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John Jeffries

The names have been released for the inductees to the New Brunswick Country Music Hall of Fame for 2008, and two men with Kings County connections are among those being honoured. The first is the late Perry White, a musician and radio personality who used to reside in Sussex. The second is John Jeffries who grew up in Jeffries Corner.

Jeffries learned the acoustic guitar as a teenager and started playing dances after learning to play along with fiddle tunes, something taught to him by his father, Cecil, a local fiddler.

Jeffries later learned electric guitar and joined Bill and Gary Morris in their popular VIP band, playing many teen dances. In 1976, he and his wife Maureen and their children moved to Fredericton. He established himself as a country and bluegrass picker and became a member of Aubrey Hanson's Country Ramblers. The Country Ramblers played many dances, concerts and radio and television programs.

Jeffries has also played with many other bands and has been involved in many recording projects. He is presently a member of the River Valley Fiddlers. His four daughters and son are all singers and musicians.

The ceremony and banquet for this year's NBCMHF gala will be in Saint John on Saturday, Oct. 25. Tickets are $40 and are available in Sussex at Morris Music. The gala concert the same night will be hosted by Gary Morris at the Saint John High School theatre. The show will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $13 in advance, $15 at the door.

These are popular events so get your tickets early.

If you can't wait until October to see Morris, catch him at his popular Valley Jamboree this Saturday, May 17 at Sussex Regional High School. The returning favourites include Alison Inch, Shelby Murray, Cheryl Ellis, Tammy Feeney, Dale Butland and Jack McAfee. Guest performers will be Jocelyn McNeill from Minto; Moncton's Brian Crandell; and from the Sussex area, Hilary Taylor, Jacob Cunningham and Carmen Cruikshank.

The organizers of the concerts for the benefit of the late Perry White's family wish to extend thanks to everyone who performed or attended, or who made a donation. A tombstone was purchased for White, and his three sons have had money put in trust for their education. White's tombstone was designed by his sons with a musical theme to reflect their father's life. A special thanks is sent out to Jeff Snyder of Nelson's Monuments for everything he did to help out on the special project.