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Author: Keith Sharp

Former Calgary Herald sportswriter, Editor in Chief of the original Music Express Magazine and follow-up ACCESS magazine. Published author of a book about the Music Express years - "Music Express Rise And Fall Of A Canadian Music Icon"

Eighties’ Techno-Pop Renaissance Allows Men Without Hats To Flourish

Keith Sharp
Eighties’ Techno-Pop Renaissance Allows Men Without Hats To Flourish
By Keith Sharp It started out as a vocal/piano exercise with Men Without Hats’– Ivan Doruschuk utilizing time off during the COVID-19 pandemic, and deciding to re-record an EP of some of his favourite songs. “It was when I was recording a version of The Tragically Hip’s “Blow At High Dough” as a vocal/piano track that I thought, `what would... Read More

Dallas Good Succumbs To Coronary Illness

Keith Sharp
Dallas Good Succumbs To Coronary Illness
By Keith Sharp The Canadian Music Industry is in mourning with the passing of The Sadies’ co-founder Dallas Good who died from natural causes on Thursday February 17th. As announced on the band’s website “It’s with unfathomable sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Dallas on Thursday, February 17th. Forty-eight years old, he died of natural causes while under... Read More

What We Like About Mike Skill

Keith Sharp
What We Like About Mike Skill
Mike Skill – Photo By MeredithLordEcole By Keith Sharp Romantics guitarist/vocalist Mike Skill constantly hears his band’s two biggest hits; “What I Like About You” and “Talking In Your Sleep” being played on North American classic radio but it constantly bugs him that the full potential of those songs were never fulfilled. Skill performed a pop-up show Sunday, February 27th... Read More

James Faces Liberating Challenge With Buddy Guy U.S. Tour

Keith Sharp
James Faces Liberating Challenge With Buddy Guy U.S. Tour
By Keith Sharp Think of Colin James and you focus on the Regina native being the consummate Canadian blues artist. Someone who has won a staggering 27 Maple Blues Awards and no less than seven Juno Awards while releasing a total of 20 studio albums during his 34-year career. So, it’s strange then that James finds himself in a position... Read More

Canadian Music Industry Mourns Passing Of Music Pioneer Mel Shaw

Keith Sharp
Canadian Music Industry Mourns Passing Of Music Pioneer Mel Shaw
Mel Shaw – Producer – Photo Courtesy of the Stampeders. By Keith Sharp – Music Express Canadian Record industry pioneer Melvyn James Foster Shaw, who passed away Wednesday, January 19th, 2022 in Regina Saskatchewan at the age of 82 years old was directly involved in the establishment of Alberta Music Express back in October 1976. Trying to avoid being assigned... Read More

Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson Invites You To A Unique Spoken Word Event

Keith Sharp
Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson Invites You To A Unique Spoken Word Event
By Keith Sharp If one were to look at this guy’s CV, one would wonder what Bruce Dickinson can’t achieve. Frontman for the world’s biggest rock band, Iron Maiden, commercial airline pilot, Olympic status fencer, brewmaster, published author, solo recording artist, and oh, yes throat cancer survivor, Dickinson has now established himself as a top-notch motivational speaker. Based on the... Read More

HARKNESS Stirs Up A Creative Concoction

Keith Sharp
HARKNESS Stirs Up A Creative Concoction
HARKNESS By Keith Sharp Take a scan at the bio shot of HARKNESS and what springs to mind is one of those costumed assassins from The Squid Game. Now maybe this Toronto musician does not kill people for playing a game of marbles but his ubiquitous 11-track debut album, `The Occasion’ is certainly designed to create a stir with anyone... Read More

Many A Mile Tour/Album Presses Blue Rodeo’s Reset Button

Keith Sharp
Many A Mile Tour/Album Presses Blue Rodeo’s Reset Button
Photo by Dustin Rabin Photography By Keith Sharp Recent announcements suggest that Blue Rodeo have put their pandemic break to good use by utilizing their downtime to produce a new album `Many A Mile’ (Warner Music) and are set to head back on the road for a leisurely 27-date national tour which launches December 10th and 11th at Kitchener’s Centre... Read More

Aussie Acceptance Has Created Tea Party Long-Distance Relationship

Keith Sharp
Aussie Acceptance Has Created Tea Party Long-Distance Relationship
The Tea Party – Photo by Francesca LudikarBy Keith Sharp Literally from day one, the country of Australia has embraced the music of Canada’s Tea Party. Their 1993 major label release, Splendor Solis was equally embraced by the Aussies and through numerous tours of the country (Wikipedia says 12 tours but lead vocalist Jeff Martin swears it has been many... Read More

EXTC Rekindles Classic Band’s Legacy

Keith Sharp
EXTC Rekindles Classic Band’s Legacy
By Keith Sharp The advent of social media allows music fans to rediscover bands and artists which may have been ignored during their prime yet have been totally revived as new audiences discover the depth of their musical catalogue. England’s XTC is one such band. North American audiences may be familiar with key singles like “Making Plans For Nigel and... Read More

Arrive, Raise A Little Hell, Retire – Trooper Original Duo Call It A Day.

Keith Sharp
Arrive, Raise A Little Hell, Retire – Trooper Original Duo Call It A Day.
Trooper’s Lead Singer Ra McGuire and Bassist Doni Underhill – Photo by Hope Photography By Keith Sharp  The announcement on Trooper’s November 8th Facebook post that original band members; vocalist Ra McGuire and lead guitarist Brian Smith have chosen to retire from the band, may have caught many fans by surprise, but the reality is that the ongoing COVID19 pandemic... Read More

Adams ‘Happy’ To Release New Album Despite COVID Setback

Keith Sharp
Adams ‘Happy’ To Release New Album Despite COVID Setback
By Keith Sharp Bryan Adams was all set to fly down to Cleveland to assist in the induction of Tina Turner into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame’s Class of 2021 on October 30th at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse when he took the mandatory COVID-19 test before boarding his flight. The test showed he was positive! “The officials there... Read More

Johnny Reid Lifts Doom And Gloom With Positive Lyrical Messages

Keith Sharp
Johnny Reid Lifts Doom And Gloom With Positive Lyrical Messages
By Keith Sharp As Johnny Reid sat in his Nashville recording studio pondering how to address the enforced pandemic lay-off, he decided to delve into material he had previously written and decided he had enough to record a new album. Yes, he could have written lyrics that reflected the doom and gloom of current global affairs but that’s not Reid’s... Read More

Styx’s New Concept Opus Reflects Current Global Turmoil – From A Personal Perspective

Keith Sharp
Styx’s New Concept Opus Reflects Current Global Turmoil – From A Personal Perspective
Styx – (left to right: James “JY” Young, Chuck Panozzo, Lawrence Gowan, Tommy Shaw, Todd Sucherman, Ricky Phillips) – Photo Courtesy of Todd Gallopo and Styx  By Keith Sharp Chicago’s Styx are famous for their thematic concept albums, so it’s hardly surprising that their latest opus, Crash Of The Crown would reflect the current state of global affairs with the COVID-19 pandemic, political unrest... Read More

The Spoons Present New Versions of Old Songs at El Mo Charity Anniversary Concert Nov 13th, 2021

Keith Sharp
The Spoons Present New Versions of Old Songs at El Mo Charity Anniversary Concert Nov 13th, 2021
Spoons at the El Mocambo November 13th, 8PM, 2021 By Keith Sharp The promotion photo features The Spoons, four fresh-faced Burlington Ontario youngsters, in the process of plugging their debut album Stick Figure Neighbourhood, by posing outside Toronto’s El Mocambo prior to appearing at this venerable landmark in early October 1981. Forty-one years later, Saturday, November 13th, lead vocalist Gord... Read More

Bruce Cockburn’s Second Attempt At 50th Anniversary – Releases Greatest Hits Package

Keith Sharp
Bruce Cockburn’s Second Attempt At 50th Anniversary – Releases Greatest Hits Package
By Keith Sharp Bruce Cockburn’s upcoming 28-date tour of North West, Eastern United States and Ontario is cheekily titled “Bruce Cockburn 50th Anniversary Concert Tour – Second Attempt! In reference to the one-year delay of his planned list of festivities due to everything being put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Yeah and it could be re-titled Third Attempt... Read More

Midge Ure – Live Aid Legend Set For One-Off Appearance

Keith Sharp
Midge Ure – Live Aid Legend Set For One-Off Appearance
By Keith Sharp James (Midge Ure) has fond memories of Canada. When his band Ultravox toured this country for the first time in 1979, he discovered that because his band contained a Canadian drummer, Vancouverite Warren Cann, they qualified as Canadian content due to CRTC radio regulations, which meant they received strong domestic airplay. “Compared to the United States, which seemed to be... Read More

Montreal’s The Box Rocks The El Mocambo

Keith Sharp
Montreal’s The Box Rocks The El Mocambo
Photo By Andrew Clowater Friday, September 24th, 2021 El Mocambo, Toronto, Ontario By Keith Sharp Two anniversaries converged on Friday, September 24th and 25th when Michael Wekerle’s sparkling renovated El Mocambo Tavern celebrated its 50th year as Toronto’s prime music venue by inviting Montreal’s The BOX for a two-night engagement. The band is celebrating their 40th anniversary as a unit.... Read More

Music Express Celebrates 45th Anniversary With Special October Features

Keith Sharp
Music Express Celebrates 45th Anniversary With Special October Features
It’s hard to believe it, but October 2021 will mark the 45th anniversary of Music Express and how some snot-nosed British kid working at the sports department of the Calgary Herald, got pissed off because that paper’s entertainment department  rejected his feature story on The Stampeders. The reason being; because they had trashed the band’s concert in a mean-spirited review the... Read More