RIP Sass Jordan, Acclaimed Canadian Blues-Rock Singer and 'Canadian Idol' Judge

Sass (Sarah) Jordan, a platinum-selling, award-winning Canadian blues-rock singer/songwriter and judge on Canadian Idol, died on Oct. 2, at age 65. A cause of death has not been reported, but Jordan had cancelled tour dates last month, citing health concerns.

An official statement from her family notes, ''it is with profound sorrow that the family of Sass Jordan announces that the singer, songwriter, Juno Award winner and longtime Canadian Idol judge died peacefully on October 2, 2026, surrounded by those who loved her most.''

''Her family remembers her as 'an inimitable force of nature' and 'an irreplaceable being of light and joy,' a woman whose generosity and fire touched everyone who shared a stage, a studio or a kitchen table with her. Over four decades, she gave Canadian rock one of its most recognizable voices, carved out space for women in a genre long dominated by men, and opened doors for the young musicians who came through her band.''

Over a long career, she had a major impact on the Canadian music scene, as a recording artist, performer, actor and TV personality. Jordan had a powerful voice equally at home in rock and blues, and was a skilled songwriter and a charismatic and energetic performer. As her passing became known on Oct. 3, a wave of tribute posts on social media testified to the peer respect she enjoyed, in Canada and beyond, and the affection in which she was held by a large fan base.

Jordan was born in Birmingham, England, the daughter of French literature professor Albert Jordan and former English ballerina Jean Lanceman. At three, she moved with her family from France to Montreal, where her father had taken a professorship at Concordia University.

As per the family's statement, ''as a young teen she sang and played guitar with friends in Westmount Park, and by 16 she was fronting bands in downtown Montreal clubs, later becoming singer and bassist for local favourites The Pinups. She drew inspiration from a remarkably wide circle, from Rod Stewart, Judas Priest, Ozzy Osbourne, Tears for Fears and Anthrax to Al Green, Bonnie Raitt, Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight and Aretha Franklin. She especially studied the great male rock vocalists, among them Steven Tyler, Robert Palmer, Paul Rodgers, Lou Gramm, Robin Zander and Lowell George of Little Feat.''

Jordan first made a mark singing with other Montreal artists. Her recording career began in 1986 as co-lead vocalist on "Come On (Baby Tonight)" from Bündock's album Mauve and work as a session singer included recording and performing with popular rock band The Box. As a songwriter, her first chart success came with her composition "Rain,'' recorded by Michael Breen and charting in 1987.

Jordan then concentrated on her solo career, with famed label Atlantic Records releasing her solo debut, Tell Somebody, in 1988. The title track reached No. 11 in Canada and it became a hit video on MuchMusic, bringing her national recognition. That increased with her Juno Award for most promising vocalist in 1989, to be followed by best female vocalist nominations in 1990, 1993 and 1995.

Relocation to Los Angeles followed in Jan. 1990, and her second album, Racine, would prove to be the most successful of her career. Released in March 1992, it sold an estimated 450,000 copies worldwide and 100,000 in Canada, thanks to a string of rock radio hits that included "Make You a Believer," "I Want to Believe," "You Don't Have to Remind Me," "Goin' Back Again" and ''Who Do You Think You Are.''

"Make You a Believer" reached No. 11 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart, and Billboard named her its top female rock artist of 1992. That same year, thanks to the support of Kevin Costner, she recorded the duet "Trust in Me" with Joe Cocker for The Bodyguard', a blockbuster hit soundtrack that sold more than 45 million copies. That exposure helped Jordan secure tour support slots for the likes of Aerosmith, The Rolling Stones, AC/DC and Van Halen.

Jordan recruited seriously talented musicians for her band in this period, including a largely unknown 22-year-old drummer Taylor Hawkins, who would go on to rock fame in Foo Fighters.

Her next album, Rats, didn't quite duplicate the success of Racine, but it delivered "High Road Easy," a No. 9 hit in Canada and No. 6 on the U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, plus "I'm Not" and "Sun's Gonna Rise," which reached No. 7 at home and earned her a first appearance on the Billboard Hot 100.

Jordan then switched labels, signing with the Montreal-based independent label Aquarius for the 1997 album Present and 2000's Hot Gossip. In 2001 she performed at the Grey Cup halftime show with Michel Pagliaro.

The photogenic Jordan then stretched out creatively as an actor, starring as Janis Joplin in the off-Broadway production Love, Janis. She also acted in the Toronto and Winnipeg productions of the controversial hit play The Vagina Monologues and guested on NBC's Sisters. Her biggest splash onscreen came as a judge in the hit TV talent show Canadian Idol. Jordan joined in 2003 as the only woman on the panel, and remained there for all six seasons.

Jordan returned to recording with 2006's Get What You Give, produced by Canadian roots music star Colin Linden in Nashville and featuring such high-profile guests as Garry Tallent of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and Richard Bell of The Band.

Subsequent albums included 2009's From Dusk 'til Dawn, produced by Jordan's husband, musician Derek Sharp, and released on Toronto indie label Kindling Records, and S.U.N.: Something Unto Nothing, a studio collaboration with Brian Tichy.

To mark the milestone 25th anniversary of Racine in 2017, Jordan released (via Canadian label Linus Entertainment) Racine Revisited featuring reimagined versions of the songs from the original 1992 album.

In 2020, Jordan released her first blues album, Rebel Moon Blues, out on the esteemed Canadian blues/roots label Stony Plain. It included an original tune, ''The Key,'' alongside covers of blues classics and was very well-received. It debuted at No. 5 five on the Billboard Blues Albums chart and was critically acclaimed upon release. Her second blues album, Bitches Blues, came out in 2022.

Geoff Kulawick, owner of Linus and Stony Plain, tells Billboard Canada that ''It was one of my proudest professional accomplishments, signing her to Stony Plain Records after convincing her she should record a rockin' blues album, which she nailed with 2020's Rebel Moon Blues, and followed up in 2022 with Bitches Blues.

''Both albums were best-sellers for Stony Plain in those years, garnering support from the blues radio programs and magazines and going top 5 on the Living Blues chart and on SiriusXM Bluesville. One of Canada's greatest rock vocalists, Sass was truly inspired by the blues. She was a force of nature - bold, beautiful, and brave.''

The final album in Sass Jordan's extensive and varied discography was a live album, Live in New York Ninety-Four. This was taken from a 1994 live concert featuring Taylor Hawkins.

A side project confirming Jordan's versatility as a vocalist was her participation in a 2019 world tour, Mike Garson's A Bowie Celebration: The David Bowie Alumni Tour. This found her performing with the musicians of her childhood hero, led by keyboardist Garson, and Jordan once termed it as "like playing a love letter to his memory every night!" Jordan's very first concert was David Bowie on his Diamond Dogs tour, so this would have been a full circle experience.

In a Facebook tribute, Mike Garson posted that ''Sass and I had the joy of working together on our A Bowie Celebration tours. She was an extraordinary singer, but what I remember just as much was the person behind that unmistakable voice. She had a great heart, a wonderful spirit, an incredible feel for the music, and a wicked sense of humor. She was an absolute joy to work with, both onstage and off. Sass was one of a kind, and she will be deeply missed.'

Jordan's entrepreneurial skills were shown when she launched Rebel Moon Whiskey, a blended Canadian whisky made with Dixon Distilleries, and Kick Ass Sass Wine from Vineland Estates Winery in the Niagara Region.

One other non-musical accomplishment was her service as honorary colonel of 417 Combat Support Squadron from 2012-2016.

As tributes to Sass Jordan continue to flow, Billboard Canada will be collecting many for another feature to be posted shortly.