Sid Fredericksen’s musical legacy began at an early age. He had music in his heart. In primary school, whenever the class lagged, the teacher asked, “Who would like to sing us a song?”. Sid jumped up right away, glad to entertain.
At home, his oldest sister, Marilyn, played the piano while the family gathered around to sing Christmas carols. His sisters had a phonograph and collected popular songs of the 40s and 50s.
As a teen, Sid got himself a guitar, and asked a lady who played to teach him. After a few lessons he was off and away, teaching himself. Eventually he and a few friends formed a band and played at dances in their little Norwegian settlement of Hagensborg in the Bella Coola Valley off the West Coast of Canada. One of the other players, Danny Epp, became a life-long best friend.
Sid traded up his guitar from time to time, and owned several over his lifetime. It was through his guitar playing, in a round-about way, that he became a Christian as an adult. As a child he had accepted Jesus at Vacation Bible School, but had not continued in a Christian lifestyle until in his thirties he was asked to play his guitar for a small church that had no musicians. The pastor was a co-worker with Sid on a road crew in a small interior community. While he attended church to play his guitar, the sermons went straight to Sid’s heart. Soon both he and his first wife, Elsie, committed themselves to Jesus. Sid wrote a couple of songs expressing the joy of his Christian life.
Later in life he bought a ukulele, which he loved to play for passersby on the Nanaimo sea walk to accompany his singing, alternated with a kazoo. Coffee houses for songwriters were popular on Vancouver Island, and for a few years Sid regularly played and sang at several of them. Later he joined a small group of musicians to sing and play hymns and choruses at Senior homes.
At the age of 76, Sid was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. With the end in sight, it became important to Sid to leave his signature on the world in the form of the musical gift God bestowed on him. He continued to learn more guitar fingering and to perfect his songs until he finally faltered.
You can listen to some of Sid Fredericksen’s musical legacy on YouTube, under Sid Fredericksen. Watch the spelling of Fredericksen–three ‘e’s and no ‘o’s.
Here’s a link to one he wrote, with wishes from Sid that you may also come to know his Father of Love, our Creator: https://youtu.be/oRmbqWbt_lo.
