Bonnyville songwriter’s work appears in hit series

You can hear retired Bonnyville teacher Rose-Marie Cameron singing on one of television’s  hottest properties.

The Canadian series Heated Rivalry, produced for the streaming service Crave, has become a worldwide hit. Cameron and her songwriting partner Carey Parder had submitted some of their original songs from the 1970s and ’80s to a company that finds music for TV and movie productions. One of their songs, Tropicana, has been used in the series.

Cameron says Heated Rivalry won’t appeal to everybody. It centres on the love story between two male hockey players, and she admits the sex scenes are too steamy for her taste.

But aside from that, she says “I have nothing against it. I think it’s pretty awesome that we had an opportunity to be placed in the same category as some of the other musicians that have songs in there.”

Cameron and Parder began their musical collaboration in Calgary back in the ‘70s. Each of them wrote songs, and they also collaborated on some. They performed on the local circuit as soloists, as a duo, and in bands.

A bandmate of theirs was setting up a recording studio, and he invited Cameron and Parder to come in and record just to give him some practical experience, Parder said. Between those recordings and others they made on their own, the two had amassed a sizeable catalogue of their songs.

Parder belongs to an online organization called Taxi, which sends out announcements that production houses are looking to buy specific music. One call was for vintage recordings of original songs from the 70s and 80s, so he and Cameron submitted a selection.

The songs were screened by Taxi before being sent to a commercial music library, who ultimately bought the recordings. From that point, Cameron and Parder do not have control over how the recordings are used, though they retain copyright over the songs themselves. 

They will be paid royalties for every time the episode containing the song is downloaded.

It would be overstating things to say the song is “featured” in the series—it’s used almost as a musical prop in one scene.

“It’s where two of the characters meet,” Cameron said. “What’s kind of funny is the first part of the song is just instrumental, Carey playing the guitar. And then when my vocals come in, there are only five words sung by me in harmony, and then the blender in the scene cuts in so that all you got to hear was five words of my song.”

But the entire song is included in the series’ soundtrack release, which can be downloaded.

Parder, who still lives in Calgary,  says he has fond memories of making music 50 years ago, and it’s gratifying that someone finds the recordings have value.

“We were really lucky back then,” he recalls. “I had worked on the road as a musician for a couple of years full-time, and it was a little much to be honest.  You really do have to be in your twenties to handle that lifestyle.

“I ended up coming back to Calgary and really did enjoy the local scene and working with Rose-Marie. We did a duo for a while, that was fun. But even prior to that, she would often have gigs at the ski club and other folk clubs and stuff, and we did a couple of shows. So yes, we really did love to play just for the experience of it.”

Cameron also says the songs were written for their own sake, not for possible commercial value. And while she doesn’t describe herself as a professional musician, she says she takes her music seriously. 

“I was a schoolteacher for 20-some years, and I never really made a living off my music. But I never gave up either,” she said.

“From having written my first song at 12 years old, and I’m still writing somewhat today, I would consider myself kind of semi-retired from music because we don’t really perform together and nor do I perform lately myself. But we still get together and do some recordings.

“I wouldn’t call it professional,” she continued. “I would just call it a really strong interest and something that we both still really feel positive about, and think that people should hear these songs.”