Remembering Roger Miller on his birthday

Raising a glass to singer/songwriter Roger Miller with a few vintage clips and an interesting interview with his brother Wendell. 

Handsome Ned doc "You Left Me Blue" screens at Paradise Theatre, January 10

Chris Terry & Ross Edmunds' 2010 film about T.O. rockabilly icon Handsome Ned gets a rare screening at the Paradise Saturday.

Here's the scoop...

Handsome Ned Masyk (June 4, 1957 – January 10, 1987) was a Canadian country singer and songwriter. Although he only released a small number of singles during his lifetime, he was one of the key figures in the transformation of the city’s Queen Street West district into a cultural hotspot. 

You Left Me Blue is a detailed portrait of an emerging artist and music scene. Ned’s been credited as the catalyst for an early-1980s country music and roots rock revival in Toronto which paved the way for acts such as Blue Rodeo, Skydiggers and Cowboy Junkies. The reverence for Ned held by so many of the musicians interviewed, from Blue Rodeo’s Greg Keelor to Steve Koch of (The Demics, The Ugly), is clear.  All share a deep admiration for him and an appreciation for what he stood for.On the anniversary of his passing, this screening is a fitting tribute to his legacy. 

You Left Me Blue: The Handsome Ned Story screens at the Paradise Theatre (1006 Bloor St. West) on Saturday (January 10) at 3:00 pm. Doors at 2:15 pm. Get advance tickets right here. Watch the trailer below.

 

One For The Weekend: Johnny Paycheck

After all the NYE festivities, leave it to Johnny Paycheck to bring things right back down with "The Old Year Is Gone" 

Congrats to Nardwuar on his Order of Canada honour!

Cheers to BC journalist Nardwuar – known for his well-researched celebrity interviews – now a member of the Order of Canada!

R.I.P. singer & harmonica ace Howard Willett

Sadly, singer/harmonica ace Howard Willett – who played with the BeBop Cowboys & Whiskey Jack among others – has passed away. He'll be greatly missed.  

DMZ's "Lost Studio Sesssions 1978" being released by Crypt Records in January

DMZ's live-in-studio demo session,  recorded just prior to recording their Sire album in 1978,  was recently discovered on a tape reel long thought lost. 

Here's the scoop...

Crypt Records presents DMZ “The Lost Studio Sessions 1978” (Crypt-127, out in JANUARY 2026)

12 songs from the original master reel tapes, recorded in early February 1978, the night before they spent 3 days trapped by a blizzard recording their Sire album.

JJ Rassler: “We went down to NY to record the Sire album in February 1978, and Seymour put us into a studio in Queens to lay down some basic tracks so Flo & Eddie could get an idea of what DMZ sounded like. And a few days later we headed to Syosset to record with Flo & Eddie.”

Q: So where was the reel sitting all this time?

JJ Rassler: “Somebody back then musta handed it to Ronnie and said ‘here, hang on to this’ and 35 years later my landlady called Ronnie and wanted him to come in and do some work on her property. I come home, and there’s a note from Ronnie that says ‘Hey, I haven’t seen ya in 35 years, but I’ve got something that you might want’ and the next day that reel was on my kitchen table.”

Here's a preview... check Crypt Records mailorder site for more info soon. 

Remembering Gil Mellé on his birtthday

Musician/composer Gil Mellé created the futuristic soundtrack for 1971's Andromeda Strain and '72's Future Shock.