Clayton Bellamy almost didn鈥檛 make it.
The guitarist for the Juno-award-winning country band The Road Hammers has a deep love of music, but many years ago he almost bailed on the business. He had put out two solo records but music wasn鈥檛 paying the bills, and he was ready to become a weekend hobbyist.
But everything changed when he got an audition call from Jason McCoy. McCoy was putting together a country group to try and make it big in Nashville, and the whole project would be filmed for Country Music Television.
Bellamy actually blew him off twice, but his wife eventually convinced him, and he drove to Calgary to give it a shot.
鈥淚鈥檇 never been in an audition for a band before. I walked in the door and Joel Stewart from CMT stuck a camera in my face and said 鈥榓lright, let鈥檚 see what you鈥檝e got鈥欌�攁nd it was literally just like that,鈥� Bellamy remembered Aug. 21. 鈥淚f I wasn鈥檛 nervous before, I certainly was then.鈥�
But he composed himself, and shredded out the Allman Brothers鈥� Ramblin Man and a couple of tunes that would eventually become singles for The Road Hammers: East Bound and Down and Girl on the Billboard. He was hired on the spot.
The Road Hammers had a successful run in the mid-2000s, including a reality show, several popular singles and some major awards, but the band eventually broke up, allowing Bellamy to concentrate on his solo career, and a job working as a DJ at an Edmonton radio station.
Aug. 21, as Bellamy ordered an extra large coffee and a turkey sausage breakfast sandwich from Tim Horton鈥檚, he talked about how he got started in the music business.
The Alberta native said music had always come to him naturally, from the time his parents enrolled him in voice lessons when he was 9 years old.
鈥淚 remember spending lots of time sitting at the record player with records just looking at the covers and reading the artwork and listening to the music,鈥� he said.
For a long time, Bellamy thought he would ride motocross for a living, but after a bad crash put him out of commission for a while, he hung up his helmet and decided to focus his energy wholly on music.
He worked as a touring musician for almost ten years, playing six nights a week wherever he could get work
鈥淏ack then, that鈥檚 what you did, you had to cut your teeth. And all my heroes that鈥檚 what they did鈥攜ou went out on the road and got good鈥攜ou don鈥檛 just be good.
鈥淪o I went out, got bruised and battered and got fired; got shit thrown at me; got run out of towns; you name it.鈥�
Bellamy said he kept on that grind until he got his break with The Road Hammers, but joked that some things never change.
鈥淚 still get shit thrown at me and run out of towns ... but now when I [get] run out of towns it鈥檚 in something a little nicer than a 1980 Dodge van,鈥� he said with a laugh.
Along with a single solo show in Jasper this year, Bellamy is touring with a revived Road Hammers, whose album is at the top of Canadian country music charts. He said he is thrilled that he gets to play music for a living.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a wonderful ride, and I feel like I鈥檝e lived the life of ten men,鈥� he said.
Bellamy is playing at the Jasper Legion Aug. 31 as part of the Legion鈥檚 Barbecue Cook-off. Tickets to the cook-off, including Bellamy鈥檚 show, are $25. Tickets for the show itself are $15.
