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Obituaries: Legendary Manager/A&R Executive Mary Martin, Recording Engineer John Naslen

This week we also acknowledge the passing of renowned B.C. broadcaster Rick Cluff, Kitchener, Ontario music venue operator Kevin Doyle and country musician Rusty Golden. There are tributes from Jane Siberry, Bernie Finkelstein, Lily Frost and more.

Rick (John Richard) Cluff, one of British Columbia's most loved radio personalities, died on July 2, at age 74, of cancer.

In its obituary, CBC called Cluff "A consummate broadcaster who brought his friendly voice and big personality to CBC Vancouver in 1997 and helped turn The Early Edition into the No. 1-rated morning show in the competitive Metro Vancouver radio market. His ability to connect with people, genuine curiosity and sharp journalistic instincts helped endear him to a growing legion of listeners, which peaked at over a quarter million per day in his 20-year run as host."

Cluff moved to Vancouver from Toronto where he had spent two decades with CBC radio sports.

He counted covering the announcement of the International Olympic Committee awarding Vancouver and Whistler the 2010 Winter Games and broadcasting as the 9/11 World Trade Centre attacks unfolded as two unforgettable moments in his radio career.

Cluff and The Early Edition team earned a number of awards, including for their coverage of the Robert Dziekanski tasering at Vancouver International Airport, B.C. education strife and protests over gentrification.

In 1999, Cluff was inducted into the Football Reporters of Canada section of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. CBC notes that "As a former player, football — and especially the CFL — held a special place in his heart. Besides broadcasting from Grey Cups, Super Bowls and Stanley Cups, 'Cluffer,' as his sports family called him, also travelled the world to cover Canadian teams and athletes at eight Olympic Games, five Commonwealth Games and too-many-to-mention world cups and world championships."

"He truly got joy from elevating and coaching others to find their path to success as journalists," said Shiral Tobin, a former producer of The Early Edition and now CBC Vancouver's journalism and programming director. "He mentored many people who came through the program, often quietly and privately, yet always in a meaningful and genuine way."

He was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Radio Television Digital News Association.

Following a 41-year career at CBC, Cluff retired in 2017 after undergoing quadruple heart bypass surgery.

Kevin Doyle, former operator of the Boathouse music venue in Kitchener, died on June 29, at age 57, of cancer.

Doyle worked tirelessly in promoting live blues music in the region, and the Waterloo Region Record reports that "he will be honoured with a posthumous award for his volunteer work with the Kitchener Blues Festival." The paper called Doyle "a music lover whose passion turned the Boathouse in Kitchener into one of the area’s leading live music venues in past years."

Doyle owned and operated the Boathouse from 2004-2013, when the City of Kitchener took control of the venue after Doyle fell behind on rent and utilities. It reopened in 2015 but closed abruptly in October 2019 and has sat empty ever since. Long-delayed plans to reopen the venue shortly are well under way now, asCBC reported last month.

Doyle acted as Assistant Artistic Director of the highly-regarded Kitchener Blues Festival from 2001-2013. He returned to the festival a few years ago, working one of the stages as a hospitality manager.

Kitchener-based music journalist, author and radio host Coral Andrews provided Billboard Canada with this tribute: "The Kitchener Waterloo music community is heartbroken. Kevin Doyle was a giant — a guy who supported, hell, often defended, live music. For nine years he operated Kitchener's Boathouse — at one point, an actual boathouse in the town centre nestled on the banks of a lake in scenic Victoria Park. As the Boathouse's lovable captain, Kevin creatively steered delighted audiences toward an eclectic gumbo of live music six nights a week and had those old wooden salmon-pink concert-postered walls rocking and rolling for nine glorious years.

"Whatever the genre of music, Kevin was known for giving musicians, from famous ones on tour or indie novices, a stage to play on, one that became a strong foundation, an artistic community — and, to many regulars, a family. Kevin always said the Boathouse was a place where the focus was the band and their music. There were no TVs while he was there.

"In 2013, Kevin left The Boathouse due to disagreements with the city over bills and renovations, deciding to pursue his other vocation as an electrician. But music was always in his life. He hosted the popular campus radio blues show Voodoo Healing and was instrumental in the formation of The Grand River Blues Society and Blues, Brews & Barbecues, which evolved into the renowned Kitchener Blues Festival."

The tidal wave of posts on social media says it all. As one musician noted, “it was not about the building, it was about the man."

Andrews paid homage to Doyle on her radio show, Coral Rockks, on FM98.5 CKWR, on the weekend, playing music from artists he loved and, in many cases, had booked, such as The Weber Brothers, Run With The Kittens and Big Rude Jake. Check that show out here.

Mary Martin, a legendary Canadian-born artist manager and A&R Executive who boosted the careers of many major artists, died on July 4, at age 85.

In its obituary,Billboard notes that "Martin was known as a fierce artist champion and musical connector. She became an influential A&R rep at labels including RCA, Warner Bros. and Mercury Records, starting in the 1970s."

Upon Martin's passing, The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum issued the following statement from CEO Kyle Young: "Time and again, Mary Martin spotted great talents and elevated their careers. Early on, she connected Bob Dylan to her friends the Hawks, who became The Band. She managed Leonard Cohen in his first musical outings, then guided the budding solo careers of Van Morrison, Rodney Crowell and Vince Gill.

"At Warner Bros., she signed future Country Music Hall of Fame member Emmylou Harris, at RCA she helped sign and develop Clint Black and Lorrie Morgan, and she encouraged a young Keith Urban to move from Australia to Nashville. Mary’s unerring feel for songs and performers was legendary, and she was a fierce ally for the artists she represented.”

Mary Martin was born in Toronto in 1939. In a very extensive obituary, Toronto musicologist and musician Mike Daley reports that “from 1953 to 1957 Martin attended Havergal College in Toronto, an exclusive private school for girls. Upon graduation, she attended the University of British Columbia in Vancouver but she dropped out in 1958.

“Back in Toronto, Mary haunted the clubs and coffeehouses around Yonge Street and the Yorkville neighbourhood. She would befriend musicians she liked and champion them as best she could. Among her early Toronto musical associations were The Stormy Clovers, John and Lee and the Checkmates, the Dirty Shames (which included Amos Garrett and Carol Robinson) and the Hawks, Ronnie Hawkins' former backup band. She would see the Hawks perform matinee shows at the Coq D'Or, a now-legendary club on the Yonge Street strip.”

After a short stint at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute (now Toronto Metropolitan University), in 1962 Martin headed to Greenwich Village in New York city, with the hopes of joining the music industry. She waitressed at The Bitter End coffeehouse, and briefly worked with Stan Getz’s wife Monica and agent Sherman Tankel.

Her big career break came in 1963, as a receptionist in the office of legendary artist manager Albert Grossman, whose star-studded roster would include Peter, Paul and Mary, Bob Dylan, Ian and Sylvia, Gordon Lightfoot, Mimi and Richard Farina, Janis Joplin, Odetta, Paul Butterfield and more. She was soon promoted to Grossman’s executive assistant, working that job until 1966.

As Daley reports, ”One of Martin’s most famous and important acts in the music business was her introduction of Bob Dylan to the Hawks, the (mostly) Canadian band that would accompany Dylan on and off from 1965 through 1974. Working with Dylan in Albert Grossman's office, Mary noticed Dylan's need for a steady backup band.”

At Martin’s recommendation, Dylan went to Toronto to check out the Hawks, and by September 1965 Dylan was rehearsing with the Hawks at the Friars Tavern in that city. The full band debuted with Dylan at Carnegie Hall and got a standing ovation, and an extensive and historic collaboration between Dylan and the group (soon re-christened the Band) ensued.

In 1966, Martin decided to head into artist management on her own, while retaining valuable lessons learned from Grossman. In a 2002 interview with Robert Hilburn of the Los Angeles Times, she recalled that "when I went into the business, people said I was too young...people would also say, 'You're not a musician or a songwriter. Why do you think you know anything about music?' Well, I knew my instincts were good and I knew I cared passionately about music."

One of her first management clients was Leonard Cohen, an established poet and novelist yet to launch his musical career. Martin helped Cohen secure covers of his early songs, including by her friend Judy Collins, assisted Cohen in forming his own music publishing company, Stranger Music, and helped him secure a recording contract with the legendary John Hammond at Columbia Records. Cohen left for another manager in 1969.

Martin also managed Van Morrison, from 1969 to 1971. Mike Daley reports that “she helped extricate Van from his publishing obligations to Bang Records and its owner, Ilene Berns.” She was at the helm for Morrison’s smash hit album Moondance in 1970, and, says Daley, “Among her contributions to his career, she strongly encouraged Van to tour, helping to create a consistent revenue stream.”

Celebrity Access reports that "In 1972, Martin joined Warner Bros. Records in New York. Here, she played a crucial role in signing Emmylou Harris, Leon Redbone, and The Marshall Tucker Band. As the ’70s closed, Martin shifted to Los Angeles, returning to artist management and working closely with Rodney Crowell and Vince Gill. Her influence extended beyond management; she also assisted Crowell in producing records for artists like Rosanne Cash and Guy Clark and helped establish successful fan clubs and merchandising operations."

Moving to Nashville in 1985, Martin was appointed the vice president of A&R for RCA Records, where she worked with Gill, Clint Black, Paul Overstreet, Aaron Tippin and Lorrie Morgan.

On leaving RCA in 1991, she took over the executive director role at ECO (Earth Communications Office), where she organized fundraising events and helped implement a recycling program on Music Row.Martin’s next stop was in Nashville in 1985, where she became Vice President of RCA Records. Artists she worked with there included Clint Black, Paul Overstreet, Aaron Tippin and Lorrie Morgan.

In 1991, Martin became Executive Director of the Earth Communications Office (ECO), a nonprofit where she oversaw fundraising and other initiatives. She returned to the music industry as a consultant for Asylum Records (994 to 1996), and in 1999, she became Vice President of Mercury Records, ending there in 2002.

She won a Grammy in 2002 for her work on the star-studded Hank Williams tribute album Timeless.

Source Foundation Awards presented Martin with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007. At the ceremony, Emmylou Harris recounted that "[Mary] became my champion and my protector...although she technically worked for the record company, her passion, her allegiance, her fierce loyalty were first and foremost for the music and the people who made it."

In 2009, Martin was honoured by the Louise Scruggs Memorial Forum in Nashville for her contributions to the music business.

On Facebook, Torontosinger-songwriter and radio host Lily Frost posted this tribute: " My second cousin and poignant figure in the music industry; Mary Martin passed away last night. May all women be as honest, daring and authentic as her in the industry of men. She introduced Dylan to The Hawks, managed Leonard Cohen, discovered Ian and Sylvia and Gordon Lightfoot, not to mention her work at Warner and RCA USA."

Memorial services have not yet been announced.

John Naslen, a Toronto musician and Juno-winning recording engineer, died on June 27. His age and a cause of death have not been reported.

News of his passing was shared on Facebook by Brenda Hoffert, on behalf of the band Lighthouse. Her post read, in part, that "Lighthouse mourns the passing of John Naslen. John first joined the band as a roadie back in early 1971, but when Howard Shore discovered he was a damn good trumpet player, he recommended that John try out for the recently vacated trumpet chair. He got the gig, no contest, and toured with the band until 1973, performing on three albums (Lighthouse Live!, Sunny Days and Can You Feel It)."

Naslen then made the move from the stage to the recording studio, and he became head engineer at Manta Sound, one of Toronto's most important recording studios. There he worked with a large number of Canadian artists in many different genres. That long list includes Dan Hill, Moe Koffman, Bruce Cockburn, Lighthouse, Murray MacLauchlan, FM, Jane Siberry, Ian Thomas, Loreena McKennitt, Colin Linden, Peter Pringle and Leroy Sibbles. He also worked on recordings by international stars Rod Stewart, Billy Cobham and Destiny's Child.

He is credited as a co-producer on two Jane Siberry album, The Walking and The Speckless Sky, and other production credits include National Velvet.

Naslen engineered multiple Bruce Cockburn albums, and his work on Stealing Fire earned him a Juno Award for Recording Engineer of the Year in 1984. He later received three more Juno nominations in that category.

Bruce Cockburn's longtime manager and head of True North Records, Bernie Finkelstein, gave this tribute to Billboard Canada: "John Naslen was a terrific person and a great great engineer. He played a significant role on several True North albums. I recall with fondness his work on Bruce Cockburn's Stealing Fire and World Of Wonders as well as his excellent job on Murray McLauchlan's 'If The Wind Could Blow My Troubles Away.' He will be missed. RIP John and thanks for the help."

When contacted by Billboard Canada, Jane Siberry provided this tribute to a close creative collaborator: "After many years of dim memories of Naz, seeing him before he passed brought him back into full technicolour for me. Back into love and astonishment and appreciation. All the time we spent as a tight circle of musical beings (including Naz) focused on making magical music, creating musical tunnels, panels, murals, furrowed fields — all there. And U see him bent over the console with that strange look that is so quintessential to studios — looking at ‘nothing’ but listening intently.

"When I saw him just before he left he was ‘packing’ up his life in the same way, organized, focused, kind, no small talk really.
Saying thanks and goodbye and ’seeing’ each other years later is such a privilege."

As Jane Siberry's bassist and co-producer, John Switzer also worked closely with John Naslen. He recalls to Billboard Canada that "Jane and I (mostly Jane!) had no shortage of creative ideas in the studio. Naz had that quality that the best engineers have: the ability to comprehend and somehow transmute those ideas to audio reality using the tools at hand. For the song 'Vladimir Vladimir' (on the album The Speckless Sky) Jane wanted the listener to experience the sensation of floating through the air, with wind and flapping wings, voices and memories approaching and passing by, a seemingly impossible task given the technology of the time.

"The next morning, Naz arrived at the studio tired but elated: the solution had come to him in the night, and he set about automating faders, panning and reverb to create the sensation she wanted. That's how he was... never once making you feel like it was a bad idea, or impossible, or too much trouble; just finding a way to make it happen.

"I was honoured to have the opportunity to visit with him shortly before he died. He told me he was ready: "I lived in this house with the love of my life for 50 years, and I had a job that never felt like a job."

As founder and operator of Manta Sound, Andrew Hermant had a major impact on Naslen's career. The long list of albums he engineered at Manta Sound included many albums released via Hermant's independent label, Duke Street Records.

Hermant offered this tribute to Billboard Canada: "John (Naz) Naslen’s work speaks for itself – and will continue to do so through his sonic imprint on so many projects, including Jane Siberry, FM, Hugh Marsh [ all Duke Street artists] and many others. He was a valued and loved Manta Sound ‘family member’. But if you ever met or worked with Naz, you realised that apart from being an outstanding engineer, his ‘people skills’, his musical empathy (he was a very talented musician as well) made him special. He was a colleague, and a friend for life. An honour to know him. Remember: 'only one mix a day.'"

Ian Thomas describes Naslen to Billboard Canada as "a dreamer and a great rock n' roll engineer. He liked big punchy sounding tracks and worked on my Add Water album at Manta Sound in the early '80s. The three tracks he engineered sounded huge.

"When Manta was torn down I did many commercials over at Sounds Interchange with John. I'd come in to do some character voice work or group sing and John always gave me a great welcome. We would pine about the old days when albums were being recorded and there were so many active studios. We lamented how most of them had shut their doors one by one as computers and home recording took over. So, John, I hope you are sitting in the hot seat of the biggest console you've ever seen, and the speakers are cranked a Rock N Roll version of Valhalla. You were one rockin' engineer, a good man and a romantic soul."

International

William ‘Rusty’ Golden, a country musician and songwriter, died on July 1, at the age of 65.

Rusty Golden was the son of The Oak Ridge Boys member William Lee Golden. He began his professional career playing drums in The Rambos, then switched to keyboards, performing with Larry Gatlin, from age 17.

He eventually played on several studio recordings including Gatlin’s “Love Is Just A Game,” Marty Stuart’s “Pilgrim” and countless others. At age 20, he helped form The Boys Band. Their debut album for Elektra/Asylum spawned the single “Please Don’t Stop Me Baby,” which landed in Billboard’s Hot 100. The group disbanded in 1984.

Golden then made a mark as a songwriter, and in 1984, he received an RIAA Gold Record for his songwriting contributions on The Oak Ridge Boys’ Bobbie Sue album as well as the legendary Barry White. This recognition encouraged Rusty to begin writing songs with Marc Speer.

Golden and brother Chris then recorded under the name, The Goldens, releasing two singles as a duo. They moved to Capitol/SBK Records and released the album Rush for Gold in 1990. This critically acclaimed album produced three charting singles and videos: “Take Me Back to The Country,” “Keep The Faith,” and “Long Gone.”

In the period following, Rusty Golden explored Southern Gospel, receiving two Song of the Year awards for “What Salvation’s Done for Me” by The Booth Brothers and “I Want to Thank You” by Karen Peck & New River.

From 2020, Rusty and Chris Golden worked with father William Lee Golden in the family band, William Lee Golden and The Goldens, alongside a younger generation of the family. They performed several times on the world-famous Grand Ole Opry. In 2023, Rusty Golden was awarded Keyboard Player of The Year by the Josie Music Awards.

A Conversation With The Tragically Hip Manager Jake Gold Before His Induction into the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame

The veteran manager who's worked with The Hip, The Watchmen, The Pursuit of Happiness and others will be honoured at CMW's Canadian Live Music Industry Awards on June 4.

Against the backdrop of the Toronto skyline, Jake Gold, the manager behind The Tragically Hip, will be inducted into the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame on June 4, 2024. The ceremony will take place at the Westin Harbour Castle at the 2024 Canadian Live Music Industry Awards as part of Canadian Music Week (CMW).

Retiring CMW president Neill Dixon praises Gold as an adept manager and influential figure in shaping iconic bands. Most notably, Gold helped break The Tragically Hip early in their career, reuniting with them after Gord Downie's death to lead them into a posthumous new act. They've stayed surprisingly active with Gold overseeing projects like the Saskadelphia EP and an upcoming Amazon documentary series.

Gold's career began in 1981 and gained momentum through strategic negotiations and alliances, leading to the creation of Management Trust with Allan Gregg in 1986. This partnership played a crucial role in The Tragically Hip's rise from local stages to national prominence, earning diamond certifications comparable to The Beatles. Later, during his time as a judge on Canadian Idol, he evaluated talent with the same skill that contributed to The Hip's success. He also managed bands like Crash Karma and The Pursuit of Happiness.

Gold's career achievements include multiple Manager of the Year awards and leadership roles on the boards of CIMA and Music Managers Forum Canada. I caught up with Gold while he was recovering from recent double knee replacement surgery to talk about his eventful career.

How do you feel getting inducted into the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame?

Some people think of the Hall of Fame as putting you out to pasture, but I'm still active and doing things. It's an honour, as it recognizes my contribution to the industry, but it's as much an honour for me to be amongst my peers in management, many of whom I looked up to [and who] became my friends. It is essential because those are my people, other managers, agents, promoters and people who I spend a lot of my time with in the business. Not to diminish record companies and their involvement in my career, but the agents and promoters were a big part of, at least, my philosophy.

As a music manager, are you a tough negotiator on behalf of your artists?

I think that's my job. I never saw it as a tough negotiator. I always saw it as doing the right thing for my clients. I have been doing this since I was 23 at a full-time job. It's the only real job outside of my short stint on television with Canadian Idol. I've been a manager my whole life, and even then, I still managed artists while doing the TV show.

My father passed away when I was young, when I was 17, and he always wanted me to be a lawyer, so maybe something rubbed off. Every artist is their own business, and they're the owners. They're the board of directors. Then, they hire a CEO to run the company. And that's what the manager is. The manager is the CEO, and the manager brings in the right agent, record company, and all those other supports for the organization. The CEO must be in charge and ensure they represent the board of directors the best they can.

To this day, I have a bi-weekly meeting with the guys in The Tragically Hip, and we call it a board of directors meeting because I want everyone to take it seriously. When we have a meeting every two weeks, we go through everything on the agenda and take notes. Everyone gets the meeting notes from the week before, and it's done very professionally because I think it needs to be treated that way.

For a band that's not actively recording or touring, there are still a lot of projects on the horizon for The Hip, including back catalogue releases.

We have so many things going on right now. There's a documentary coming, and there's a new box set coming. This year, the band is celebrating its 40th anniversary. They're the Record Store Day Ambassadors. A live record [came] out on vinyl and cassette on Record Store Day in April.

Do you still get out as much to hear live music?

This group isn't touring. I have a young guy who works with me, Ryan Hefford, and he's brought in some young clients. I also work with Paul Langlois [of The Tragically Hip]'s solo project. I go out when he's playing, and I work with The Pursuit of Happiness, and when they do gigs. I go out sometimes to sell merch because I want to do something instead of just sitting there watching the show. I enjoy engaging with the fans, seeing what they're saying and hearing their stories. They're the ones paying everyone's bills.

Can you describe the impact The Hip's performance had on your emotions the first time you saw them?

You can't put charisma into words. It exuded dynamism and charisma. At that point in my career, I'd been a manager for about five years. I thought I knew where the bar was, and then I saw them, and I was like, this is a new bar. This is a new level of charisma, communication, and how they played as a unit. It was very, very strong and dynamic.

There was an audience listening to mostly original music at Larry’s Hideaway at Carlton and Jarvis. They were opening for a Rolling Stones clone band. They played for 40 minutes because, back then, it was all cabaret. It was all seats with tables. At the end of their set, the whole place stood up and cheered. They were seeing an original version of what the Rolling Stones were: two guitars, bass and drums with a charismatic singer. It was astounding.

How did you persuade them to entrust you with the responsibility of managing their affairs?

My partner Allan Gregg and I took them to The Pilot Tavern that night in Yorkville, right after the set, and we just agreed to work together. I'd had experience in the business fractionally. I had an act signed by RCA called New Regime. I knew some record people, but I also learned many of the agents, promoters and club owners. You didn't put music up on Spotify and let it happen back then. You had to go out and earn it. They would go out and earn it.

Many clubs were cover clubs. You'd play three nights at one place and three nights in another, or a week in a place, and the strippers during the day. The bands were in pretty shitty hotel rooms. It was Guelph and Kitchener and everywhere you could, anywhere from Montreal to Windsor. We were playing the 401. Occasionally, it was a real college gig where things take off. They were already playing to 750 to 1000 people a night in [their hometown[ Kingston. We could play Queens and Western University. Many of those kids live in Toronto, so we could play Toronto on Thanksgiving weekend and have a packed crowd. We figured it out. We had a plan.

Did you also establish a connection with an agency?

In the beginning, I did it myself. I called the clubs myself. Several middle agents facilitated the owner's club booking process. I knew a lot of intermediate agents. You would have to submit your set list, and we had a lot of covers. They wanted cover bands. We would put the originals as Doors' unreleased songs, Stones b-sides, so it didn't look like there were any originals. The people loved watching them play, especially doing three nights. By the third night, the venue packed and everyone had a great time. The club owners were happy because people were drinking beer, and that's all they cared about. They're there to sell beer.

How do you typically respond when people inquire about the responsibilities of a manager?

I always feel my main job is to spot charisma. You can fix all the other stuff. You can work on songs. Some people are successful songwriters, but they don't have the charisma to communicate. But you can't make up charisma. I've never been the packager. I've never [said] we'll get someone good-looking, dress them up in clothes, surround them with dancers, and get other people to write songs for them. That's never been my thing. I look for people with a sense of self who know who they are and what they are.

We're working with a young artist named Ethan Surman, who Ryan Hefford brought in. We're doing everything independently, and this guy plays every instrument, sings and writes. He's got that charismatic thing. When I signed The Watchmen, it was the same thing as when I watched them play live, and the band had that thing. I worked with them for 14 years. When we signed Crash Karma, same thing. You know a star when you see one.

Canada's Paquin Artists Agency Announces U.S. Expansion

American agent Brian Swanson is joining the Canadian company as a Senior Agent. He brings with him popular acts like Smash Mouth, Spin Doctors and Mike Dawes.

Smash Mouth, one of agent Brian Swanson's clients coming to Paquin

A major Canadian agency is making moves south of the border.

Paquin Artists Agency, which represents 250 international artists, has announced that American agent Brian Swanson is joining the agency's ranks as a Senior Agent.

The California-based agent is bringing his whole client list, including popular acts like Smash Mouth, Spin Doctors and Mike Dawes. Swanson comes to the company from Northstar Artists and has previously worked with Paquin on shared clients including Alan Doyle and Matt Andersen.

“I’ve worked in conjunction with Paquin over the last 15 years, handling touring across the USA for many of the artists on the Paquin roster,” says Swanson. “It’s very exciting knowing my entire roster will now have the same support behind them as our shared clients."

The announcement indicates Paquin Artists Agency, a division of Paquin Entertainment Group, is looking to expand into the U.S., following a series of recent ventures that have boosted Paquin's business within Canada. The company already has an office in Nashville, spearheaded in 2020 by artist manager Michelle Szeto. [Paquin Entertainment Group is an agency partner of Billboard Canada.]

Last fall, the agency announced a partnership with Quebec talent agency Preste Spectacles & Tours, giving it a stronger foothold in the Francophone space. Earlier in 2023 Paquin acquired competitor APA Canada. The company has also developed its Exhibition & Theatrical division, with internationally touring shows like Beyond Van Gogh and Beyond Monet.

Paquin, which also has offices in Toronto, Winnipeg, Montreal and Vancouver, represents some of Canada's best-known artists, including Jann Arden, BadBadNotGood, The Reklaws, Tanya Tagaq, Bryan Adams and more.

George Kalivas Steps Down as Head of A&R at Warner Music Canada to Start SWING

The new Toronto-based management company is starting with Victoria, B.C. funk upstart Diamond Cafe, who signed to the major label in January.

It was just a few months ago that Billboard Canada announced the signing of buzzy Victoria artist to watch Diamond Cafe to Warner Music Canada. Now, George Kalivas, the man who signed him, is breaking off on his own to manage him — and building a whole new company around him.

SWING is launching as a Toronto-based management company with Diamond Cafe as its first artist, though Kalivas says the eventual plan is to "evolve into a full-service record label in no time." Kalivas says he has a couple of "silent partners," but he's the face of SWING — a face you might recognize if you've seen The Pizza City You've Never Heard Of, a documentary about Windsor, Ontario's pizza scene that he executive produced and starred in.

"I've kind of done it all in the industry," Kalivas says. "But starting my own thing, that's something I've been thinking about this since I was 16 years old."

Kalivas, clearly, is willing to step outside the usual industry roles, and that's something that he says led him to SWING. He started in marketing at Warner Canada seven years ago, handling domestic artists signed to the label and international releases signed to subsidiaries like Atlantic and 300. That included artists like Jack Harlow, Roddy Ricch and A Boogie Wit da Hoodie. But he had "one foot in A&R," he says, which became official two years ago when Kristen Burke became label president.

His first signing was Crash Adams, a Canadian pop duo known for viral TikTok trends. After the joint launch of 91 North Records by Warner Canada and Warner India, Kalivas helped sign the second artist to the label, AR Paisley. A long-simmering Canadian rapper, Paisley hit the top 10 of the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 this year with "Drippy," a collaboration with the late Punjabi-Canadian superstar Sidhu Moose Wala.

But it was Diamond Cafe that made him realize the time was right to strike off on his own, Kalivas says.

"I haven't seen a triple threat artist like him — writer, performer and producer — in 15 years," he says. "He's next level."

Diamond Cafe returns the praise and says, "the passion [Kalivas] has for every project he believes in is so contagious it makes every artist he encounters inspired to the fullest.”

After early years as a DIY independent artist, Diamond Cafe became known in the "creative circle" in L.A., says Kalivas, and brained word of mouth as a bubbling behind-the-scenes hitmaker as a writer and producer. When he also started selling out shows, it became clear he was a potential star in his own right.

After signing to Warner, he was named as a breakthrough artist to watch by Amazon Music Canada and is now about to hit the festival circuit (today he was announced as a performer for FEQ in Quebec City). "He has massive collaborations coming out with huge artists, huge producers. He's also writing for top-tier artists right now," teases Kalivas.

As publishing and song catalogues become a major money-maker in the music industry, artists like Diamond Cafe who can work both in front of and behind the scenes are getting scouted heavily.

For SWING, it's enough to structure a whole new entity around.

"This is going to provide 360 degrees of support on his career, everything, from his music, content, creative, his vision, brand partnerships," Kalivas says.

Obituaries: Canadian Artist manager Larry Wanagas, Toby Keith & More

This week we also acknowledge the passing of Wayne Kramer, Carol Brown, Chita Rivera, Wayne Patton and Austin 'Family Man' Barrett.

Carol Brown, an award-winning Jamaican-Canadian reggae singer, died on Jan. 31. Her age and cause of death has not been reported.

Born in Port Antonio, Jamaica, she gained attention as one half of The Loving Sisters duo, where she began winning talent shows at age 14, and then as the resident female singer with the Tornadoes band alongside Junior Murvin (later to become a major reggae star).

Reggae Northreports that "in 1972, she migrated to Canada, where she continued to develop her solo career. However, her roots called her back, and in 1974, she reunited with her hometown band, now known as The Young Experience, with Junior Murvin and trumpeter Bobby Ellis." That group became very popular in Jamaica.

As a solo artist, from the mid-1970s to the early 1980s, Brown shared stages in Canada, the U.S. and England with such genre stars as Leroy Sibbles, Yellow Man and Sugar Minott. She also collaborated with the likes of Alton Ellis, John Holt and Beres Hammond solidified her status as a respected figure in the genre.

Such singles as "Touch Me Baby," "I Won’t Hurt Your Feeling," and "Feel So Good" made the British Reggae charts.

In the 1980s and 90s, Brown won awards as Top Female Performer and Top Female Reggae Singer at the Canada Reggae Music Awards

In 2019, she was honoured as one of the Titans of Toronto Reggae, joining such fellow honorees as Leroy Sibbles, Stranger Cole, Jay Douglas, Liberty Silver and Otis Gayle in a celebratory concert at The Opera House.

In acknowledging her passing on Facebook, Toronto music authority Nicholas Jennings termed Brown "one of the queens of the Toronto reggae scene. A popular artist for many years, she was also the wife of reggae legend Jackie Mittoo."

Also on Facebook, Friendlyness of Toronto reggae band the Human Rights recalled that "I always loved her from back in the '80s when she used to perform on the big stage shows at the Concert Hall. Thankful to have got to know her and have her consider us friends. 'Wha’ppen Friendly?' Thankful we did some works together right up until this time. Thankful for the phone calls."

Wayne Whildon Patton, a Canadian record label executive, died on Jan. 24, at age 80.

An obituary published in The Globe and Mail stated that "Patton's love of music helped him forge a career in the music business, beginning in the late 1960s and onwards into the 1970s, '80s, and '90s. He was given the opportunity to work for several major record companies, including Capitol Records, CBS Records [as VP Music Publishing] and Sony Music.

"He worked as a business executive and public relations man in charge of music publishing for most of those years, developed a global network of friends and associates, and participated in international corporate conferences that took him to the annual Cannes Music Festival in France as well as to major cities such as New York, Los Angeles, London and Paris.

"Before he retired from the world of work, he also taught music publishing and related courses at the Toronto International School of Design and Technology, and enjoyed mentoring young college students eager to build their own futures within the music industry."

The obituary also noted that "During his working years he travelled widely, made and maintained friends both near and far, and did well because he was a good listener and was always glad to offer helpful advice where and when he could."

A funeral service was held in Guelph on Feb. 2. Donations to the Heart and Stroke Foundation would be appreciated. In lieu of flowers, a tree may be planted in a Memorial Forest of your choice.

Connie Sinclair, a broadcaster best known as a newsreader at CBC Radio in Toronto, died on Feb. 2. The announcement of Sinclair's death did not specify her age or the cause of her death, though she had been battling cancer.

A CBC obituary noted that “Sinclair began her career in radio before leaving the sector to focus on family, bringing with it a pivot to childhood learning and parent education. She eventually returned to broadcasting as an anchor at NewsTalk 1010 before her time as an afternoon newsreader for CBC Radio in Toronto."

Larry Wanagas, a veteran artist manager and record label head who boosted the careers of k.d. lang, The Trews, and many more, died on Jan. 31. His age and a cause of death have not been reported.

Wanagas began his music business career in Edmonton as Entertainment Director at the University of Alberta. After two years there, he opened his own recording studio, Homestead Recorders and simultaneously launched Bumstead Productions, focusing on artist management, an independent label, and music publishing.

He made a major mark by signing a young k.d. lang to a 360 deal which encompassed, artist management, recording and publishing agreements. Under Wanagas’ guidance led to a 15 year run of successful international tours, multi-platinum album sales, accolades and countless awards for lang.

Artists releasing albums and singles on Bumstead included lang, Colin James, Modern Minds (featuring Moe Berg), Glen Stace, The Trews, BOY, Two Hours Traffic, The Blue Shadows, Yukon Blonde, Tim Chaisson and Poor Young Things.

Many of those artists were handled by the label's management arm, Bumstead Productions Ltd, alongside such other Canadian and international artists as Susan Aglukark, Big Sugar, Erasure, Emma-Lee, Madeleine Peyroux, Staggered Crossing, The East Pointers, The Lazys, John Ford and Peter Elkas.

During the 1980s, Bumstead Productions was based in Vancouver for a period. In 1995, Wanagas took the position of President of independent label MUTE Records U.S. in New York City, a tenure that lasted two years. He relocated to Toronto in 1999, where Bumstead Productions remained based until Wanagas' retirement in 2017.

In 2014, Wanagas decided to focus exclusively on artist management, and he sold the recording division of Bumstead Productions to Toronto-based music entrepreneur Khaled Verjee in partnership with Nettwerk Music Group, as HOME Music Company. At the time, the CIMA newsletter quoted Wanagas as stating "My focus has always been primarily on management. It's what I enjoy most and do best and where I have had my biggest success."

Wanagas is also remembered for his tireless work for many Canadian music industry organizations. He was a Director of the Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings (FACTOR) and served on the boards of the Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) and Music Managers Forum Canada, which honoured Wanagas with a lifetime achievement award in 2012.

He was the co-founder and General Manager of the Alberta Recording Industry Association, and served on the Music Industry Advisory Committee of the Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC).

Tim Des Islets of Noisemaker Management (The East Pointers, Great Lake Swimmers) offered this Facebook tribute: "The four years I spent at Bumstead were my Master's education in artist management and the music industry. Everything I know now about the industry can be traced back to what Larry taught me and he brought me in to everything.

"In my first week working for Larry he told me I had to book a 20-date US tour for the fall... and it had to get done quickly. For four years he would throw any assignment at me and it was an opportunity to learn. He took me and sent me around Canada and the world to conferences and on tour, introduced me to everyone he knew, and let me work with bands I believed in.

"We started with The East Pointers just as I was leaving the company to start Noisemaker Management. I am beyond grateful for my time at Bumstead working with Larry and I know my life would be completely different if it wasn't for those four years."

Colin James forwarded this tribute to Billboard Canada: "I was saddened to hear about Larry’s passing. He played a large part in my early career after asking me to meet him for lunch at the Palliser Hotel restaurant after opening for kd lang there as a member of Billy Cowsill’s band in 1984.

"He told me he was moving to Vancouver and if I was interested in being managed by him and Steve Macklam when he got there. I had just played with Stevie Ray Vaughan at the time and lots was starting to happen. Very exciting times for me, and there, lo and behold, was Larry Wanagas. Always a champion of the music. RIP Larry W."

Now one of Canada's biggest rock bands, The Trews were signed to Bumstead Productions until Wanagas' retirement in 2017. On Facebook, the group posted this homage: "It’s no exaggeration to say that we would not be where we are today, would probably not have gotten off the ground at all, were it not for Larry Wanagas. He believed in our band, and put his money where his mouth was, at a time when very few others did.

"We first met him in 2002 when he was one of only a handful of people checking us out at Healey’s in Toronto and he spent the next 15 years managing our career. A ride that had many ups and downs, euphoric highs and painful lows. We lost him on Wednesday but we’ll always be grateful for the time, energy and passion he put in to helping our band live out it’s dream. Our thoughts are with Sheryl, Tim and Dusty at this time. Rest easy Lars."

Julian Taylor, frontman of Staggered Crossing, contributed this tribute to Billboard Canada: "Me and all the members of Staggered Crossing send out our prayers and condolences to the Wanagas family. Larry was our first and only manager and managed the band in our early years. We were just naive kids back then and he taught us a lot about how the music business worked. We are saddened to hear of his passing and send our love to Sheryl, Dusty and Tim."

Toronto music publicist Erin Kinghorn on Facebook: "Bumstead was one of eEK! first long-term clients…I was only hired for a 4 month contract and ended up staying for 7 years. It would have been even longer if he had not retired. I will always be grateful to him for giving me 'a shot' as he put it. He is someone who truly loved music and his love of his clients was only shadowed by his love of his family and friends. Goodbye dear friend, you will be missed."

Moe Berg (The Pursuit Of Happiness) posted this tribute on his Facebook page: "Very sad to hear of the passing of Larry Wanagas. He was my first real manager back in Edmonton and The Modern Minds recorded their first tracks at his 8-Track studio, Homestead Recorders. Travel well, Larry."

Former Warner Music Canada head Steve Kane (on Facebook): "Larry was one of the good guys in my book. He wasn’t flash but he got shit done and always put his artists first. He had a sly sense of humour and could spin a tale. My condolences to his family, friends and all the folks out there who were touched by his kind and gentle soul."

Australian rock band The Lazys (on Facebook): "We are saddened to hear of the passing of Larry Wanagas. After performing at Canadian Music Week back in 2014, Larry became our first manager in Canada and was one of the very first few who believed in us. Sending our deepest condolences to Larry’s family and friends. Rest in peace Larry. Thanks for the memories mate."

On Facebook, Canadian music business veteran Brian Allen termed Wanagas "An unusually calm figure amidst the storms of the industry. Thank you, Larry."

International

Aston Francis "Family Man" Barrett, a reggae bassist best known for his role in Bob Marley & The Wailers, died on Feb. 3, at age 77.

His son, Aston Barrett Jr., shared the news on social media: “With the heaviest of hearts, we share the news of the passing of our beloved Aston ‘Familyman’ Barrett after a long medical battle. This morning, the world lost not just an iconic musician and the backbone of The Wailers but a remarkable human being whose legacy is as immense as his talent."

The Kingston-based Barrett initially played in Lee 'Scratch' Perry’s house band, The Upsetters, before joining The Wailers with his brother Carlton in 1971. As a member of The Wailers, Aston was in charge of song arrangements and also co-produced & engineered several of the group’s albums, including Catch a Fire and Exodus.

Barrett left The Wailers in 1981.In 2006, he unsuccessfully sued Island Records, the group’s label, asking for £60 million in unpaid royalties.

In its obituary, The Guardian noted that Barrett " was also a mentor to many Jamaican musicians including Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare of the reggae production duo Sly & Robbie. But his legacy stretched much further, as he continued to tour with later iterations of the Wailers."

In 2021, Barrett was honoured with the Order of Distinction (Commander class) in the National Honours and Awards on Jamaica’s 59th Anniversary of Independence.

Of note: Barrett's son, Aston Barrett Jr., currently leads a version of The Wailers that continues to tour internationally. He will portray his father in the upcoming Bob Marley biopic, One Love.

Toby Keith (Covel), one of the biggest country music stars of the Nineties and 2000s, died on Feb. 5, at age 62, following a diagnosis of stomach cancer.

Last December, December 2023, Keith performed at Park MGM in Las Vegas, his first official headlining shows since he revealed his cancer diagnosis.

In its obituary, Rolling Stone wrote that "Keith performed country music with an unapologetic dose of patriotism and an unrelenting swagger in songs like “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American),” “How Do You Like Me Now?!” and “Who’s Your Daddy?”

The extensive obituary in Billboard noted that the Oklahoma-born Keith “worked in the oil industry and played in the USFL football league before pivoting to music. His big break came when a flight attendant handed his demo to Mercury Records exec Harold Shedd, who signed him to the label.

"Keith’s 1993 self-titled Mercury debut featured such traditional country tunes as “Should’ve Been a Cowboy” and “A Little Less Talk and a Lot More Action" and following albums 1994’s Boomtown ,1996’s Blue Moon, and Dream Walkin’ spawned multiple hit singles."

“He moved over to Dreamworks Records in 1999 for How Do You Like Me Now?, whose title track proved to be his mainstream breakthrough also making the pop charts."

That run of success continued until recently. Over his career, Keith scored 52 top 10 hits and 32 No. 1s on the country charts, many being his own compositions. His last album, a 13-track collection entitled 100% Songwriter, was released in November.

Over the years, Keith played for U.S. presidents including George W Bush. Barack Obama and Donald Trump.

Keith was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2015, and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2021, and he received the Merle Haggard Spirit Award from the ACM in 2020, as well as the National Medal of the Arts in 2021.

Tributes from many of his peers are included in this Billboard feature.

Wayne Kramer, guitarist and co-founder of the influential Detroit rock band the MC5, died on Feb. 2, at age 75, of pancreatic cancer.

His passing was reported on his official Facebook page, along with a statement that "He will be remembered for starting a revolution in music, culture, and kindness."

An AP obituary noted that "the protopunk band the MC5 thrashed out such hardcore anthems as “Kick Out the Jams” and influenced everyone from The Clash to Rage Against the Machine. From the late 1960s to early 1970s, no band was closer to the revolutionary spirit of the time than the MC5, which featured Kramer and Fred “Sonic” Smith on guitars, Rob Tyner on vocals, Michael Davis on bass and Dennis “Machine Gun” Thompson on drums.

Managed for a time by White Panther co-founder John Sinclair, they were known for their raw, uncompromising music, which they envisioned as the soundtrack for the uprising to come."

The MC5 was considered one of the most political rock bands of the counterculture, and it played the infamous 1968 Democratic National Convention, in Chicago, featuring police violence upon anti-war protesters.

The group only released three albums, beginning with a live debut, Kick Out the Jams that reached No. 30 on the Billboard 200 in 1969, their highest-charting release. It was followed by Back in the USA and High Time, prior to the band breaking up at the end of 1972.

Kramer was arrested on drug charges in 1975 and given a four year prison term. That incident is cited in The Clash song, "Jail Guitar Doors," referencing "Wayne and his deals of cocaine.”

Upon his release in 1979, Kramer went on to play with the bands Was (Not Was), with Don Was, and Gang War, with punk icon Johnny Thunders. released solo albums, and led assorted lineups of the MC5 over the years, including a 50th anniversary tour in 2018.

In 2022, Kramer linked up with veteran Canadian rock producer Bob Ezrin, collaborating on Alice Cooper’s Detroit Stories album and working on material for a proposed new MC5 album.

Beyond his music projects, Kramer had continued his work with Jail Guitar Doors, the nonprofit prison outreach program he cofounded in 2009, including its youth initiative — the CAPO Center (Community Arts, Programming and Outreach) — that opened in his adopted home of Los Angeles.

He has also composed for film and television, including a score for the award-winning 2018 Red Wings documentary The Russian Five, and another documentary, Coldwater Kitchen.

If you would like to honour Kramer, donations are appreciated to his nonprofit organization, Jail Guitar Doors, here

Chita Rivera, a pioneering Tony-winning dancer and singer, died on Jan. 30, at age 91.

A Billboard obituary called Rivera "a Broadway legend," one who found fame via roles in such hits as West Side Story, Chicago and Kiss of the Spider Woman.

"Rivera first gained wide notice in 1957 as Anita in the original production of West Side Story and was still dancing on Broadway with her trademark energy a half-century later in 2015’s The Visit," reported Billboard.

Rivera was nominated for ten Tony awards, tying her with Julie Harris for the most nominations for an actress at the ceremony. She won two out of the 10: in 1984 for The Rink and in 1993 for Kiss of the Spider Woman. She was also the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in 2018.

Outside of Broadway, Rivera's TV roles included The Outer Limits and TheThe New Dick Van Dyke Show.

In 2002, Rivera was the first Latina to receive a Kennedy Center Honor, and, in 2009, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.

Tragically Hip Manager Jake Gold To Be Inducted Into Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame

The influential manager of the legendary Canadian band will be inducted during this year's Canadian Music Week in Toronto.

Jake Gold, the influential artist manager who helped break Canadian legends The Tragically Hip, will be inducted into the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame during this year's 2024 Live Music Industry Awards.

Gold first worked with the Hip, one of Canada's biggest bands with four diamond certifications to their name, in the '80s, helping to bring them onto the national stage. Since lead singer Gord Downie's passing in 2017, Gold has reunited with the band, to help them continue to build their musical legacy. Joining the Music Industry Hall of Fame, Gold cements his own legacy as part of a group that includes members like Canadian rock band April Wine and singer-songwriter Andy Kim.

In a career spanning four-plus decades, Gold has worked with artists and producers including new wave group New Regime, Winnipeg rockers The Watchmen, and Jann Arden collaborator Russell Broom. He co-founded talent company The Management Trust with Allan Gregg, judged potential stars on Canadian Idol, and served as a longtime board member of the Canadian Independent Music Association. Late last year, Gold and the Hip won War Child Canada’s Founder Award.

His most well-known client, The Tragically Hip, remains one of the country's best-loved groups, even nearly seven years after Downie's death. Their 2005 hits compilation Yer Favourites finished at No. 68 on 2023's year-end Canadian Albums chart. They also recently released a 25th anniversary edition of 1999's Phantom Power, and appeared together to delve into that album's creation. 2024 is the band's 40th anniversary, and they've hinted at more big things to come this year.

"I am very fortunate to have and continue to work with some amazing artists," Gold said in a statement. "While I’m the one being honoured, it’s truly a testament to all the great people that have worked with me over the years. Management is a team effort.”

Gold will be inducted during the Live Music Industry Awards as part of Canadian Music Week, on June 4 in Toronto. The Live Music Industry Awards are presented by the Canadian Live Music Association and recognize achievements in live performance and event programming, with awards for best festivals, touring acts, talent buyers and more.

Find out more about the Live Music Industry Awards here.