Sidney country singer-songwriter Emma Robbins releases her first solo album at the ripe old age of 80 after hanging up her hat for decades.
The album is titled, 80 Bird Singing Late Returnreleased Nov. 12, is a collection of nine songs that Robbins began recording two years ago.
“It covers all sorts of things,” Robbins said. “It covers aging, long marriages, sending women to war and all stages of life.”
Robbins has always loved music and started singing at competitions at the age of 10. She came third in her first singing competition, presented by Capital Co-op Jamboree in Fredericton, North Carolina. She returned to the singing competition at 16 and won first place.
From 1958 to 1960, Earl Mitton and The Valley Rhythm Boys had Robbins join the group as a female vocalist. The band performs weekly on CHSJ-TV.
“I was the right person to be on that group,” Robbins said. “They’re in the Country Music Hall of Fame in Fredericton. We play all over the province.”
Robbins took a break from music in 1961 when she was pregnant with her first child.
“If you were pregnant at the time, you couldn’t act on TV.”
Robbins also sang for a short time with Legends in 1965.
She eventually put her music career on hold to support her family.
Robbins said her son James encouraged her to eventually record the album she began working on in 2007.
“He’s keeping me on this thing and is working on everything,” Robbins said. “These are my protest songs. Most of the songs go to other people.”
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