It is with sadness that we announce the passing of Toronto keyboardist Herve Basset. He was an early member of the Hamilton/Burlington group Smoke Wagon Blues Band and played with many area musicians as well. We will post more details as they become known. Our condolences to his fans, friends and family.
Here are a few heartfelt comments from social media
Corey Lueck (Smoke Wagon Blues Band):
Herve was a dear friend and musical brother, we traveled all over this damn province together making music, the chemistry we had on stage took us to some crazy lands and back. Herve played on many of our early albums and close fans of the band will always remember him as "Greasy Bones Herve"
Herve, your life was taken away way too soon and it is hard to understand why tragic things like this happen to such talented & good people. So glad we were able to work together and will always remember all the great times we shared.
You were one of a kind brother. You were nice and kind to everyone and treated all with such genuine love. Peace out amigo. To all my friends, I know how much this shocks and hurts, so we will celebrate his amazingness each time we're blessed to hit a stage or share in the enjoyment of music.
The loss of Herve Basset leaves a huge hole in our community. Just a lovely, sweet, generous man and an infectiously enthusiastic and creative musician.
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Paul C. Young, a musician and wonderful supporter of the area music scene. He passed away on June 23, 2017 from medical complications. Our condolences to his fans, friends and family.
Jeremiah Budnark of the Brantford Open Stage had this to say on his Facebook page
It is with great regret that I must share the sad news of Paul Young's passing due to complications from liver and renal failure. Paul has been in hospital for the last couple of weeks. As per his wishes, this was not made generally known. Yesterday he got worse and was transferred to ICU. He passed away peacefully this past morning. He was 62.
As per Paul's wishes, there will be no funeral or memorial service. However, he did want a party! "No sad songs, only happy memories and happy music."
So, there shall be a party, a wake. I'll post when and where as soon as it's been decided.
Farewell, my friend . . .
From Lou the blogger:
I had the honour and pleasure of knowing Paul. I loved going to his yearly, private Jakefest celebrations (named after his late, beloved dog). While there, I met wonderful people and heard great music. I will miss his friendship and warm smile.
Stephen Shelton: I've known Paul since high school he will be missed His support of original music at his Jakefest annual party's brought joy to all who attended. He will be missed.
Mark McNeil: He was a kind man and a great friend of folk music.
We will have details here on any memorial party once we have information.
After mastering straight ahead Blues rock and the nuances of acoustic Blues as well, Hamilton's Steve Strongman has decided to kick thing up a notch with his latest, No Time Like Now(fromSonic Unyon Records/Sony Music Canada). His sound's extremely energized, funky and ready to take on anything that crosses its path!
This unstoppable Blues train will hit you head on with its adrenaline-pumping power and shake you to your foundations, only to soothe you with the two beautiful final tracks. No Time Like Now is one hell of a sonic experience!
Helping Steve with his great new sound are some of his usual talented co-horts: drummers Dave King/Adam Warner, bassists Rob Szabo/Alec Fraserand keyboardist Jesse O'Brien. The album also features a stellar guitar cameo from Randy Bachman playing on a reborn version of his classic You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet.
So get your but down to one of his fabulous live shows and pick up a copy of this CD or go online to Amazon.ca,
iTunesor eMusicto get your recommended dose of high-octane Blues.
First impressions are important, especially in the music industry. With that in mind, the CBC Music recently chose their 25 Best Canadian Debut Albums list to celebrate our country's 150th. Not surprisingly, there were a few local entries.
3 amazing local artists have taken the first step towards winning the prestigious Polaris Music Prize. The Long List was recently unveiled and a trio of albums from area musicians are on it. Hamilton rockers Arkellsand B.A. Johnston are in the running along with Welland's Daniel Romano.
Hammertown's incredible artistic community took centre stage at the City of Hamilton Arts Awards ceremony on June 7, 2017 at the Hamilton Central Library. Established winners received $2,500 and a medallion. Emerging artists were awarded $1,000 and a certificate.
There were three music-related winners. In the Music, Established category cellist and composer Kirk Starkey took top spot.
Nominations are out for the 2017 Independent Blues Awards and a few incredible local artists (as well as a number of other fabulous Canadian acts) are up for some of the honours.
Hamilton's Smoke Wagon Blues Band has a whopping 5 nominations (Best Contemporary CD, Best Modern Roots CD, Best New Artist, Best New Artists CD and Best RnB/Soul Song).
You can do your part by voting for our talented performers in the contest. Deadline to do so is on August 1, 2017. Winners will be announced August 13, 2017. Click here to vote.
Here's a complete list of nominees (Canadians are bolded)
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