By Kerry Doole
Former promoter John Brower talks about how easy it was to bring Led Zeppelin, the Doors and others to Toronto
Brower is responsible for a number of impressive rock acts making their Toronto debuts — The Doors, the Who, the Jeff Beck Group, Frank Zappa, Procol Harum and Jimi Hendrix (at the CNE Coliseum). Here are some of his stories. – Nick Krewen, Toronto Star
The Canadian cultural icons who made the arts better in 2022
The artists, animators, authors and kings of the world who lightened our lives in this up-and-down roller-coaster ride of a year: meet your Canadian arts heroes of 2022. – Staff, Globe
Trial in shooting of Megan Thee Stallion exposes misogynoir, experts say
Megan Thee Stallion is a three-time Grammy winner and hip-hop superstar, but her success wasn’t enough to shield the 27-year-old artist from the power of widespread misinformation and social media vitriol leveled against her after she was shot in 2020 by Canadian rapper Tory Lanez. – Nardos Haile & Karena Phan, AP
New Brunswick singer-songwriter Shirley Eikhard wrote hit song ‘Something to Talk About’
A look at the life of the late singer/songwriter who passed away last month. – Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail
H&M pulls Justin Bieber collection after he calls the merch 'trash' made without his approval
The chain says it followed 'proper approval procedures,' but will pull out of respect for Bieber. –CTV News ·
Alvvays, the dream-pop noisemakers, are great, but are they any good?
In 2022, it’s harder to say which numbers matter. Nobody’s buying records in the streaming era. What does it say about a lauded pop act who gets by without chart success? Consider Alvvays, the Toronto quintet whose Blue Rev landed on a number of year-end “best album” lists. – Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail
Quebecers are listening to less local music; artists hope Bill C-11 will change that
Local artists accounted for less than 8 per cent of plays on streaming platforms. – Jacob Serebrin, CBC News
Son of Teenage Head guitarist Gord Lewis found not criminally responsible for his death
Lewis was killed by son Jonathan Vader Lewis inside their Corktown apartment in August. – Fallon Hewitt, The Spectator
The Ottawa music scene mourns John 'Archie' Archibald, who had hand in some iconic venues
He helped launch Zaphod's and Barrymore's, and was 'instrumental in making this a fun city.' – Dan Taekema, CBC News
The heavy soul of Neil Young’s Harvest
By the time he made Harvest, Neil Young was already a “rich hippie.” This is a distinction he gives to himself in Harvest Time, the documentary accompanying the 50th anniversary reissue of his landmark album. – Yasmine Shemesh, Georgia Straight
Neil Young says that “nothing is real” when you take the “dark step” into digital music production
Best of 2022: Young and Rick Rubin explain their hybrid approach to recording new Crazy Horse album World Record. – Ben Rogerson, MusicRadar
The Sadies unveil poignant performance film 'Stop and Start'
Directed by Ron Mann, it captures what the band thought might be their final performance. – Exclaim!
From Drake to Shania Twain, Canadian music scene looks promising in 2023
A look ahead to some of this year's potential highlights. – Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail
Check out Paul Corby’s beautiful tribute to those we lost in 2022
Man it was a tough year for losses in our roots music community: Vince Fontaine, Koady Chaisson, Harpdog Brown Michael Wrycraft, Pastelle LeBlanc, Shirley Eikhard — and then, right at the end of the year, music journalist Tom Harrison, and then one of the giants of music the world over: Ian Tyson. – Roots Music Canada
Ontario's country music pioneers: Jack Scott
If you had the good fortune to be a radio listener in the late 1950s and through the 60s, you would have been treated to a steady stream of hit songs by rockabilly singer Jack Scott. – Larry Delaney, CMAOntario
Fave 20 Canadian albums of 2022
As we prepare to close out another outstanding year for Canadian music, I am happy to share what I consider to be 20 of the finest albums from our northern neighbor released over the last 12 months. – Martin Noakes, Great White Wonder
Leonard Cohen’s mountainous archive captured by AGO exhibit.
The Art Gallery of Ontario’s new exhibition Leonard Cohen: Everybody Knows, explores his transition from poet and novelist to songwriter and musician – and eventually superstar stage performer. – Kate Taylor, Globe and Mail
Top 5 opera, dance and classical music experiences from 2022
Post-pandemic life saw companies entering a brave new world marked by unpredictable and shifting consumer habits, declining attendance rates and general economic uncertainty. – Michael Crabb and Joshua Chong, Toronto Star
Arkells surprise with show at Eva Rothwell Centre
Max Kerman and Mike DeAngelis dropped in on a small group of parents and kids. – Barry Gray, The Spectator
From Taylor Hawkins to Ian Tyson to Loretta Lynn, here are 11 influential artists we lost in 2022
We remember some of the influential singers, songwriters and musicians we lost in 2022. – Richie Assaly, Aisling Murphy, Toronto Star
Myles Goodwyn to retire from touring with April Wine but continue working with band
April Wine founder Goodwyn says he’s done with touring life and will play his final live show in March. The Halifax band’s lead vocalist and guitarist says ongoing issues with his diabetes have led him to conclude his “touring days are officially over.” The 74-year-old insists he’s not finished with the group though. – David Friend, CP
A tribute to Ian Tyson, the great Western troubadour
It is hard to assess the legacy of Ian Tyson. In terms of iconic Canadian songwriters, he stands apart from Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Gordon Lightfoot or Stompin’ Tom. Not because his songs were better but because it seemed as if they had always been there. – Charlie Angus, Policy
The best albums of 2022: Willie Stratton’s Drugstore Dreamin’
Retro-feeling country rock for fans of Orville Peck and early Johnny Cash sees Stratton earn a spot on our list of the year’s best records. – Morgan Mullin, The Coast
International
Ticketmaster’s dark history
A 40-year saga of kickbacks, threats, political maneuvering, and the humiliation of Pearl Jam. – Maureen Tkacik, Krista Brown, Prospect
Chance the Rapper to bring free concert, festival to Ghana
The Grammy winner along with rapper Vic Mensa will host the inaugural Black Line Star festival in Accra, Ghana, this month. – Jonathan Landrum Jr., AP
Year in review: The Top 40 Jazz Albums of 2022
Our critics pick their favorite new releases of the year. – JazzTimes
Best Debut Albums of 2022
One of the reasons we started Paste Magazine 20 years ago—is to help new artists find an audience and to help our audience discover great new music. We hope this list of the Best Debut Albums of 2022 turns you onto some new music that you’ll love. Paste
Dylan says he's a fan of Eminem, Metallica, and Wu-Tang Clan
Jack White, Arctic Monkeys, and "the Oasis brothers" are also on Mr. Tambourine Man's playlist. – CoS
Snoop Dogg says highest he has ever been was with country star
Rapper Snoop Dogg, says the highest he has ever been was during a smoking session with country singer Willie Nelson in Amsterdam. – Postmedia
Adam Clayton on U2 going on tour without Larry Mullen Jr. and past troubles
In a recent interview, Adam Clayton said the prospect of going on tour without Mullen, who is suffering from injuries related to repetitive motion, was "hard to face". – Debbie McGoldrick, IrishCentral
Mariah Carey breaks Spotify’s single-day global streaming record with ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’
This latest commercial feat for the nearly 29-year-old track, around which Mariah Carey recently came to light in a social-media post from Chart Data. According to the cited message, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” had broken “the all-time record for the biggest single day streams in Spotify chart history with 21.27 million streams.'” – Digital Music News
Review: The Rolling Stones: UNZIPPED can’t contain my complex feelings for the greatest rock band
The travelling exhibition shows how Mick, Keith and the guys changed popular music forever—but avoids discussing how they used cultural colonization to do so. – Morgan Mullin, The Coast
What the Whitney Houston biopic reveals
“My whole life: ‘She ain’t Black enough. She ain’t White enough.’ Well, how about she’s not obedient enough? How ‘bout she ain’t fearful enough?” That’s Whitney Houston, played by Naomi Ackie, in Kasi Lemmons’ moving and elegant new biopic, – CNN
LadBaby break Beatles’ record to score fifth Christmas No 1 single
YouTubers land fifth festive chart-topper in a row with Food Aid, a sausage roll-themed rewrite of the Band Aid classic. – Laura Snapes, The Guardian
Mampintsha remembered for his contribution to the music industry
Mandla Maphumulo, affectionately known as Mampintsha, has left his fans and loved ones reeling at his untimely death. Maphumulo who was 40 years old, died on Christmas eve after a stroke. –The Star (South Africa)
20 years after the movie ‘Chicago’ shimmied into the limelight it’s more resonant now than ever
“Chicago,” which debuted this week in 2002, syncs up with the true crime boom of recent years and the metastasis of fame. – Shinan Govani, Toronto Star
The Best Albums of 2022
David Hajdu’s favorite albums encompass everything from Bad Bunny to English metal to Afrobeat. – The Nation
