Old footage of Calgary between 1976 and 1981. Original song by Michael Betzler recorded in 2003 by Trevor Page. Featuring Michael Betzler on vocals/rhythm guitar, Trevor Page on bass/drums/lead guitar solo.
I lived in Calgary during these years - I moved there during Stampede Week! I never saw any events but partied a bunch! Definitely learned to drink in Calgary! I worked downtown at the Royal Bank and traipsed around all over so I remember going to a lot of these locations! Some folks I met became lifetime friends, have some great memories! Footage like this is a treasure! And I love the song! 🤩👏💯
I never understood what is so great about multiculturalism. When I came to Canada I wanted to be a Canadian. Not what I was I came from. If want to be what I came from why should I come here to be a Canadian at the first place? Anyway, I loved everything what I sew and experienced when I came to Canada 1981. I love that simple straight forward approach to life and its problems. I love kindness of Calgarians who gave you a helping hand when needed or they let you be when you want to be by yourself. Nobody meddled in others people business. That's what I am missing now.
Vlad Rybicka : Different cultures co-existing peacefully in society is a great thing. Russians, Australians, Europeans, Asians, Africans, Latinos, Androids, Klingons, Romulans, Vulcans, Ferengi, Bajorans, Cardassians, etc.
God I feel old. I was in high school in the mid-to-late 70s. I still remember all those buildings downtown, and there were still houses in Victoria Park.
Saw my parents in one of the scenes (they were married in 1976), saw my mom’s parents in another scene (I never knew my grandma abs grandpa McKinlay). This was so cool.
This was wayyy before my time. It's such a trip to see how different things were before I even existed. I love this this city. I'm originally from Regina, but Calgary will always be home to me.
What a trip down memory lane! I was in high school in the late 70s. Don't remember much of the downtown from back then. It's still great to see what it looked like then versus now when all you really see are all the really tall office buildings. Btw, today June 30th was the 50th anniversary of the Calgary Tower. Or for us oldtimers who still remember it as the Husky Tower.
This Video shows the Downtown at 1st Street and 7 Ave SW prior to development and the Regis Hotel which today is one of the Historical buildings remaining. Cafe of those days was still in business until 2013 . Storefronts could be restored to depict Historiy SAAN store not there now however The Bay is!
There used to be a junkyard just off Deerfoot trail, it was where Superman III had Superman's battle with himself at. All those vintage cars probably wound up there. There was also a junkyard up on Signal Hill just past the TV antennas over by Coach Hill road though that was a much smaller operation.
Wow! This video is a true gem. Calgary has certainly grown-up in the past thirty years. You only get a full appreciation as to how much things have changed when you see stuff like this. Brings back many fond memories. I was a young kid in those days and we had just moved here from Vancouver. Surreal.
I lived there from 1976 to 1980. Many good memories and friends from then. I'm from Victoria, but my years there were special and will cherish those memories forever.
7th Avenue was part of "the circuit". If you had a cool car you'd drive down 7th Ave (past the hookers by the Legion), turn left onto MacLeod, left onto 6th Avenue to 5th Avenue, and then back along 7th. Repeat until bored. And, if you had a really cool car, you'd park in the lot on the NW corner of 6th Ave and 2nd Street, aka "Bullshit Corner."
I see the Calgarian Hotel in a couple of shots from 7th ave. SE Some friends and I went here for the free live bands and cheap beer when we were young and broke. The band played behind some metal fencing...like chicken wire....hard rock...cold beer...no cover charge.
I was here in 1981, so I'm part of this Movie. Excellent tune, really nice flowing video well done. Calgary has the most sunny days in the Country along with the heavenly Chinooks,has the highest wages (Except Toronto Corporate Lawyers, etc) byy far, has the lowest income taxes, no pst and is less than an hour away from the mountains with a nice big airport to fly away when you need some traval.
Calgary was a very Country music, Rodeo, and farmer oriented. Being called Cowtown more than once and sporting safe boardwalks to clean feet on. Remembering is oldtimers favorite as was the Cafe and its breakfasts and Burgers. They were delicious and cheap.
Ahhhhh i came to calgary in 1997 and was already different.if u see calgary now u wont recognize.in downtown most old building are demolished and replaced..some places i recognized in the video ;) good old days
@@jasangela I still find people say hello... Or do you mean in a super busy location where you'd be saying hello over and over? Anyway, throw a hey at someone today, you'll probably find they say hi back.
I went to Calgary from England in 79,,A great holiday,went in the Calgary Tower,,Heritage park,,,,,A holiday of a lifetime for a school kid,,great vid,Thanx,
I saw the Gulf refinery where my dad worked during the time this was filmed. I remember mum taking us to meet dad there after work a few times, vaguely remember the neighbourhood! Nice memories...
Memories become vivid, seeing this video! Like others, at night on the weekend, I'd cruise around downtown & the 'Hot-Lot.' Either w/friends or solo, I'd drive my dad's gold `66 Le mans [rare car there]-albeit a couple years earlier, in `73 - `75. .. . .. Where's that car today?
I am born and raised and still live here in calgary...i remember almost all the sites except the queens tavern...I am so happy you found and edited all these locations.... The good days of cow Town...when 15$ gets you 2-3 grams of hash at the old center street LRT station..thankx for stimulating all my grade 6-10 school memories
So much has changed.. in such a short amount of time... downtown core looks similar but so many many changes... 7th ave with cars and busses not just c-train and busses..it looked so much cleaner
I lived there for 2 years 2013 - 2015 just on a working holiday visa. Im from Western Europe (Ireland). I was shocked at how much of the population were foreigners. But still a great little city with good people and unmatched scenery. Coming home from work every night and seeing the rookies in the background cheered me the fuck up after a long day. I miss Calgary, i wished i stayed.
Cool video, thanks for sharing! It's interesting to see what has changed in Calgary over the years. I live near the clip that shows the big Gulf oil containers (9th ave and 22nd street SE), which are no longer there and is just an empty field now. I knew that something used to be in the field and that it was once an industrial site, but I didn't know what it actually was or looked like. Now it's just a large field adjacent to the bird sanctuary, homes, a school, and also a rail yard.
Sorry for my late reply, but are you referring to the corner store at 3:01 ? Because that is at the SE corner of 1 Ave & 7a St NE in Bridgeland. I really should add the locations to timestamps soon. Back in the old days of RU-vid in 2012, I had them in the old annotations which no longer exist.
Haha, when McNight blvd was consider really far out of town when you never got lost because you could always see the Calgary tower from any point in the city and people were nice!
I moved here in early 1978. There were classic street people. Does anyone remember the the guy who walked the streets yahooing? Or the old lady with an orange jumpsuit held together with duct tape?
I remember both of them! We lived for awhile on 17th near 1st S.W. I think she was in our back yard one day, rummaging. The Yahoo guy was often on the bus.
Amazing. Such a nice little trip back in time. I have lived in Calgary all my life (save being born in Manitoba), and seeing everything as it was in them old days sure unleashes the memories... I was but a wee tyke in the early 70s, so most memories are hazy and fragmented at best. 1981 marks the year of my 10th birthday, so, yeah - wow... what a great flashback. Thanks for sharing this! I would love to see more...
I was with the British Army at BATUS (CFB Suffield) for winter of 80-81, worst part of the tour was that the brewers were on strike. CFB Suffield was serving Miller’s and Olympia from the states. Wasn’t Canadian brewers finest hour lol. Moved to Alberta the fall of 1982 lived in Calgary off and on between 1982-1997. I moved to Medicine Hat after getting posted to CFB Suffield in 1997-2009 (retired).
I too lived in Calgary (Hillhurst & Parkdale) from`72-`80 and also attended 'Queen-E,' SAIT and worked at Brentwood CO-OP, etcetera. Though originally from England, I grew-up on a coastal town in southern California. Yet, despite the 'change' from sand to snow and southern Cal's year- 'round warmth, to that of 'winter's wonderland,' my memories of Calgary are warm and regardless of the weather, they'll always provide lasting comfort.
I lived in Brentwood for many years. I did a lot of my grocery shopping at both the Co-op and Safeway. Safeway recently moved out. There is another grocery chain moving in.
@@mayloo2137; Thanx for the update. Kinda ironic, how reflecting on time, people & things we knew in the past 'seem' simpler to understand 'now' at the present time.. Though, I suppose what's 'now' will be better understood when one reflects back on such current things some yrs' in the future.
... so there was two little old houses 40 years ago on the south east corner of the central street bridge... interesting. I believe the Petro Canada building was just on the drawing board at that time. When it was being built in 78 or so, my friend and I would go down on the bus get into the building construction area. There was no security at all. There is no real threat from people and no need for high-security back in those days.
Ah I remember it well. I grew up in Calgary, 76-81 was in my teenage years. I left in 81, haven't been back since, but I often think about those good ol' days.
My Mom was a waitress at the Modern Cafe when I was a young girl. I have very fond memories of meeting her there after school and the owner, Hendry would always give me a plate of french fries or a bowl of stewed figs and a fresh donut with a pat of butter. Mom was a waitress there for several years .
Sad, but I think we can say this now about so many places across the country. I have memories like this of Vancouver (I was born & raised there), but lived a bit in Calgary, Edmonton and had friends across Canada to ON & the Maritimes. Even into the 90s life was different (better?) We don't know when we're living in the 'good old days' ... until they're not! LOL
So many Jimmy buses. 7th Avenue with traffic and no C-Train tracks. Cop cars that are a quick touch-up job away from a Dukes of Hazzard episode. Even a little snippet of the back end of a very old CCF-Brill bus, which was probably only a few years away from the scrap heap This video is something special
Great Memories.. I can Remember the , "Queens" Both my MA & PA worked there. We used to go there for the Stampede Parade & Unfortunately, as a kid, Play with the Expensive Balloons 🎈 in the Men's bathroom. (Lol.)
0:30 - 0:37 appears to be the corner of 22 St & 9 Av SE. The camera points west along 9th, then pans south to the refinery. This refinery was adjacent to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, and is now a park (Inglewood Wildlands).
@@howardandkimfaber4984 At these old diners, I'd always get liver with fried onions and bacon - and the same sides. I don't know how the cooks managed to make it juicy - my mother's version tasted like shoe leather! LOL
Great music on the video, great video. Love Calgary, in Edmonton now. I was in Calgary 1976-7 when I bought the Sex Pistols & The Clash. I'm trying to remember the name of the Hotel I stayed in a couple of times. It was near the Cecile and had a pitched roof. Anyone remember what the name of the hotel was?
The cups (now a work out gum), used to be a hotel and parking lot?? wow!!! The Regis was torn down for sure. Beside it is the Legion hall and another hotel (not part of an office tower)
The St. Regis was not torn down, it is still standing next to the Legion. The Calgarian hotel, which was on the east side of the Regis, and the Beveridge Block, (SAAN store) which was on the corner next to the Calgarian, burned down in Dec. 1986. The CUPS building and a parking lot have occupied that space since that time.
