Don Messer was one of Townsend's important and early musical influences, in addition to Irish fiddlers Tom McQuestion, who was his first fiddle teacher, and Billy Crawford, both whom lived in Toronto.
[1][2][3] As Steve Fruitman from backtothesugarcamp.com has researched from Sam Cormier, Graham Townsend found himself immersed in the continual round of musical events graced by friends and neighbours of his immediate clan in Quebec.
Graham’s cousin, Gerald Houston in Poltimore, would take him to hear Billy and Lorne Smith, local fiddlers who specialized in Irish and Scottish music.
Fruitman also notes that, although Don Messer, through the radio and his many recordings, was the folk fiddling idol of the masses across Canada, he was not the popular hero in the group in which Graham lived and played.
Indeed, the early records Graham remembers best from his boyhood were those by (Joseph) Allard, Bouchard, Beaulieu and (Isadore) Soucy from Quebec, (Michael) Coleman, Morrison and Cronin from Ireland and Scott Skinner from Scotland.
The first performance was on Parliament Hill in Ottawa for Expo 67 with step dancers Gilles Roy, Donny Gilchrist and button accordionist Phillippe Bruneau.
Townsend also performed in a tribute show to Don Messer and in many festivals as a solo artist throughout Canada, Australia, the United States and Europe.