“ I just want for him to be remembered as the great he was . He touched people with his music and he was the least ‘ handicapped ’ person I ’ ve ever known . I ’ ll miss him , but the experience of getting to be his friend and make some music together is one I won ’ t ever forget .” Steve Lukather
original take . Sayce recalls hearing it for the first time since it had been recorded . “ We were just jamming , really , but hearing it again was really emotional ,” he shares . “ We were just making music , but there were just some phenomenal snapshots of Jeff on there . I ’ m pretty sure a lot of it was just one take .”
And Sayce is far from the only musician that saw Healey as something of a mentor early in his career . He was instrumental in Canadian vocalist Amanda Marshall ’ s rise to fame , inviting her out on tour after hearing her sing somewhere along Toronto ’ s Queen Street West in her late teens . And The Trews ’ lead guitarist John-Angus MacDonald credits Healey as a prominent character in the story of their success .
“ The catalyst to it all was a gig opening for Jeff Healey at the Marquee in Halifax in the spring of 2001 ,” MacDonald explains . “ He was such a virtuoso and blew the roof off the place . I really wanted to meet him .” After the show , The Trews had a chance to do just that . Healey , impressed with what he ’ d seen from the young band , told them about the club he was opening in Toronto and offered them a weekly slot .
“ I did many gigs with Jeff and grew to love him as a guitar brother and friend . Although he played many standard blues songs , Jeff always gave it his own unique stamp , and you instantly knew it was him . From ballads to heavy rock to deep blues , he did it all and was one of the best .” Randy Bachman
“ That was the catalyst for us leaving Nova Scotia ,” MacDonald says , his gratitude more than apparent . Healey himself would sit in with the band when he could , solely to get more people in front of them . And it was during a weekly Healey ’ s gig that the band met their current manager , Larry Wanagas of Bumstead Productions , and Big Sugar frontman Gordie Johnson , who went on to produce The Trews ’ debut offering , 2003 ’ s House of Ill Fame .
MacDonald had a chance to hear Heal My Soul after it had been polished by Phil Demetro at Toronto ’ s Lacquer Channel Mastering , and like many others , says it was Healey ’ s voice that stood out most to him . “ It really floored me . Everyone knows what he ’ s capable of on the guitar , but his voice is so soulful ,” MacDonald shares . “ It almost brought me to tears . I couldn ’ t believe how soulful he sounds in those songs .”
Canadian rocker Danko Jones also had a chance to hear the album ahead of its release , and his first spin of “ Daze of the Night ” is documented in a short but fun clip posted on Healey ’ s YouTube channel .
The track ’ s crunchy , overdriven main riff isn ’ t a far cry from what one might hear on a Danko Jones album , and is complemented by slick , screaming blues-tinged leads , a monster vocal performance , and , as though it was included solely for Jones ’ enjoyment , some cowbell for good measure . Watching Jones air-drum to the track with an ear-to-ear grin , it ’ s pretty obvious he was into it .
“ I was immediately struck by how rocking and aggressive [ some of ] the songs were . Jeff was in incredible guitar player and , of course , the way he played was mesmerizing ; however , being a singer , I can ’ t help but be more enthralled with his voice ,” Jones admits . “ The man had such a lush tone to his singing voice . You can ’ t train to have that voice ; you ’ re either born with it or you ’ re not .”
Healey ’ s close friend and frequent collaborator Randy Bachman lightly rues that he ’ s yet to hear Heal My Soul despite “ eagerly awaiting ” its release , but like Healey ’ s wife and closest friend , Bachman also had a chance to revisit some old recordings of his own when compiling his latest album , 2015 ’ s Heavy Blues . Each song on the album features a guest guitar solo , coming from the likes of Neil Young and Joe Bonamassa .
The track “ Confessin ’ to the Devil ,” though , features a solo that was taken from a recording of Healey , Bachman , and Duke Robillard on a shared bill in Toronto during Healey ’ s later years . “ I remembered Jeff ’ s great playing on ‘ Early in the Morning ,’ a BB King song ,” Bachman shares . “ I called my engineer and told him to find the live tapes and lift off Jeff ’ s solo because it was in the right key . Amazing ! Without too much tweaking , Jeff ’ s solo fit right in . It ’ s quite a great Jeff-Randy moment .”
Bachman says that while Healey was known to play many blues standards , he “ always gave it his own unique stamp and you instantly knew it was him ,” and adds that , “ from ballads to heavy rock to deep blues , he did it all and was one of the best .”
All of that and more appears on Heal My Soul , and all of it is unmistakably Jeff Healey . As Trout says , referencing Healey ’ s unique lap steel approach to the electric guitar , “ His playing is so unique . Because of the unconventional way he approached the instrument , it enabled him to do things you ’ re not normally able to do . He did things that most of us playing this kind of music wouldn ’ t even imagine .”
“ Jeff took some chances on these recordings and they paid off . I only wonder why these songs weren ’ t released sooner . If anything , it confirms how much of a musical monster he was , choosing to only show us a slice of his immense talent .” Danko Jones , about Heal My Soul
Costa confidently asserts that Heal My Soul stands among the best rock and roll that Healey ever committed to record . “ Jeff was just on another level ,” he says . “ He had a great love for traditional American jazz and spent a lot of his later years performing and recording music that was dear to his heart , but he never let go of the rock . There was some emotional turmoil and business challenges he was struggling with [ in the late ‘ 90s ] and I think a lot of that came out in his performances . I think fans of Jeff ’ s are going to be astounded , and there will be many not familiar with Jeff ’ s work who will be blown over by this .”
Cristie sincerely believes that her husband would have found his way back to his rock roots eventually . “ He had a lot more to give and was far from done ,” she says , somewhat bittersweet .
But she , Costa , and their partners in this project are all excited to share the album with Healey ’ s ever-passionate fans and friends . “ It was a great experience overall ,” she says . “ As much as it was emotional and difficult at times , it was emotional and difficult because it was really good ,” she laughs . “ To have it finally come to finish and ready to share , I ’ m more excited than I ever thought I ’ d be .”
It ’ s a collection that anyone who appreciates rock and roll , or just good music in general , can latch onto . The voice , the guitar playing – more than just being virtuosic , it ’ s spiritual , healing , intangibly magnetic . Even from the grave , Jeff Healey can draw people towards himself – or rather , his soul .
Andrew King is the Editor of Canadian Musician .
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