Canadian Music Trade - February/March 2018 | Page 19

Trade Regrets: PEI Musician & Storeowner Neil Matthews, 1939-2017 Well-known P.E.I. musician and former MI storeowner Neil Matthews passed away on Dec. 29, 2017 at the age of 78. Over the course of his music career, Matthews became a staple of the province’s music scene and was the recipient of the ECMA’s Stompin’ Tom Award, as well as Music PEI awards for Entertainer, Country Recording, Album, and Weekend Warrior of the Year. His grandson, Brandon Gillis, tells CMT that Matthews was born in Seaview, PE in 1939 and was the son of Mildred and Ed Matthews, the latter of whom was an accomplished fiddler. Moving to Ontario at 17, he started a band called the Ontario County Boys and later toured in the early-1970s as a family act with Gordon Matthews and Garth “Gary” Matthews. In 1976, having moved back to PEI, he opened the MI store Matthews Music in Summerside, which relocated to Charlottetown 14 years later and stayed open until the mid-1990s. Even during the years running the store and supporting the island’s music community, he continued to record and release music, including a trip to Nashville to record the solo album Old Memories. After the store’s closing, Matthews continued to perform and be actively engaged in the music community, including playing festivals and showcases and organizing benefits for friends and family. He married Shelley Warren (Matthews) in 2003, to whom he was wed until his passing. “Neil’s family is grateful for the gift of music that he has encouraged and passed down through the generations, including siblings, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren,” says Gillis. Orange Amps CEO to Help Revitalize Strawberry Field (L-R) CLIFF COOPER, LADY JUDY MARTIN OBE & MAJOR DREW MCCOMBE Cliff Cooper, CEO and founder of Orange Amplification, is now an honorary patron of the Strawberry Field Salvation Army campaign. This charitable cause aims to reopen the fields and reconstruct and extend the original buildings of the children’s home where John Lennon played as a child in Liverpool, England. The Salvation Army would like to build a hub at the site that offers employment training, support, and prospects to young people with learning disabilities. They also hope to open the well-known gates of Strawberry Field to the public for the first time. There will also be a new exhibition dedicated to the history of Strawberry Field, the song, and Lennon’s early life. Cooper says he has a passion for The Beatles’ music and a lifelong respect for the Salvation Army, which helped and sup- ported his father when he returned from serving during WWI. “I am delighted to be involved with a project which is very close to my heart,” says Cooper, who will work alongside Lady Judy Martin OBE, widow of the legendary Beatles producer George Martin. Three Suspects Sought in Guitar & Amp Theft at Burlington Long & McQuade Halton region police are seeking three suspects who stole around $6,000 worth of music equipment from Long & McQuade’s Burlington, ON location at 3180 Mainway. Two men and one woman entered the store around 3 p.m. on Dec. 16, 2017 and, according to investigators, walked away with an electric guitar worth $4,550 and an H&K TubeMeister Deluxe amp worth $1,249. They left 15 minutes after entering without making any attempt to pay. They drove a blue Honda CRV with no licence plates. “There’s some planning that went into this,” Const. Naresh Dabas told local media outlet inHalton. Police are asking anyone with information to contact Const. Dabas at 905-825-4747 ext. 2351. SEND US YOUR PERSONAL UPDATES TO SHARE WITH YOUR PEERS! Retailers, reps, suppliers, educators, and other trade professionals are encouraged to send us personal stories about themselves or their colleagues that we can share with your peers in the industry. Tips on weddings, anniversaries, major milestones, awards, births, new initiatives, and other achievements are all welcome and appreciated! Please send your stories to [email protected] and we’ll handle th