1980scanadianmusic

Brad Roberts is the singer/songwriter and guitarist for the iconic Crash Test Dummies. In his chat with Dan Hare Brad talks about: how his degrees in English Literature and Philosophy influence his songwriting; why he thought his baritone voice wasn’t suited for “pop” songs; having a #2 hit on the U.S. Billboard charts; being shunned by the Canadian music industry and embraced by the U.S. scene; his current song writings and the upcoming Crash Test Dummies tours, and much more. Find out about Brad and the band @crashtestdummies.com

Blue Rodeo bassist Bazil “Baz” Donovan is adept at every genre he attempts. In this chat with Dan Hare Bazil talks about his musical background, influences and some of the famous people he has played with including Levon Helm, Kris Kristofferson and others. He also reveals: how he became one of the founding members of Blue Rodeo; why the band has staying power; the “happy accident” that became the ‘Five Days’ album; the famous musicians who jammed with Blue Rodeo at festivals and much more. Find out about Bazil and Blue Rodeo on the bands website @bluerodeo.com

Singer/songwriter and all around entertainer Joey Gregorash returns for fantastic chat with Dan Hare. In his unique, engaging way Joey shares: details on his upcoming show; insights into what makes him a great MC; stories about celebrities such as Peter Noone, Wayne Newton, the late Davy Jones, and others; life lessons learned from the loss of his daughter and wife of 52 years, and much, much more. Find out about Joey on Facebook @ JoeyGregorashFacebook

Gary Fjellgaard is a Juno winning and multi award-winning singer/songwriter, guitar player, and Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame inductee. In this chat with Dan Hare Gary shares much about the early days of his career, working with Valdy, his extensive touring, opening for Tanya Tucker and Dolly Parton, one of his most embarrassing moments on stage, why Royalty Records tried to stop him from performing and so much more. Find out about Gary @fjellgaard.bc.ca

Connie Kaldor is a multi Juno award-winner, singer/songwriter and Order of Canada recipient. In this chat with host Dan Hare Connie talks about: how her theatrical background influenced her career; what being from the prairies taught her about forging her own path; starting her own record label; her eclectic style; her process of songwriting and performing and much more. Find out about Connie on her website @ conniekaldor.com

This is the 11th episode of our special series ‘Guest Glimpses’, short bits from longer conversations with previous guests. You’ll hear about 10 minutes of each guest’s 60+ minute chat with show host Dan Hare. Featured guests this week are:

LEE AARON, who shares the challenges of being taken seriously as a woman in the world of hard rock, what the song 'Heavy Metal Queen' is really about and more.

NATALIE MACMASTER, who discusses some career highlights such as opening for Sanatan, the musicality of her 7 children and much more.

SUSAN AGLUKARK, who explains her unexpected journey to stardom, the various instruments and languages used in some of her songs and much more.

JANN ARDEN, who talks about busking on the streets of Vancouver, the unfortunate event that led to her first record deal, staying in Alberta instead of moving to the states and much more.

Listen to the full interview for each guest @ linernotes.ca

Radio and TV broadcaster Stu Jeffries is best known as the host of CBC TV’s Good Rockin’ Tonight and is currently the morning show host at Boom 97.3 in Toronto. In this fascinating chat with host Dan Hare, Stu talks about: his early days in radio; how he got the Good Rockin’ Tonight job; interviewing some of the biggest international and Canadian musicians; the Brian May “incident”; the two musicians who were mean at interviews; his take on the future of commercial radio and so much more. You can check out Stu @ Boom 97.3

John Webster has worked with everyone from his days as the keyboardist for Stonebolt and Red Rider to his in studio work for such megastars as Aerosmith, AC/DC, Alice Cooper, Bon Jovi, Rush and so many others. In this fascinating conversation with host Dan Hare, John talks about: his days with Stonebolt and Red Rider, his friendship and working relationship with Tom Cochrane, the ins and outs of studio work, having a drink with Robert Plant, why Aerosmith was an amazing band to work for, and much more.

This is the 10th episode of our special series ‘Guest Glimpses’, short bits from longer conversations with previous guests. You’ll hear about 10 minutes of each guest’s 60+ minute chat with show host Dan Hare. Featured guests this week are:

ALFIE ZAPPACOSTA, multi-Juno Award & American Music Award winner singer/songwriter, artist, actor, producer, performer. Alfie talks about his start in the music biz, the confusion of stardom and more.
ERICA EHM, original Much Music VJ, interviewer, author, award-winning songwriter, speaker, entrepreneur and a trailblazer in content marketing and social media. In this chat Erica talks about the quick rise of her career, an inside look at Much Music and more.
IVAN DOROSCHUK, one of the founders and lead singer/songwriter of Men Without Hats. Ivan chats with Dan Hare about the uniqueness of the Montreal music scene, working with his brothers, the hit song ‘Safety Dance’ and more.
JULIE MASI, four time Juno award-winner, singer/songwriter, percussionist and former member of The Parachute Club. Julie talks about why she started playing drums, her involvement in the Winnipeg music scene, joining the Parachute club and more.

Listen to the full interview with each guest @ linernotes.ca.

Legendary sound engineer, mixer and producer Mike Fraser talks to host Dan Hare about his work on iconic rock albums for AC/DC, Aerosmith, Van Halen, Metallica and many others. Mike also shares: how he started as a janitor in Little Mountain Sound; being part of a team with Bob Rock and Bruce Fairbairn; the process of making records; why a sound engineer needs a calming personality; why, in the ‘80s, rock bands descended on Vancouver to make their records; how music production has changed; the valuable lesson he taught his kids and so much more. Check out Mike @ https://mikefrasermix.com/

Winnipeg born Randy Hiebert is a guitarist, bass player, recording engineer and producer who currently plays with, and engineers/produces for, The Bellamy Brothers. In this chat with host Dan Hare, Randy talks about: learning music on his grandfather’s electric organ; playing guitar in his parents country band; his stints with Harlequin and Idle Eyes; how he ended up playing with the Charlie Daniels Band in a concert in Japan; joining The Bellamy Brothers and his own solo work; living on the Bellamy ranch in Florida; the one thing he would change, and much more. You can follow Randy on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/randmanmusic, subscribe to his YouTube channel @ https://www.youtube.com/@randyhiebert683, and check out the Bellamy Brothers @ https://bellamybrothers.com

Singer/songwriter Jane Siberry is an incomparable, multi-fasciated person and performer known for such hits as ‘Mimi On The Beach’ and dueting with k. d. Lang on the song ‘Calling All Angels’. In this very unique and personal chat with host Dan Hare, Jane talks about: the balance between music as art and as science; the energetic connection between performer and artist and why that is so important; why she produces her own music; why she changed her name to Issa - and why she changed it back; what housing rescue animals has taught her; details on writing books and her new music, and so much more. Find out about Jane @ janesiberry.com

In this episode host Dan Hare chats with Ross Rheaume (Roman) and David Smith (Grey) of the 1980s progressive, new wave band Roman Grey. Ross and David share many insights into their experiences including: the moment they “got serious” about making music; the music that influenced their unique and varied sound; having a #1 hit in Italy; the songs that ended up in U.S. TV shows; the exploitive nature of the recording business; why the band really broke up; what they would do differently; what they are up to now and so much more.

With an unprecedented four Juno awards for songwriter of the year, Jim Vallance is one of Canada’s pre-eminent songwriters and the creative force behind top tracks for artists like Bryan Adams (‘Cuts Like A Knife’, ‘Summer of ’69’), Aerosmith (‘Deuces Are Wild’, ‘Rag Doll’), Glass Tiger (‘Don’t Forget Me )When I’m Gone’, ‘Someday’) and Prism (‘Spaceship Superstar’). In this chat with Dan Hare Jim talks about: joining Prism and why he left; the connection and friendship that opened many doors; meeting Bryan Adams; how Heart ended up recording his song ‘What About Love’, and why they almost didn’t; the songwriting process; the Broadway musical he co-wrote with Bryan and so much more. Find all about about Jim @ jimvallance.com

This is the ninth episode of our special series ‘Guest Glimpses’, short bits from longer conversations with previous guests. You’ll hear about 10 minutes of each guest’s 60+ minute chat with show host Dan Hare. Featured guests this week are:

MITCHELL FIELD, drummer, keyboardist, guitarist, vocalist,  songwriter and founder of the late '70s band Hellfield. In this clip Mitchell explains why it’s good for band members to be multi-instrumentalists and sheds light on the differences between live and studio playing.

AL FOREMAN, keyboardist, harpman, vocalist, songwriter, consummate blues artist, member of Scrubbaloe Caine & founder of The Foreman Young Band. Al talks about playing in a band with Tommy Chong, touring the states in the late ‘60s and the artistry of Scrubbaloe Caine.

DENISE McCANN, singer/songwriter best known for her song ‘Tattoo Man”. Denise shares with host Dan Hare her early days playing folk music in San Francisco, why she moved to Canada and how she came to be labelled a “disco artist”.

JOHN CAPEK, epic keyboard player, producer, session musician, multi-platinum award-winner, multiple Grammy nominee, writer of film and TV scores, coach, teacher, and songwriter. John talks about the influence of boogie boogie on his piano playing, how he ended up in Canada and his work on classic Canadian songs such as Ian Thomas’ ‘Painted Ladies’.

Listen to the full interview of each guest @ linernotes.ca.

This is the eighth episode of our special series ‘Guest Glimpses’, short bits from longer conversations with previous guests. You’ll hear about 10 minutes of each guest’s 60+ minute chat with show host Dan Hare. Featured guests this week are:

ROBERT LAWSON, author of ‘Wheatfield Empire’ the definitive comprehensive history on The Guess Who discusses what his book is - and isn’t, including the “revolving door” nature of the members, Kurt Winter’s unsung contribution, the misconception about why Burton Cummings joined the band and the relationship between Burton and Randy Bachman.

JIM FOSTER, singer/songwriter and founder of the band Fosterchild talks about his early days in the Edmonton music scene, being on the same bill with iconic bands such as The Byrds, the lesson he learned from Roger McGuinn, the rise and fall of Fosterchild and his solo career.

BRIAN VOLLMER, rock and roll soldier and founder of the band Helix, talks about how he captured the bands career on film, video and mini discs, the rigours of touring, various record deals and his outlook on his career and life.

ANDREW JOHNS, keyboardist, vocalist and member of the band Boulevard talks about how the band formed in Calgary and why they moved to Vancouver and what happened that stopped their progress in the U.S. market, being booed when opening for Boston and the padded expenses of making music videos.

Listen to the full interview of each guest @ www.linernotes.ca

Recording artist Geoffrey Kelly is one of the founders and co-songwriter for the band Spirit of the West. In this chat with host Dan Hare Geoffrey shares: how backpacking in Europe led him to a career in music; why the band “shook up” the folk music world on the west coast; the band’s big break and biggest mistake; what Spirit of the West song is used during Hockey Night in Canada; his close relationship with frontman John Mann and how the band dealt with John’s Alzheimer’s disease and eventual death; what he’s doing now, and so much more. Find out about Geoffrey and Spirit of the West on the band's Facebook page @www.facebook.com/spiritofthewest.ca

Andy Curran is a singer/songwriter, producer, manager, Juno award-winner and the founding member and bass player for the hugely popular ‘80s rock band Coney Hatch. In this chat with Dan Hare, Andy talks about: the wild rocket ride of the 1980s; how instrumental Kim Mitchells was in the success of Coney Hatch; opening for Trooper to prepare for touring with Judas Priest; his successful solo career and Juno award; how his own band experience helped him in his A&R job for other bands such as Rush; working with Alex Lifeson; an exclusive reveal concerning Coney Hatch, and much more. Find out more about Andy @ andycurranmusic.com, coneyhatch.com and envyofnone.com

Singer/songwriter, iconic vocalist and fearless re-inventor Lee Aaron is known as a trailblazer for women in rock thanks to her 1984 song ‘Metal Queen’, a shout out against sexism toward women in that genre. In this in depth talk with Dan Hare, Lee reveals: the challenges of being a pioneer woman hard rock musician, including objectification and her struggle to gain credibility; why she stopped including the song ‘Metal Queen’ in her live shows and why she started playing it again; how her popularity in Europe was influential in her career in Canada; the connection between hair product commercials and her ‘80s videos; why she began making jazz and blues albums; the eye-opening turning point in her rock and roll lifestyle; the influence raising foster children and her own has had on her life; what’s next in her career, and so much more. Find out about Lee @ www.leeaaron.com