Information in this article or section has not been verified against sources and may not be reliable. check for inaccuracies and modify as needed, citing the sources against which it was checked. Not to be confused with Canadian indie rock singer-songwriter Ron Hawkins.
, born January 10, 1935 in Huntsville, Arkansas, United States, is a pioneering rock and roll musician and cousin to fellow rockabilly pioneer Dale Hawkins. Known as "Rompin' Ronnie" Hawkins or "The Hawk," he was a key player in the 1960s rock scene in Toronto and for the next 40 years, performed all over North America, recording more than twenty-five albums. His best-known hits are "Forty Days" and "Mary Lou" (about the song narrator's experiences with a golddigging woman), both were major hits for him in 1959.
At the age of nine, his family moved to nearby Fayetteville. After graduating from high school, he studied physical education at the University of Arkansas where he formed his first band, The Hawks, touring with them throughout Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. Hawkins also owned and operated the Rockwood Club in Fayetteville where some of Rock music's earliest pioneers came to play including Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison and Conway Twitty.
Ronnie Hawkins came to Canada in 1958. His first gig was at the Golden Rail in Hamilton, Ontario where he became an overnight success. It was a result of Hawkins success in Hamilton that he decided to move to Canada permanently.
His career spans over five decades and 25 records. His hits include, “Forty Days”, “Mary Lou”, and “Hey Bo Diddley”. In 1958, he moved to Canada with the Hawks and made Peterborough, Ontario his permanent home.
Gradually the members of the Hawks, except for Levon Helm, were replaced with talented Canadians Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson. This was the line-up that was to later become The Band. In 1975 Bob Dylan cast him as 'Bob Dylan' in the movie Renaldo and Clara.
His 1984 LP, 'Making It Again', garnered him a Juno Award as Canada's best Country Male Vocalist. Playing with The Band, Hawkins helped tear down the Berlin Wall in 1989 and performed at President Bill Clinton's 1992 inaugural party.
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