WhatFinger


Guitar Great

The passing of Jeff Healey



I am truly in a state of shock over the passing on this Sunday of Toronto-based guitar legend Jeff Healey. Healey passed away after a long courageous fight with cancer at the too young age of 41. Losing his sight at the age of 1 to a form of cancer, Jeff started to play the guitar at the age of 3.

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He was an amazing person, who was a hero to all of us that were raised in the same neigbourhood in Etobicoke. Known for his wicked rock guitar riffs, which he played in his own unique over the lap style, Jeff Healey was a standout musician, who was nominated for several Grammy Awards and won the Entertainer of the Year Juno Award in 1990. A devout jazz lover, many people did not know that he was also an accomplished trumpet and clarinet musician, who was legendary for his jam sessions around town. Healy owned one of the largest jazz collections in the world and owned an estimated collection of over 25 thousand vintage 78s. One of the true nice people in the industry, he helped nurture the careers of such artists as Amanda Marshall and Terra Hazelton and was the owner of a very successful club in downtown Toronto that bore his name. I was extremely lucky that I got to know Jeff fairly well and I was always impressed with his genuine warmth and natural grace. I remember one of the last times I talked to him was at one of my book signings when I looked up and there was a grinning Jeff with one of his pals on his arm demanding me to autograph one of my books that he just purchased. Feeling foolish in signing the book to someone as famous as Jeff ,I’ll never forget him explaining that my book was as important as any art and he was proud that I was really pushing the subject of Canadian sports accomplishments in those books. Now deep down I knew that you could never compare my inconsequential accomplishments as an author to his successes on the local and international music scene, but that was the magic of this selfless and humble man, the talent of making everyone he came into contact with feel like they were the ones who were special. God, take care of your newest angel in heaven, you blessed him with so much talent, he constantly amazed all with his dignity, and courage over the years and with our profound loss, Rock 'n Roll heaven just gained themselves one truly amazing guitar player. Our sincerest condolences go out to his wife and two children for their loss. We lost one of the good ones!

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