adjusted sound for dozens of well-known artists who performed in Red Deer — everyone from Amy Grant to Valdy — as well as local musicians Randi Boulton, Mike Szabo, Curtis Phagoo and others.
With so many concerts happening, Stretton said, "I didn't want to miss an artist I wanted to see." He, therefore, started listing these events in Red Deer Scene magazine, which he founded in 2004.
Stretton launched Scene, with free entertainment listings and advertisement sales, because he was looking for work after The Brick furniture store chain closed all its service departments. While Scene actually took six years to break even, the magazine that also highlights visual arts and theatre, continues to thrive, although its ownership was transferred to Kyle Key in 2018.
Its 20th anniversary was marked with a special exhibit this spring at the Red Deer Museum and Art Gallery that continues through mid-June.
Stretton has also been a music recording engineer and producer, working with various local musicians, including Ryan Carnduff, Phagoo, Ivan Daines and others. He also prints small-batch CDs for local artists, through a burning and duplication process on his computer equipment. The end product comes complete with graphics and "looks really good," he said, with a chuckle.
Although Red Deer's music scene has compacted somewhat since the "glory years," Stretton has never been short of work opportunities. He believes this city still has more live music venues per capita than Calgary and Edmonton, as well as an ingrained music culture that has spawned such provincially and nationally known artists as Kayla Williams, Danielle McTaggart (of Dear Rouge), and Wyatt C. Louis.
"That's one of the reasons I have stayed in Red Deer," said Stretton.
One of the best things about this city — and he attributes this to its relatively small size — is how all the local musicians know and support each other, whether they play blues, metal, country, electronica, rock, or hip-hop. "That's one of the unique things about Red Deer. All of us just want more music."
Besides his recent stint working on sound engineering for the Central Alberta Childrens' Festival, Stretton has summer plans to help with several other outdoor events, including the Sande Shindig near Sundre and WayneStock, near Drumheller.
=
