Originally Published: 2008-03-16

JEFF HEALEY: The Canadian music community is mourning the loss of one of its most respected and loved stars. The blues-rock singer/guitar virtuoso died at age 41, on March 2, after a valiant battle with cancer. Healey honed his chops on the Toronto club circuit as a teenager, dazzling audiences with his unique style. Blues guitar greats like STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN, ALBERT COLLINS, and B.B. KING soon sang his praises, and Healey catapulted to international prominence via the million-selling, Grammy-nominated 1988 album See The Light and the big hit “Angel Eyes.” Over the past decade, Healey devoted himself to his other musical passion: classic American jazz from the ’20s to ’40s. He played acoustic guitar and fluent trumpet in JEFF HEALEY’S JAZZ WIZARDS, a group that released three acclaimed albums. His encyclopedic knowledge of the genre and vast (30,000 plus) record collection also made him a popular radio DJ (on CBC‘s “My Kinda Jazz” and Jazz FM). Healey also lent his name to two Toronto live music clubs: Healey’s and now Jeff Healey’s Roadhouse. OTB frequently caught Healey in full live flight over the past 20-plus years (including guest appearances with Vaughan and Collins), and in several interviews was impressed with his love of music and wry humour. Expect plenty of tribute events in the months ahead, while his first blues-rock album in eight years, the recently-recorded Mess Of Blues, will be released on April 22. Fans wanting to pay tribute in a positive sense are asked by his family to consider a donation to Daisy’s Eye Cancer Research Fund (www.daisyseyecancerfund.ca. Jeff Healey will indeed be missed, and we send sincere condolences to his family and friends.
BLACK MOUNTAIN: Their Lee’s Palace show sold out well in advance, testifying to the well-deserved attention this Vancouver band is getting. They have a growing international following for their ’70s inflected prog/psychedelic/hard rock hybrid, one growing via killer new album In the Future. To duplicate its full sonic grandeur in a noisy club was a difficult task, but Black Mountain came close. They concentrated on the new material, and it was the powerful warbling of singer AMBER WEBBER and the atmospheric keyboards of JEREMY SCHMIDT that propelled their sound forward. The vocals of group mainman STEPHEN McBEAN were a little lost in the mix, but his guitar work was suitably powerful. The opening band, American trio BON IVER, showed flashes of brilliance, but were a little too subdued in their sound to cut through the chatter. The fact that the two guitarists were seated didn’t exactly add to the energy level.

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