The recording of “The Scottsdale Sessions” took place at OCL Studios in Chestermere Lake, close to Calgary, in July of 2021.
“The EP includes seven original songs. All original members are in on the recording, even Bolduc (who passed away in 2013) through the magic of technology,” added Murias.
In their original run, Sentinel’s main venues were school dances and some gigs at bars.
One “special” highlight from these years took place at a bar in Brandon.
According to Murias the gig was booked and then Grierson had to go and have his wisdom teeth pulled and was unable to sing. Manshreck went and visited him in the hospital, notepad in hand to try and capture some of the lyrics that one of the band would need to cover. Murias and Bolduc were underage so they had to use fake IDs to get in.
“I was tested by the bouncer and I couldn’t spell the name on the ID. We managed to overcome all this and get up onstage to play. We were so awful, the crowd (mostly bikers) threw beer bottles at the stage,” added Murias.
Sentinel continued to perform until 1979 when they all started having families, Murias and Grierson moved to Alberta, and it just seemed time to set music aside for awhile.
“Some of us kept up playing, some dabbled, and a few put the instruments down.”
The hiatus turned into about 34 years. Calverley, Combs and Manshreck were playing a few gigs here and there and they asked Steve Meggison, Goodlands to join them.
Murias says the resurgence was sparked by nostalgia and luck. Calverley decided he’d like to celebrate his 50th birthday by getting together with some of the guys for a musical jam session. Grierson was able to help deliver Calverley’s birthday wish.
Then that fall Grierson and Murias happened to run into each other through their kids’ hockey league.
“Chatting at the rink Guy told me about how much fun Don’s 50th was, so we decided to pull the original band back together for a reunion gig, in Medora. One of our first rehearsal spaces was the school gym in Medora.”
“We pulled together a bunch of music, practiced our own parts alone at homes from Calgary to Winnipeg, and then met up in Medora, the spring of 2013. We hadn’t played together in 34 years.”
It was a free show open to everyone and the advertising was all word-of-mouth. It did not matter to the band how many showed up as they were happy to be back together doing what they loved doing best. After setting up their gear they enjoyed a barbecue out back, reminiscing and catching up.
“We were getting ready to start playing to an empty hall and just like that people poured in, dragging coolers of beverages and snacks, someone even brought a cake, it was amazing.”
The band played until the wee hours of the next morning. The last song they played was “Freebird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd and Bolduc and Calverley dueled on lead guitar solos to a wild and appreciative crowd. It remains one of those memorable times etched in memory for it was Bolduc’s last performance. He died that fall.
Immediately following Bolduc’s funeral the band hosted an open jam and it was there it was decided they would keep going, get together and play gigs whenever and wherever they could.
More recently the band’s venues are mostly summer festival-style outdoor gigs.
“We play a lot in southwest Manitoba and southeast Saskatchewan and once or twice a year we get out to Alberta to play. We love classic rock with most of the staples coming from the 70s and 80s, but we also have material right up to modern day. Think Foo Fighters to Led Zeppelin and ZZ Top.”
The band loves to play. They know their crowds love the classics and they try to play the cover tunes in a way that is familiar to the listener.
“That’s always been a fun challenge,” added Murias.
Music remains a high priority for all band members. Murias lives in Calgary and is quite active in recording and gigging all sorts of genres including the pit orchestra for musical theatre, small combo and big band jazz, a couple of horn bands and most recently as a member of a blues band. Calverley (Winnipeg) has always been quite active writing and recording at his home studio in Winnipeg. Meggison (Goodlands) remains active musically around southwest Manitoba, sometimes dragging Manshreck into playing and singing. Grierson (Calgary) and Combs (Dand) keep their focus on Sentinel.
Murias concluded that  Sentinel has gone modern for the release of the EP.
“Initially, we’re completely digital, you’ll find the EP on iTunes & Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Napster and dozens more. We’re scheduled to release on January 26 so check out your favourite streaming service on that date.”
“We are starting out with digital streaming but plan to do a limited release on vinyl in the spring,” concluded Murias.

by JUDY WELLS, Recorder Staff