LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) – Sylvia Tyson, the renowned Canadian singer/songwriter whose writing and performing career spans eight decades, has sold her music publishing catalog, Salt Music, to Wise Music Group.
Tyson’s career as a writer is highlighted by “You Were On My Mind.” She originally recorded her classic in 1964, when she was partnered with then-husband Ian Tyson in the folk duo Ian & Sylvia. The song became a major hit in the US (1965) when the San Francisco group We Five took their upbeat folk/rock arrangement of the song to No. 3; the following year, British vocalist Crispian St. Peters’ version reached No. 2 in the UK. The timeless number has been recorded in Italy as “Io Ho In Mente Te,” in France as “Ca M’avance a Quoi,” and in China as “Wo shi Yun Yi Zhen.”
“Wise Music Group is thrilled and honored to welcome Sylvia and her legendary publishing catalog to our iconic collection of recognizable hit songs. With offices in nine major music territories across the globe, Wise Music is not only uniquely suited to further build upon Sylvia’s storied legacy but also to create and develop novel opportunities for her compositions,” says Jeffrey Duncan, EVP Wise Music Group.
Tyson says, “I’m delighted to join the distinguished company of songwriters under the Wise Music Group umbrella, and look forward to revitalizing my song catalogue with their support and encouragement.”
Born Sylvia Fricker in Chatham, Ontario, she began her career as a teenager in the coffeehouses of Toronto. From 1959 to 1974, she and Ian Tyson attained worldwide fame as Ian & Sylvia; recordings like their much-covered standard “Four Strong Winds” served as an inspiration for such later Canada-bred performers as Neil Young and Joni Mitchell.
Following the end of her marriage, she began a solo career, recording 10 albums. She re-recorded “You Were On My Mind” as the title track of her 1989 album for the Canadian folk label Stony Plain Records; that version reached No. 35 on the Canadian country chart. She is a seven-time Juno Award nominee. Her top 40 Canadian country singles have also included “River Road,” “Sleep on My Shoulder,” “Love is a Fire,” “Denim Blue Eyes,” “Too Short a Ride,” and “I Walk These Rails.” Since 1993, she has been a member of the all-female group Quartette.
Tyson was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame (as a member of Ian & Sylvia) in 1992, the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2003, and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2019. She received the Order of Canada, the nation’s second-highest civilian honor, in 1994.
Wise Music Group owns or controls nearly half a million copyrights – including the world’s largest independent holding of historic and contemporary classical music – as well as a huge range of popular songs spanning evergreen, jazz, reggae, blues, pop and rock.
