Rock & Roll Heaven

Len Nevin was a Northern Ontario Country Music Hall of Fame inductee who made music for more than 40 years.

Nevin died January 6, 2012 at Sault Area Hospital after a brief illness. Nevin was 74. With his wife, Yuanita, he toured Ontario and Michigan with his Country Ramblers band. That group disbanded in 1991, but the Plummer Hospital tradesman kept performing. Nevin played bass with Happy Days Band, featured Wednesday afternoons at Royal Canadian Legion Branch 25. Two other groups, Yesterday's Wine and Friends, entertained seniors in nursing and retirement homes.

"It's such a thrill for me to see that my God, we're getting through to a few of these people," he told The Sault Star in 2007. "I've seen it happen. It's fantastic." Not only was he "a good musician," he made sure to arrive early before the rest of the Happy Days Band to set up before a show at the Legion Hall, said bandmate Bob Jenkins. "He moved so much equipment without ever complaining," he said. "He was very generous with his time. He was a really kind guy."

His efforts on the technical side paid off. The band's sound "wasn't great" at first, but picked up after Nevin joined the group. "He'd really look after the details," said Jenkins. When Nevin was inducted to the Northern Ontario Country Music Hall of Fame in 2004, it was Jenkins who did his portrait. "He couldn't do enough for people," he said. "He was most generous with his time, for everybody."

Singer, songwriter and Nashvillian, Dobie Gray, famous for his 1973 hit song "Drift Away" passed away Tuesday, December 6. Gray's website confirmed his death late Tuesday evening.

Gray was born near Houston, Texas, by his own account in Simonton although some sources suggest the nearby town of Brookshire. His birth name was probably Lawrence Darrow Brown, who is listed in the Fort Bend County Birth Records as being born in 1940 to Jane P. Spencel and Jethro Clifton Brown. Other sources suggest he may have been born Leonard Victor Ainsworth, a name he used on some early recordings.

By Sandy Graham

It is said that the music industry in Canada has become a huge market, mixed with the ‘old school’ that started it all and many, many more professionals who have come on the scene to turn it into a growing, vibrant market of music people. It does show how small the business still is when we lose ‘one of our own’  - and Steve Propas was one of those people.

When word got out yesterday that Propas had passed away suddenly on August 2, 2011, blackberries, emails, facebooks and twitters got the word out to his ‘music family’ to tell each other the sad news that we have lost a one-of-a-kind music man.

I last saw Steve doing what he does best – wheeling and dealing. He was actively holding court at the Canada Stand in Cannes, France at the yearly MIDEM. He looked healthy, happy and very, very busy, which is what he loved to do – make deals.

We all have known Steve in this business through different incarnations of his career – as a band manager, the trailblazer duo of Dixon and Propas, which led to birth of Solid Gold Records, which boasted the best of the best, The Good Brothers, The Mightly Pope, Toronto were just a few of the acts they had at that time. It was the 70’s in Toronto and Neill and Steve were ‘it’ when it came to bookings.

By Don Graham

From 1970 to 1977 the folk/pop band America was one of the hottest commodities on the music scene. With hits like ‘Ventura Highway’, ‘Tin Man’, ‘Sister Golden Hair’ and ‘Horse with No Name’ the music of America was heard everywhere. The trio consisted of  Dewey Bunnel, Gerry Beckley and Dan Peek.

Peek contributed lead and  background vocals as well as playing guitars, bass, keyboards and harmonica on the band’s recording and penned  four Top 100 singles: ‘Don’t Cross The River’(#35), his most successful single ‘Lonely People’ hit (#5), ‘Woman Tonight’ (#44), and ‘Today’s The Day’ (#23). ‘Lonely People’ and ‘Today's the Day’ also hit number 1 on the A/C charts.

Peek left the band and renewed his Christian faith and became a pioneer in the booming Contemporary Christian market. He went on to sign with Pat Boone’s Lamb and Lion Records.

Peek's first album and single (in 1979) ‘All Things Are Possible’ became big hits on Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) radio stations and charts. The single ‘All Things Are Possible’ not only hit number 1 on the CCM singles chart, it also crossed over to the single and adult contemporary charts, becoming one of the earliest  CCM's crossover hits. The album was nominated for a Grammy but lost out to The Imperials ‘Heed the Call’.
On July 24th, 2011 Dan Peek got the call and went to meet the Lord, to whom he had given his heart.

Rest in peace Dan!