Music

Submitted by Cashbox Canada
Photo: Frankie Hart, Lisa Hartt, Bobby Cohen, Don Gaham, Zita DaSilva

On Thursday, November 15th, on the shores of Lake Ontario at the Balmy Beach Club in Toronto, a Bullying Awareness night titled ‘Scars That You Can’t See’ was front and centre. Singer/songwriter Don Graham put a call out to his friends and fellow performers to put on a show to aid a great cause, a bullying prevention concert/fundraiser. With the staff of the company that manages his career, Entertainment Music Group, Graham assembled a cast of singer/songwriter talent from different genres of music and put on a fine display of caring and human kindness. The talent ranged in age and diversity and musical styles with seasoned performers and up and coming stars of the future.

Lisa HarttThe evening was based on a Graham/DaSilva song ‘Scars That You Can’t See’ with a chorus of “ Sticks and stones may break their bones, but broken bones will heal…but the words we use when we abuse, leave scars that you can’t see.”

They Also Served From Rock 'n' Roll to Lock and Load
Submitted by Don Graham

More so in the United States than Canada, due to conscription, it wasn’t unusual for musical stars to become active members of the Armed Forces. From Tony Bennett to Elvis to Johnny Cash to Willie Nelson to Jimi Hendrix all the way to Shaggy in Desert Storm,they also served.

We hear a lot about famous athletes who served their country, sometimes interrupting booming careers to enlist and do their part, athletes like baseball’s Ted Williams and Bob Feller. And of course Yogi Berra and Joe DiMaggio. Boxing sent Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney. There were many, many more. All were proud to do their patriotic duty.

The field of music also had its share of men who traded guitars for rifles and rhinestones for fatigues.

Tony Bennett aka Anthony Benedetto was drafted into the United States Army in November 1944, during the final stages of World War II. Upon his discharge from the Army and return to the States in 1946, Benedetto studied at the American Theatre Wing on the GI Bill.

Submitted by Don Graham

Remembrance Day/Veterans Day every November brings back to the forefront the wars of our past and wars we continue to fight. And we remember  the brave men and women who fought and died and continue to fight for our freedoms.

Could John Lennon have imagined that over 40 years later people around the world would still be singing and listening to his song Give Peace a Chance? As John said of the song when interviewed in 1980,  “ Well, after being interviewed for weeks and weeks and weeks, night and day, with Yoko and me talking about peace from our beds, I had those words coming out of me mouth or Yoko's - wherever the hell they came from - and it became a song.”  “ It wasn't like 'You have to have peace!' Just give it a chance. We ain't giving any gospel here - just saying how about this version for a change? We think we have the right to have a say in the future. And we think the future is made in your mind. Lennon used the phrase "All we are saying is give peace a chance" during an interview on the first day of the bed-in. Over the next few days he worked up a melody and lyrics, and recorded the song during the final day of the event. The song was intentionally simple, with two chords and a chorus which anyone could join in on. The verses, meanwhile, were largely nonsense.

Submitted by Michael E. Williams

In 1974, upon arriving in Montreal from Cleveland, I immediately sought out the soul music and music with soul. I found it in Montreal clubs and discos like Rockhead's Paradise, In Concert, and The Esquire Show Bar.

In the same year, CBS Records Canada headhunted producer Bob Gallo to become head of A&R. A musician, arranger and composer himself, Bob was impressive in his ability to spot and nurture talent. He wrote for and produced such legends as Otis Redding, James Brown, Ben E. King, Patti LaBelle, Aretha Franklin, Big Mabel, The Rascals, The Drifters and Bo Diddley.

Bob Gallo was the right man for the job to beef up Canada’s soul music scene by signing Crack of Dawn, as the first Canadian Black Band to be signed to a major record deal.

In 1975, they released a well-received single produced by Bob Gallo, a song originally meant for Otis Redding called “The Key”. It was followed by “It’s Alright Feel that Feeling” and the album “Crack of Dawn”. The band broke up in 1977, reformed in 1981 for “Horizons” under Dwight Gabriel. Different band but great record and songs.

I stayed in contact with Glen Ricketts, the Harvey Brothers, and Trevor Daley always bugging them through the years about a Crack of Dawn Reunion. This Canada Day I got my wish. I was asked to host their reunion shows at Ontario Place and the Phoenix Club. I was honoured! The band was great, with Michael Dunston on vocals replacing Glen Ricketts.