CMT News

John Morris Rankin, a member of the Canadian musical group the Rankin Family (later called the Rankins), died Sunday when his car veered into the Gulf of St. Lawrence near his home in Cape Breton. The fiddler and pianist was 40. Authorities say he swerved to avoid a salt pile and ran off the narrow road. His son and two other teenagers survived the wreck. Although the Rankin Family never made America's country or pop charts, they did sometimes perform in the U. S. and were stars throughout Canada. They also received American exposure via such music videos as "Fare Thee Well Love," "Orangedale Whistle" and "The River."