Prairie Oyster

Prairie Oyster
Prairie Oyster performing in 2007
Background information
Origin	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres	Country
Years active	1974 (1974)–1978 (1978) 1982 (1982)–2014 (2014)
Labels	Stony Plain RCA Records Zoo Entertainment Arista Records ViK. Recordings Open Road Recordings
Website	prairieoyster.com
Members	Russell deCarle Keith Glass Joan Besen Dennis Delorme John P. Allen
Past members	Bruce Moffat Bohdan Hluszko Charlie Cooley John Adames

Prairie Oyster was a Canadian country music group from Toronto, Ontario. They were named Country Group or Duo of the year six times by both the Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) and the Juno Awards. The band also won the Bud Country Fans' Choice Award from the CCMA in 1994. They have four No. 1 country singles in Canada, with an additional 12 singles reaching the Canadian Country Top 10. Eight of their albums have been certified gold or platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association, including the 1992 CCMA Album of the Year Everybody Knows.

While no formal announcement seems to have been made, the band is no longer touring nor are they maintaining their web site. Front-man Russell deCarle has been touring solo to promote a new CD. Guitarist Keith Glass released his own solo CD in 2013 and has been touring on his own as well as backing up other artists, such as Lynn Miles.

Prairie Oyster formed in 1974 in Toronto. As a trio, consisting of singer/bassist Russell deCarle (born May 31, 1954), guitarist Keith Glass (born 1952) and steel guitarist Dennis Delorme, they toured and performed on television, but did not record. They subsequently broke up in 1978.

In 1982, the band reunited, adding fiddler John P. Allen, keyboardist Joan Besen and drummer John Adames to the lineup. Bruce Moffat soon replaced Adames, and the group released its debut album, Oyster Tracks, in 1986 on Stony Plain Records. The album found its way to RCA Records executive Joe Galante, who signed the group after seeing them perform. RCA wanted the band to change their name, but they were already too well known. Prairie Oyster was named Country Group or Duo of the Year at the Juno Awards in 1986 and 1987.