When Springhill, Nova Scotia native Anne Murray started out on her journey to superstardom, it was not with the promise of being THE voice, but as a regular on the Halifax production of the Singalong Jubilee series back in 1966. The number one singles, the countless awards, the near 50 million albums sold since, all seemed to happen naturally for the girl with the natural voice, but the key to an enduring career is a lesson Murray extends to all of today’s hopefuls.

“There are no shortcuts — it’s just work. That’s all it is, solid work. And you have to get good people around you and it’s not always easy. It’s a rough road, but if you want it and of course it’s your job, you go do the best job you can. And you have to stick with what you do best and don’t stray from that.”

There’s no denying Anne Murray always gave us her best and then, after 40 years of constantly releasing albums and consistently touring the globe, she was done.
“I’m done with it all and it’s great — I just love it. I feel like I felt when I lived in Halifax, when I was 20 years old, before people knew who I was and I was doing stuff for myself.”

Murray admits that shift took some effort. “I think it takes time for everybody to adjust to retirement after so many years of being so busy. I struggle with it from time to time but I have good friends and my kids who keep telling me it’s okay to have fun.”

Fun these days is found with her new grandchildren, her old passion (golf) and all sorts of movies. Her boys in blue weren’t much fun to watch this season, but Anne confirmed her love of the Leafs will last forever.

As will her love of the homeland. “There’s no place I’d rather be, anywhere in the world. It always amazes me that I’m able to spend yet another summer in Nova Scotia with family and friends.”

You can catch Ms. Murray in her home town of Springhill, N.S. on July 25th for the 26th anniversary of the Anne Murray Centre.

A numbers game…

ONE best piece of life advice?
Don’t take yourself too seriously. Always maintain a sense of humour or try to maintain a sense of humour and take it lightly. It’s not always easy, but that’s what I’ve tried to do — have fun!

TWO for the road: cross country car trip – who’s your co-pilot? I think it would be my daughter Dawn (Langstroth) and there’d be lots of arguing and lots of laughs.

THREE for the show: your choice triple bill – what’s playing?
That’s a tough one to narrow down so I’ll give you five favourites: Random Harvest (1942), Bagdad Cafe (1987), The African Queen (1951), My Cousin Vinny (1992) and The Ref (1994). I love The Ref — I watch it every Christmas!

FOUR seasons: which one is your favourite?
It would have to be summer. I like them all — except winter — but summer would be my favourite because I get to be in my favourite place (Nova Scotia) with family and play golf.

FIVE-alarm fire: things you would take?
I’d take my family photos and my videos, my autographed Sidney Crosby jersey from the 2010 Olympics. I’d try to take all of my artwork, but by the time I’d grabbed it all I would have perished but I’d be sure to take ALL the money under my mattress.

For more information on the 26th anniversary celebration, visit www.annemurraycentre.com.