I grew up in the era when Tony Orlando ruled the charts, so to say I was thrilled (and a little nervous) to talk directly to such an iconic legend would be an understatement.  I reached Tony Orlando at his home in Branson, Missouri and he was charming and wonderful to interview. I immediately felt like I was talking to an old friend.

His energy and excitement about his current life and career, along with the star-studded stories was like talking to a guy in his 20’s just starting out and his love of life shines through in his every word.

Tony Orlando was born Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis, in New York City, the son of a Greek father, (Leo) and a Puerto Rican mother (Ruth). “My parents didn’t always understand my need to entertain but they were so supportive of helping me with my dreams. My mom was actually with me when I signed my first record deal; I was only 15 so she had to be part of the signing due to my age. The lawyer in attendance was none other than Clive Davis!"

Little River Band have amassed worldwide album and CD sales of over 30 million and are the first band to have Top 10 hits in 6 consecutive years.  Bassist/vocalist Wayne Nelson joined LRB in 1980 and worked alongside founding members with some of the most distinctive harmonies and vocal abilities in pop music, creating the unique LRB sound.  To date, Nelson’s vocal and bass guitar talents are included on 23 Little River Band albums.  The band continues to record and tour throughout the world and hosts a fan club with global memberships.

We caught up with Wayne Nelson at his home in the USA, and the conversation was one of passion for the music, a love of the fans and respect for all the people who make LRB continue to perform at sold-out concerts. (and will do so again once the pandemic makes it possible to resume their hectic booking schedule.)

“You can take the boy out of Oakland but you can’t take Oakland out of the boy.”

That line from band leader and founder Emilio Castillo is crucial to understanding how, against all odds, an Oakland CA. band took the world by storm. Also crucial, 50 Years of Funk & Soul: Live at the Fox Theater – Oakland, CA June 2018, which drops March 26, 2020. As much cultural artifact as album, it plays out the Tower of Power history in story and song.

Who better to tell the story than Emilio Castillo himself?

Castillo was only 17 years old when he met Stephen "Doc" Kupka and started to assemble the band that would become Tower of Power. “I had no vision at all, I just loved playing soul music. My idols were a tight little local band called The Spyders and they had gigged in Sacramento. I thought, ‘Man, if I could just get to Sacramento that would be it.’ That's literally how small my vision was at the time.”

The first song I (Michael Williams) ever learned on guitar was written by Mark Farner, “I’m your Captain Closer to Home “by Grand Funk, the second one was “Stairway to Heaven”!

Mark Farner:  “One night my mom packed up the whole extended family in Leachville, Arkansas and moved us all to Flint, Michigan for high paying auto factory jobs. People migrated from all over the South, and the music followed.”

“I sat by the radio eating mayonnaise-horseradish sandwiches, waiting for John R on “The Royal Crown Radio Hairdressing Show” on WLAC Nashville.  Michigan was a crossroads where north met South, late night AM radio was King, Rosalie Trombley was the Queen at CKLW Windsor, Ontario.

Grand Funk Railroad, made up of 3 Flint natives, ? and the Mysterians bassist and two former members of Terry Knight and the Pack, Grand Funk was born. Mythic status was guaranteed after their first live performance at “The Atlanta International Pop Festival”, in 1969 in front of 150, 000 fans. A year later Grand Funk released 3 multi platinum albums including the classic anthem “Closer to Home” released June 15th 1970.

Dan Hill has reached the peak of the proverbial songwriter mountain, induction into Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.

“I have now been included with my heroes, my mentors my university professors Leonard Cohen, Gordon Lightfoot, Bruce Cockburn to name a few.. To be included in the same list as the these writers is the greatest honour and most humbling accomplishment in my career.”

Over his 40 plus year career Dan has had much success, not only as a songwriter but as a Grammy nominated Best Male Vocalist, Grammy winner as co-producer of “Seduces Me” on Celine Dion’s ‘Falling Into You’ album that topped 30 million in sales and the winner of five Juno Awards and recipient of the Harold Moon Award  SOCAN’S Canadian Lifetime Achievement Award as well releasing multiple gold and platinum selling albums.

So now might be a good time to kick back and bask in the spoils of a well-earned rest. But Dan is not resting instead he is releasing a brand new album. I’ve been digging to try and find another artist who gets inducted into a Hall of Fame and releases a brand new body of work all in the same week.  Haven’t found one yet except for Dan Hill.

The east coast of Canada, the Maritimes, has yielded some fine country music talent. Hank Snow, Carroll Baker, Bruce Guthro, Anne Murray and George Canyon to name a few.  And there’s a new name vying for inclusion on that list.

Laurie LeBlanc has a unique and fresh sounding blending country with his East Coast Acadian roots. His latest album, “When It’s Right It’s Right,” the much anticipated follow up to his debut English release is a collection of 10 original songs co-written with some of Nashville’s top writers and produced by multi-CCMA award winner, the legendary  Jason Barry and the session players include  members of Dean Brody’s touring band, Brodeo. The finished product is a gem and is a perfect vehicle to introduce Laurie Leblanc to a mainstream audience.

The first single Laurie LeBlanc longs for “Another Night Like This” in this, check it out on YouTube here:

Founding member of the hit Motown group, The Supremes, Mary Wilson died in her sleep on February 8, 2021 in  Las Vegas at the age of 76. The cause of death is unknown. Two days before her death, she had announced that she was planning to release new solo material with Universal Music Group with plans to release it out before March 6, her birthday.

She began her career in Detroit in 1959 as a singer in a group that was then called The Primettes, the female version of the male Motown group The Primes. They went on to become The Supremes, Motown's most successful group of the 1960s, with 12 number one singles including "Where Did Our Love Go," "Baby Love," “ Love Is Here And Now You’re Gone” a nd "Stop! In the Name of Love."

Wilson’s publicist, Jay Schwartz,  issued a statement, “Their influence not only carries on in contemporary R&B, soul and pop, they also helped pave the way for mainstream success by Black artists across all genres," He went on to say  Mary Wilson was a ”trendsetter who broke down social, racial, and gender barriers."  

Having the distinct one word name Goddo conjures up a musical history firmly etched in Canadian icon status. The man behind that name, Greg Godovitz, has had a reputation not only in his performances but in his personality.

“I was really direct in my early days, and I think that paved the way for my reputation of being rude, arrogant and outspoken. Truth is I lost many an opportunity because I spoke my mind. I have mellowed a bit as years have gone by, but I am still a bit of the unfiltered guy from back then.”

But underneath all of that reputation is an eager soul, excited to tell more of his stories and share this new (2^nd) book” Up Close and Umcomfortable.”

When a Canadian music festival has been running for 19 consecutive years — in the middle of winter, no less — rest assured, they’ve seen it all.

And this year, Toronto’s annual Winterfolk Blues and Roots Festival can add ‘pivoting to online due to a pandemic’ to that list.

Undeterred, Winterfolk XIX is set to stream Friday, February 19th and Saturday, February 20th online. Registration to watch is free, and optional donations will be collected in support of the Daily Bread Foodbank.

Toronto’s 19th Annual Winterfolk Blues and Roots Festival Back With FREE Virtually Streamed Performances on:
Friday, February 19th - 7:00pm - 10:00pm
Saturday, February 20th -7:00pm - 10:00pm

There’s little doubt that had Robbie Burns, the Ploughman Poet , been born a hundred years later he would have a certified triple A rock star. The ladies’ man, the poet, the eternal romantic. Burns was in fact regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic period, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement that started in Europe toward the end of the 18th century, peaking from  about 1800 to 1850. Whether his subject was a man or a mouse or even a louse, Scotland’s National Bard had that rare talent of putting himself into others peoples place and circumstances and found a way to express  life's universal emotions

David Pomeranz's recording and songwriting projects have earned him a total of 22 platinum and 18 gold records and his solo albums and concert performances have delighted and inspired audiences all over the world.

Pomeranz has had songs that have been recorded and/or performed by scores of artists including Barry Manilow (who scored two Number One hits with David’s "Tryin' To Get The Feeling Again" and "The Old Songs") Bette Midler, Kenny Rogers, Clay Aiken, Phoebe Snow, Freddie Mercury, Cliff Richard (who recorded three Pomeranz' songs including the Top Ten U.K. hit, David’s and Dean Pitchford’s stunning, "I Still Believe in You") The Muppets, Kenny Loggins, Richie Sambora (of Bon Jovi), Dennis DeYoung (of Styx), Missy Elliott (who sampled one of David’s recordings for her million-selling hit, “One Minute Man”), The Carpenters, The Hollies, Harry Belafonte, Hubert Laws, Lou Rawls, Andrea Marcovicci, John Denver, Mary Travers, Leo Sayer, Eddie Kendricks (of the Temptations), Donna Summer, Glen Campbell, Lillias White and Kathie Lee Gifford.

I have been struggling for days to write this story after hearing that Gerry Marsden had passed away on January 3, 2021 from complications of a heart infection.

For me personally, it was a hard one to accept, Gerry Marsden was gone and I had lost a friend.

So writing this I struggled because Cashbox needed to acknowledge this amazingly talented singer, songwriter and philanthropist and truly a brilliant stage performer, but having worked with him on tour, I didn’t want to make this too much about me, and how his death affected me for the last few days.

I had called his mobile a few weeks ago to try to set up an interview with our Station Manager at Cashbox Radio, Peter Astedt, get some station IDs and do a story in both Cashbox Canada and Record World Magazine. I did not get to connect but I just put that down to Christmas and the holidays. Little did I know that a few weeks later I would hear Gerry had passed away.

My father used to say you can’t wait to be 18 then suddenly you are 40. Life speeds up and we all know how quickly that happens as we go from teenagers to adults. (although luckily in the music industry we never really accept being adults, or as the song says ‘Forever Young’.

But 2020 has been a slow and painful year on so many levels. I call it COVID-time; where you don’t know what day it, not that it really matters anyway. You look at the time and expect to see it be around 6 or 7pm then it shows that it is only 2 or 3 pm. The weird part of that it is Monday then suddenly it is Friday again. We have lost so much time and missed our business colleagues, friends and families on so many special occasions. Sadly, some of us have lost people we love as well to this terrible pandemic.

But the human race is a resilient one, and the feedback I get from my music friends is everyone is ready to come back stronger and better in 2021.

Of course we all know that famous line from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.

I have been reflecting about many things this Christmas and on how the world changed for all of us this year.

As a member of the media and the music world my friends, artists and colleagues all got hit hard and it went down slowly and painfully. In my world, one by one major festivals I was supposed to be attending were canceled, postponed or switched to a virtual format. It was like slow motion watching it happen, surreal and hard to handle.

Charley Pride has left this earthly plane but his legacy and music will live on forever. A trailblazer, pioneer, role model, superstar and one of only three African American members of the Grand Old Opry the others being DeFord Baily and Darius Rucker. Pride passed away of complications of COVID-19 at the age of 86.

On November 11th, Pride was onstage performing at the 2020 Country Music Association Awards where he received the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award, an honour given  to “an iconic artist who has attained the highest degree of recognition in Country Music.” Charley performed his first #1 hit “Kiss An Angel Good Morning “ along with another young black artist Jimmie Allen.

Our library statistics in Record World Chart history show Charley Pride had 49 hit records of which 33 reached #1. In 1972 he had a duet hit with Henry Mancini, “All His Children” peaked at # 1.

Cashbox Magazine Charts show he had 67 Hit Songs of which 30 peaked at #1.

Charley Pride’s biggest hit was “Kiss An Angel Good Morning"

“We’ve waited 34 years to create an original release for Christmas and this Christmas, is one that most people will never forget.”

Created during the summer of 2020, with the world continuing its fight to recover from the massive impact of a global pandemic, “Songs For A Winter’s Night” is primarily a collection of original Christmas/Holiday songs written by Glass Tiger and joined by guest artists such as Roch Voisine, Natalie MacMaster, Isabel Bayrakdarian, Steve Sidwell Orchestra and of course the legendary Gordon  adds his voice to a very special poem written by Alan Frew, “Ode For A Winter’s Night”.

In doing so, the legendary Mr Lightfoot, is giving his personal thumbs up to the lads, for their covering of his classic hit, “A Song For A Winter’s Night.” With this eclectic mix of holiday music, Songs For A Winter’s Night, stirs the spirit and soul with the central theme focussing on gratitude for the things in life that matter most, like love and kindness; equality & friendship; and of course, family.

The single release is Happy Holiday (Joyeux Noel Mes Amis) Glass Tiger & Roch Voisine – check it out here:

The 16th Annual Andy Kim Christmas Special, presented by AIR MILES will make its national television debut on Citytv and Citytv.com as well as streamed globally at LiveNation.com. The two-hour music special will broadcast from Toronto’s one and only, El Mocambo on December 19 at 8 p.m

The Television Special in support of Crew Nation, CAMH Gifts of Light and Food Banks Canada airs Saturday, December 19 at 8 p.m. on Citytv and Citytv.com

Canadian legend and folk icon Murray McLauchan is raising his voice again, and we’re glad he is.

I believe it was Woody Guthrie who said “ A folksinger’s job is to comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable and McLaughlan is rising to the occasion.

Watch the video for “I Live On a White Cloud here:

For 32 Christmases Tom Jackson’s Huron Carole has been a staple in Canada, touring the country bringing cheer and hope to the nation. But with the current pandemic, what will happen to Year 33? The need to social distance and travel limitations made for a huge obstacle in continuing this tradition.

Festivals and live events were being cancelled and postponed across the board but this was Tom Jackson we are talking about here. Tom is no stranger to stones in the road and fallen trees in his path. We caught up with him at his home in Calgary and the calmness and sense of resolve in his voice is something that soothes the nerves and gives a sense that every problem has a solution.

If you’re a Kim Mitchell fan then you’re in for a treat and if you’re not a Kim Mitchell fan yet then you will be after listening to this latest offering from this legendary Canadian icon.

This latest album, ‘The Big Fantasize’, is his eighth studio collection as a solo artist, having  previously had five albums as the front man of the highly successful band Max Webster. The last time his fans heard from Mitchell was his 2007 album ‘Ain’t Life Amazing’, an album of rock tunes in the tried and true Kim Mitchell style.