Buck 65

All Music Guide:

Born in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia, Richard Terfry (aka Buck 65, Stinkin' Rich) spent the majority of his adolescence as a self-described b-boy. He eventually moved to Halifax in 1989, where he founded a seminal hip-hop show on local college radio. The program (dubbed "The Bassment") helped Terfry cement his status as Halifax's premier hip-hop head; inch by inch, artist collaborations, production duties, and club residencies soon followed. During this time, Terfry dabbled with mic duty, often to acclaimed results. While 1992's Chin Music helped him win a deal with local label Murderecords, 1996's Psoriasis (recorded with friend Sixtoo under the moniker Sebutones) garnered underground plaudits and 1997's 12" trilogy The Wild Life raised eyebrows overseas.

Later in 1997, Buck 65's first well-circulated full-length followed; Language Arts was hailed by everyone who heard it as a hip-hop triumph. Fusing Terfry's hard-luck grumble with a decidedly lo-fi (but immaculately produced) instrumentation, it trumpeted his (and Halifax's) entry into the hip-hop circuit. In spite of -- or perhaps, as a result of -- his tendency to veer towards more opaque territories (Terfry's albums rarely come with any tangible track listing), the big guns soon came calling. Revered turntablist Mr. Dibbs was so enamored with Terfry's records that he inducted Buck 65 into seminal underground collective 1200 Hobos. Fraternizing with the likes of heroes such as Biz Markie, Peanut Butter Wolf, and Cut Chemist, Terfry's follow-up was even more inspired. 1999's Vertex was hailed by critics as a progressive, brilliantly conceived concept album, a regulated mix of measured neuroses and marble-mouthed charm. The follow-up, 2001's Man Overboard, released on the respected underground Anticon, followed on that note, pitting Terfry's numerous personalities against each other, often to brilliant effect. WEA Canada picked up the record and released its follow-up, Talkin' Honky Blues, an excellent collection of introspective stories. An international contract materialized with V2, which released the career-spanning compilation This Here Is Buck 65.

Wikipedia:

Richard Terfry (born March 4, 1972), who uses the stage name Buck 65, is a Canadian experimental artist, MC and turntablist. Underpinned by an extensive background in abstract hip hop, his more recent music has extensively incorporated blues, country, rock, folk and avant garde influences.

Terfry is also a radio host, hosting the weekday Radio 2 Drive show on CBC Radio 2 since September 2, 2008. In addition, he once hosted a weekday program on CBC Radio 3's web radio station.

Biography

Early career and influences

Terfry was born in 1972 and raised in Mount Uniacke, Nova Scotia, a rural community 40 km north of Halifax. He was first exposed to rap music in the mid-1980s while listening to CBC Stereo's late night show Brave New Waves, and then by listening to Halifax campus community radio station CKDU. CKDU then broadcast at only 33 watts, and he had to climb a tree in his yard to hear the station's hip hop show on his radio. Fascinated by hip hop, the young Terfry taught himself how to rap, DJ, and, later, to produce records. His musical influences include MC Shan, David Lynch, Gitche Manitou and Kool Keith.

Using the moniker DJ Critical, he later hosted a hip-hop show on CKDU called The Bassment (later renamed The Treatment Program when he assumed the stage name Jesus Murphy), which aired for several years. This period overlapped with many of his non-major-label releases.

Stage names

Buck 65 has used a number of other stage names including Johnny Rockwell, Stinkin' Rich, Haslam, and Uncle Climax. These pseudonyms typically represent different characters in his raps (as in Uncle Climax, Johnny Rockwell and Stinkin' Rich) or different aspects of Buck's creativity (as noted above, DJ Critical was his DJ name on CKDU.) He explains the origin of his main performance name as follows: "I was born with the name Ricardo Terfry. Where I come from, it's common when a boy is named after his father, for the father to refer to the son as 'Buck'. I don't know where that comes from or when it started. It might be a 'out-in-the-country' thing. Growing up I knew lots of sons who were referred to as 'Buck'. Sometimes even if they weren't juniors. So the joke became, I was one of 65 (a number picked randomly) 'Bucks' in my town." However when appearing on Andy Kershaw's radio show in the UK on 8 August 2004, he gave a totally different explanation: some of his earliest public performances were with an older blues musician who used to joke that Ricardo's regularity at showing up made him as reliable as a 1965 Buick. The nickname Buick 65 stuck until it was misprinted on a publicity poster as 'Buck 65' which he then adopted as his stage name.

Recently Buck 65 has recorded an EP under the name of Dirk Thornton alongside Irishman DJ Flip, it was scheduled for release early 2007 but the date was not set.

The first release under Dirk Thornton was a 7" single with the tracks "Yesterday's News" and "Catwalk".

He is also involved in an online collaboration with Greetings From Tuskan producer Joëlle Phuong Minh Lê, as Bike for Three!. Their album, More Heart Than Brains, was released on Anticon Records May 26, 2009.

Early releases

In 1993, he released his first cassette of rap tunes while performing under the alias Stinkin' Rich on the Halifax label No Records. The five song cassette was titled Chin Music, which was a reference to his interest in baseball. The release brought Stinkin' Rich to the attention of members of Halifax alternative rock band Sloan. Sloan signed him to their independent record label Murderecords and released a 7" single and a full length cassette called Game Tight, again featuring a reference to baseball. As Stinkin' Rich, he also appeared on numerous songs by Halifax hip hop band Hip Club Groove.

After a brief break, Terfry returned reconstituted as Buck 65, releasing Language Arts on cassette and the 12" single Wildlife Trilogy, followed by Vertex, which included his popular song "The Centaur." He recorded Sebutonedef (released in 1996 by Funtrip Records) as a collaboration with fellow Halifax artist Sixtoo. Other releases by the duo, known as Sebutones, are Psoriasis and 50/50 Where It Counts. While still far from mainstream success, he received several odd jobs in Canada's entertainment industry, including making soundtrack music and providing narration for a TV commercial for NBA apparel, and song lyrics for the popular children's program Sesame Street. .

Man Overboard, originally released on the anticon. label, was a significant turning point in his career. The record, and the entire anticon. collective (of which Sixtoo was also a part), were considered hallmarks of a new avant-garde movement in underground hip hop. It was at this time that Buck met Cincinnati DJ Mr. Dibbs who inducted him into the 1200 Hobos, a loosely-knit hip-hop collective named for their proficiency in manipulating the Technics 1200 turntable.

Critical acclaim

Many of his early projects attracted attention after they were re-released, first on the independent Metaforensics label and subsequently by Warner Music Canada. While Buck 65 has gained critical acclaim and worldwide exposure through his major label deal, commercial success has escaped him. Although Warner's worldwide affiliates distribute his records, Warner USA does not. After a deal was signed with V2 USA, This Right Here Is Buck 65 was released in the States, a sort of "Best of" that was marketed as an introduction to his work. However after V2 chose not to release his next effort, Secret House Against the World, the deal was amicably dissolved. Since then Buck 65 was signed onto Sage Francis' Strange Famous Records, from which he has most recently released Situation.

Buck's most recent albums have gradually moved away from his original 'pure' hip-hop sound into territory influenced by folk, blues and electronica, with some even comparing elements of his sound to Tom Waits. Some of Buck 65's music is used on the Canadian show Trailer Park Boys, frequently in the character Julian's car. He gained additional recognition in 2006 when he appeared at the national Juno Awards with Pamela Anderson.

Dirty Work

Buck 65 released a 5 song digital EP called "Dirty Work". It was released over a month long campaign, adding one song per week for free download via his MySpace page. All five tracks are still available for download on his official website. The EP comes with artwork drawn by Buck himself, and the tracks are all outtakes from the full length record Situation.

Situation to present

Buck 65 released the album Situation on October 30, 2007, on Strange Famous Records in the US and Warner Music worldwide. The album is a concept album based around the year 1957, and is a return to a more 'pure' hip-hop sound than the previous blues, country and avant-garde influences in Secret House Against the World. It was produced by fellow Halifax DJ Skratch Bastid, aimed at making a "classic hip-hop record that pulses with joy and clarity of purpose".

He was a host of CBC Radio 3's web radio in 2006 and 2007, and recently accepted daily hosting duties on CBC Radio 2's Radio 2 Drive beginning fall 2008.

In late 2008, Buck 65 released three one-track albums for free download. The three Dirtbike albums featured guest production and verses by, among others, Cadence Weapon, Emily Wells, D-Styles, Skratch Bastid, Serafina Steer, Jorun, Moka Only, Mia Clarke (of Electrelane) and Doseone. Dirtbike 1/3 signified a return to Buck 65's pre-Talkin' Honky Blues hip-hop roots that was expected in Situation; in Buck 65's own words "it's a lot like the original versions of [1997's] Vertex and [1999's] Man Overboard".

In 2009, Buck 65 Contributed a cover of "Blood Pt. 2" to the AIDS benefit album, Dark Was the Night, produced by the Red Hot Organization. Buck 65 formed Bike for Three! with Belgian producer Joëlle Phuong Minh Lê (of Greetings from Tuskan), releasing their debut album, More Heart Than Brains, on May 26, 2009. The album features "sharp lyrical details and storytelling" by Buck 65, combined with Phuong Minh Lê's production creating a "exquisite, shimmering landscape that rarely plays by the rules."

Partial discography

Albums

Singles

Videos

Awards

2003

2004

2005

2006

2011

"What's Wrong With That?" from the movie Year of the Carnivore.

Collaboration