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Jeff (Jeffrey) Norman Healey. Guitarist, singer, songwriter, b Toronto 25 Mar 1966, d there 2 Mar 2008. Blind from the age of one, Jeff Healey began playing guitar at three. He soon developed an unusual style, similar to that employed by Fred McKenna, placing the instrument across his lap and fretting the strings 'overhand,' with four fingers and his thumb. As a youth he played country music, jazz, rock and reggae. He was named to the Canadian Stage Band All Stars in 1983 and 1984 while a member of the Etobicoke Collegiate Senior Stageband and worked with such short-lived Toronto bands as Rap City and Blue Direction.
Concentrating on 1960s-styled blues-rock under the influence of Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton, he formed the Jeff Healey Band late in 1985 with Joe Rockman (bass guitarist, b Toronto 1 Jan 1957) and Tom Stephen (drummer, b Saint John, NB, 2 Feb 1955). After several club tours across Canada, the trio made a dramatic breakthrough internationally in 1988 with the LP See the Light (Arista AL-8553) and sensational appearances in the United States (including the TV programs Late Night with David Letterman and The Tonight Show) and in Europe. The song 'Angel Eyes' was a major US hit, and 'Confidence Man' was also popular. Jeff Healey's extraordinary, if unorthodox, virtuosity was highlighted in 'Hideaway' (from See the Light); the song was nominated in 1988 for a Grammy Award as best rock instrumental performance. His greatest mainstream success was with relatively convention pop ballads (eg, 'Angel Eyes,' 'I Think I Love You Too Much') sung in a rich, husky voice. In 1989 See the Light received Holland's Edison Award for best foreign rock recording and Healey was nominated for a Juno Award as Most Promising Male Vocalist. See the Light received a nomination for Album of the Year in 1990, and Healey won a Juno Award as entertainer of the year and a World Music Award for Best Selling Canadian Artist. The Jeff Healey Band was seen in 1989 in the US feature film Road House - Healey played a house musician in the film - and the band contributed four songs to the movie's soundtrack (Arista AL-8576). Later in his career Jeff Healey contributed the song 'Bulletproof' on the soundtrack featured in The Glimmer Man. Healey's second album, Hell to Pay (Arista ARCD-8632), issued in 1990, included the Canadian hits 'I Think I Love You Too Much,' 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps,' and 'How Long Can a Man Be Strong' and included Jeff Lynne, Mark Knopfler, Paul Shaffer, Bobby Whitlock and George Harrison. The trio continued to tour internationally, adding Japan and Australia to its itinerary in 1989. Combined international sales of See the Light and Hell to Pay exceeded 4 million by 1991. In 1992 the band released Feel This, which included Molly Johnson and Paul Shaffer and featured the single 'Cruel Little Number' and the song 'Lost in Your Eyes' that was written by Tom Petty. The Jeff Healey Band left Arista Records in 1995 and released Cover to Cover that same year. The CD's single 'Shapes of Things' received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Instrumental Rock Performance (1996). Healey founded his own recording company, Forte Records and Productions, and one of the first artists to sign with the company was Amanda Marshall. After a five-year absence, the band released Get Me Some in 2000. Jeff Healey hosted a national radio program called 'My Kinda Jazz' on CBC and then continued to host the program when it moved to JAZZ-FM. One of the highlights of 'My Kinda Jazz' was the selections from Healey's vast personal collection of rare, vintage 78s. Healey established Jeff Healey and the Jazz Wizards and released the jazz albums Among Friends (2002), Adventures in Jazzland (2006) and It's Tight Like That (2006). The albums featured early American jazz and Healey played the trumpet, trombone and the guitar. Jeff Healey won numerous awards including an honorary licentiate from the Royal Conservatory of Music in recognition of his extensive knowledge of classic jazz music and an honorary Doctorate of Letters degree from McMaster University.
Bibliography
Miller, Mark. 'Most people kind of figured that I descended out of space,' Toronto Globe and Mail, 15 Jan 1986 Quill, Greg. 'Blind faith,' Toronto Star, 18 Apr 1986 Doole, Kerry. 'Young, gifted and blue,' Music Express, 134, Mar 1989 - 'Judgement day,' Music Express, 149, Jul 1990
Links to Other Sites
Canadian musician Jeff Healey dies of cancer
A CBC obituary for award-winning Canadian rock and jazz musician Jeff Healey.
Jeff Healey
The website for the late guitarist and bandleader Jeff Healey.
Jeff Healey
A Toronto Star tribute to the legendary blues guitarist and old-style jazz aficionado Jeff Healey. Features a photo and video clip.
Jeff Healey And The Jazz Wizards
Listen to selected songs from recordings of Jeff Healey And The Jazz Wizards. From Stony Plain Records.
Jeff Healey All-Stars & Jazz Wizards at Palais Royale
Listen to this CBC recording of Jeff Healey All-Stars & Jazz Wizards at the Palais Royale.
CBC Concerts on Demand
From country to calypso and the classics, the “Concerts on Demand” website offers hundreds of online recordings of outstanding concerts originally broadcast on CBC Radio 2. Search this site to find and listen to recordings of your favourite musician, group, or music genre.
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| THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MUSIC IN CANADA |
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