Jeff Monday Feb.22/10

First off, I know you can't see the black ring of the Olympic logo against our black background, but it's there. Which reminds me, Kenny's new single, Black Is Black, is available right now on iTunes (Yes I know, a shameless promotion).

Ok, we're in a bit of trouble here, I'll admit it. Downhill skiing... not our forte apparently. Hockey... can anybody say Toblerone? (Ricola, RICOLA!!!!). I am however, enjoying these Winter Games immensely as the weather has allowed me to get out in the yard and work on the gardens and lawns of my home. I mean why not? It was 14 degrees yesterday and on Saturday I washed my car outside and honestly, I broke into a sweat it was that warm. Not so good if you are into the Super G... (on that note, my girlfriend called me an Olympian the other night but I don't think the IOC recognizes that as an official event, yet... (audience groan), Bada-Boom!... Well, at least I didn't get a DNF!). Anyways, enough with the cheekiness and double entendre say the good taste police...

It really has been a cool vibe out here with the Games so far and the true Canadian spirit is certainly alive in our neighborhood with Canadian flags and Olympic displays everywhere. I would imagine you've all seen some news footage of the Vancouver activities and outside of the usual over zealous participants from the Olympic Beer Drinking Freestyle, we as a country have been pretty well represented here even if the weather hasn't been so co-operative for outdoor winter sports. Oh right, I almost forgot, who's VISA card did Morgan Freeman say is covering the cost of this little party? I saw a clip of Gordon Campbell waving a Canadian flag at the hockey game with a bunch of empty seats around him. I know a lot of real hockey fans who would have loved those seats... Perhaps Gordo was just freshening the air a little. (Damn, I knew I shouldn't have eaten 3 of those spicy bratwurst's at the German Hospitality Haus!).

Really looking forward to our shows out here this week. We are playing the Commodore Ballroom Wednesday, the 24th of Feb. as part of the Manitoba Homecoming and then Thursday we will be at the 2010 Olympic Celebration site out in Surrey. We are very fortunate to be a part of this great, once in a lifetime event and our thanks to everyone involved who helped put it all together. I know many years from now being a part of this will likely have even more meaning to me. Isn't that the way it works? Our memories of things are often times much sweeter than when we were actually having the experience. I don't know what thats all about... it's a little too early in the day for me to have such deep thoughts... lol.

Well kids, just a quick hello to you all and I hope you enjoy yourselves watching the rest of the 2010 Games. I will be glued to the HD here at home, flying the flag, cheering on all of our great atheletes as a proud Canadian and BTW, we do live in the best country on the planet and I am a lucky soul to be here watching these Winter Games... on the deck, in my shorts and T-shirt. LMAO.

Let's Go Team Canada!!!!!!!

J.

Jeff Monday Feb.01/10

Hey Out There,

Just been asked by Darryl C. about tickets for our show at the Commodore in Vancouver on the 24th of Feb. As a rule, we have very little to do with the marketing and distribution of tickets for shows. That is usually the exclusive domain and responsibility of the promoter. So Darryl, sorry bro' I don't have a good answer for you outside of check the Commodore website on this. I am fairly flat out with other Streetheart business at the moment. I'm trying to find some good deals on airline flights... However, if I get any info that could help you I will let you know.

I'm currently on the net listening to Q107 in Calgary AB as I am writing this. It's the morning show DJ'ed (is that a word?) by our friends Terry Dimonte and Patti MacNeil. They are playing Paradise Skies at the moment. One of my personal favs. Killer solo. Kim Mitchell is such a cool guitarist... I'll probably slide over to CITI FM in Winnipeg later. BTW, thanks to CITI and Q107 for getting behind Kenny's single (Black is Black) right out of the box. Keep requesting it out there my friends! Two great Classic Rock stations and both have been so good to us over the years. We are lucky that our music is played so consistently and is always available on the airwaves (and internet) for our fans. I have a lot of compassion for newer bands wondering how they will keep their music going in years to come... Oh yeah, right, they have the Internet, You Tube, Facebook as well as the radio and apparently, video killed the radio star anyways... Not so worried as I know that the great artists and great music always find a way to the people and smart, industrious men and women will always figure out how to get that great music to the fans. Speaking of that lofty and oft times elusive concept, I'd better go back to my hat rack and try on something else on for a while...

Oh yes, one more thing. Guys, don't forget Valentines Day on the 14th. Wanna play golf and drink beer with your chums later on this summer? Then don't forget about her and start thinking about it right now. Trust me... LMAO.

Rock on kids,

J.

Jeff Tuesday January 13/10

Happy New Year to everyone and all the very best for 2010! As you know by now Black Is Black and Best Of My Love are available right now on iTunes and we are very excited about the having this new material for you. This year promises to be a busy one for us if the first week of the year is any indication of things to come. Looking forward to a couple of shows in the Vancouver area during the Olympics although living here, the Olympics will be a bit of a hassle in regards to trying to get anywhere near the downtown core. They will essentially be shutting down the city centre during the Olympics and limit the access of the normal traffic flow. I am glad I don't have to commute... Anyways, a little chaotic but an interesting time to be in Vancouver nonetheless. Celebrated Christmas with my girlfriend last week since I was on the road during the Christmas holidays. As you know, we played a couple of shows as part of the World Junior Championships in Saskatoon and Regina. It was great doing those shows and as always, we were well taken care of by the organizers and support staff. Thanks to everyone for your help. Then we played Winnipeg NYE at the McPhillips Street Casino and I probably had as much fun as I have had on a New Years for a long time. The band was really tight after doing those shows in Saskatchewan just a few days earlier. NYE shows can get a bit weird sometimes but we had big fun and the crowd was terrific as it always is in Winnipeg of course. So with the strains of U2's New Years Day rolling around in my head I arrive home late Jan 01 via Air Canada (thanks for not losing my stuff at least), literally hit the ground running and have not stopped since that time. Speaking of running, I am on my way out the door to get new flooring for my recording studio so I won't ramble on too much more. I just wanted to say Happy New Year to you all and as always, we are looking forward to a great 2010 (yikes!!!!!! really?) for Kenny and Streetheart and we hope you will be a big part of that with us. Oh yeah, get started on your taxes kids. April is coming. Yeah... I'm The Taxmaaaaaan.

Rock on... J.

Jeff Monday Dec. 07/09

Yeah...Well, are you getting ready for Christmas? It's my duty to get outside today and put the lights up. There's big pressure in my neighbourhood to be festive...lol. Actually, we have a wonderful neighbourhood with lots of kids and families and everyone participates and puts on a good show. Perhaps a little over the top but still, in this world, a bit of Christmas cheer is certainly most welcome. Also, I plan to turn any Christmas gift money for friends, into a donation to the Union Gospel Mission (my fav charity here in Vancouver) this year. You can feed around 40 people for $100.00. Come on, like my friends need anything... they all own homes and cars, Macbooks and Blackberry's. I am hoping to give them all a card that says Merry Christmas, you are feeding 200 people today that might not get anything else. I get a little choked up just thinking about doing this one small thing and I am reminded about how fortunate I am. I can only speak for myself here but again, I am grateful for everything in my life. Family, friends, someone to love, a warm home and food. I don't even need to mention the really obvious stuff like getting to make music for a living, working with great guys and having fantastic fans to play for all the time. I know God exists because everyday He reminds me with the life that unfolds before me. For the record, I am blessed and never forget that fact. Thanks God, You rock dude...

Yeah, 2009... we have such a great band and I wish you all knew them the way I do. After so many years, to be able to work with good friends and play for our fans is my real gift. I may not be the richest guy or biggest pop star ever but getting to work with such amazing people is a blessing. Yes, it's true. I have worked with people that I literally, hated to be around, who hated me as well. Isn't it funny what kinds of misery we will put up with in our lives sometimes?

Hey, wanna see a picture of the turkey that Lizzy and I roasted on Thanksgiving? Well, apparently,

you don't have a choice, because here it is. A little back story on why we even have a picture of the turkey... Ok, I am taking the finished turkey out of the oven and our dear friend Glenda (who is of Chinese descent) comes racing into the kitchen with her camera and says, "I need to get a picture of the turkey! It's what we (as in the royal "we") do. We always take pictures of the food!" So, here it is kids, 17 pounds or so of carefully basted, butterball happiness and notorious inducer of post gastronomic naps... Beautiful really and thanks Glenda for introducing to us this fine Chinese/Canadian tradition and let's face it, how many times do you get your photo taken with a turkey? I'm guessing 1 or 2 times in your life, if you are lucky. I mean, this is better than some of the promo shots I've been in over the years. (BTW, doesn't it look like I've been basting myself with a Cab/Shiraz in this photo?) LMAO...

Anyways, just a moment today to say hello and again, I know I've been slack but after a hectic summer and all, it has been nice to take a little break. Oh, right, Liz and I did go to Maui for 10 glorious days. I'll show you photos as soon as I get some. Still waiting for those, ahem...

I'll be back before Christmas and give you a wrap up and what to expect next year from KS&S. I can confidently say it will be a great 2010 and we'll still be moving forward with lots of new stuff for you. Ok, have a great day out there my friends. Remember to be grateful for your good fortune because it can be worse. Give more and expect less...

Peace Out, J.

Jeff Monday Sept.28/09

Hey Kids,

I hope you all had a great summer out there. I have been spending the last week finally unpacking and putting away my suitcases and my guitar's (that would be Frank) travel armor and have been trying to account for the last few months. Hmmm.... let me see officer, it"s all a little blurry to me at the moment...

(ok, cue the harp glissando's and with tongue firmly planted in cheek... action!)

I remember, Once I had a house in Africa.... no, no, CUT! CUT!!!!! sorry, that's a movie I saw a long time ago...

Right, I remember, some airports and a white van. People were tossing things in and out and yelling at each other. Not fighting so much. More like dinner at your Italian friend's house. It seems to me there was a moment when a GPS started speaking in tongues to Kenny and was telling us all where to get off. There was a long train thrown in there somewhere (yeah...) and a construction site and a splinter group of crazed, rogue cars driving the wrong way down roads that were not fit for travel. I remember flying to a huge grey city shrouded in smog. It had thousands of tall glass buildings and a sad hockey team that had been cursed by an evil wizard (imagine a grainy picture of Gary Bettman wearing a pointy hat that had been poorly Photoshopped onto his head) who said they'd never win the Stanley Cup ever again. I think there were a few bottles of Scotch thrown (literally) in there somewhere as I can still hear the lonely sound of those empty bottles rolling down a long, dark hallway... ok, so it was the hallway of a Super 8, just work with me on this. There were clusters of people surrounding us and we, bravely making our last stand, Sharpies in hand and the last few copies of the Hits/Anthology (see Moose Jaw) being held above the seething masses like some kind of rock and roll Excalibur sacrifice (Hold fast Boys, no Quarter, my Sharpie doesn't work!!!!!). There were beautiful prairie sirens, bearing themselves and chanting their magic incantations (sing another prairie tune)... "Would you sign these please?" There were flashes of light and a thousand cell phones, all rising in unison like dedicated digital disciples, hanging on our every note...

Only later to be resurrected as unauthorized clips on YouTube and Facebook... yeah. There was the crushing heartbreak of Altona and that phrase, "So, Jeff, any news on the Altona gig?" which will resonate as a harsh reminder for eons. Well, at least for me and Daryl... you had to be there I guess. Somehow, we wind up at the home of Tim Horton and the great Leaf of Coffee (and I don't mean Paul) says to us, "Yes boys, I will bestow upon you all a sweet future of extra large double/doubles and Chocolate Glazed over stares from now until the end of time (or the length of your Air Canada flight delay which is, as it turns out, just slightly longer). However, you still can't get the sausage breakfast sandwich after 10:30am"... There was Lord Stanley's glorious triumph in Thunder Bay and the roars of Kehh-nee!! in Dauphin as we proved that you don't need a Cowboy hat to kick ass... although, we did get some cool hats at the end of the night! I'm wearing mine right now, BTW. Uhhh, wasn't that George Belanger waving at us through someones legs in Kenora? Maybe he was signaling for help or looking for an opener. I don't know... got any grapes?

I remember the WWF moments (in this cornerrrr, wearing the Pearl Drums t-shirt and practicing halftime paradiddles on the back of Jeff's seat... the Irish Assassin!!!!!!! Aaaannnd in this corner, representing the hopes and dreams of Eastern Canada... The Incredible... Jake the Cake!!!... ) in the aforementioned white van and I believe somebody is going to be wearing... the onion sombrero... all... day... long... senor...

Hey, wasn't Daryl telling a joke about how someone had changed and put on some weight... How did the end of that joke go again? Pete, help me out here and use your outside voice please... Oh, I thought you said goat...

There were old friends once again seen and new ones met that we will see again down the road, We have travelled what seems like 100,00 kilometers in planes, trains and automobiles. Well, no trains, but it sounded good... You that shower curtain ring feller?

Somehow, in late September, I find myself hosting a garage sale at my house on a gorgeous Vancouver Saturday afternoon. I look around to see my beautiful girlfriend Lizzy, cocktail in hand, explaining to a potential customer how, in her opinion, the iron she was selling was actually very good, however, it just didn't quite have enough steam for her... ok, are you finished smirking? (Actually, we spent most the weekend in bed watching TV and eating Chinese take away. It was my first weekend home in a few months.) It is at this moment I realize how lucky I am...

So, many thanks to everyone this summer. To all the men and women who put on the shows this year, crews, promoters, drivers and all the great bands we gigged with this summer and most importantly to you, our great fans. Thanks for being an integral part of our summer of '09. We are blessed and again, I really feel like one of the luckiest guys on the planet. We have our Streetheart Hits /Anthology CD out, the Witness Inc. is now out as well and finally in the hands of so many patient and loyal fans and Kenny's solo stuff will be available soon so watch for that. You know we will be doing more shows before the year is done so perhaps we'll see you before Christmas. I am looking forward to those cold, windy runs from van to lobby somewhere down the road soon. Not to mention the NHL regular season is starting this week. Sure am glad to be a Canucks fan. I like our chances this year (7-0-2 in the preseason BTW). Hey, you gotta admit, Gary Bettman would look pretty much at home in that evil wizard's hat...

Rock on... J. Oh yeah... almost forgot, cool photos by Gord LaMonica and David Trace. Cheers dudes.

Jeff Tuesday Aug.25/09

Hey...

A few moments to see how you're all doing out there. No twitters, tweets, chirps, barks or oinks, just good old fashioned blogging. Ahh, the good old days... hey, what the... that was only last month. Don't you just love how technology makes you feel so out of touch!

Well, summer is flying by and with sports radio talkin' Canucks here in Vancouver well, you know Christmas can't be that far off. Ok, I've still got tomatoes on the vines on my deck so let's not get ahead of ourselves too much here.

Uhh... I've been booking flights for upcoming gigs the last couple of days and generally catching up on business responsibilities and structuring some semblance of order in my office. It's still kinda early so, I am keeping myself occupied until our agent gets to work so I can begin harrassing him... again. Actually, we are lucky to have a direct line to our guy and that affords us the luxury of knowing and deciding what's going on, at least most of the time, with our lives as opposed to some cynical, bored secretary taking a message which will be passed along as soon as "he gets back from lunch". Yeah... heard that one enough . ( Hey c'mon, gettin' old over here.) Right, it's not as bad as, "If you know the extension of the person you are calling please enter that now". Uh-huh (saying with my best New York/Bronx accent) Yeah, I got your extension number, right here buddy.

Let's see... I'm taking my girlfriend to the PNE tomorrow to eat donuts, candy floss and fish and chips. She believes that it is our duty as loyal and true Vancouverites to go to the PNE every year and eat as much junk as we can and see if we survive. Are you kidding? Donuts, candy floss and fish and chips are all essential food groups right? I've been (literally) on the road most of my life and have basically lived on salt, sugar and grease. That's what keeps my hair so shiny (ok, that's actually A&G Wax). Hey, here's a big, on the road dining tip for you all. When you are far from home in a small town that you have never been to before, always order the clubhouse. Don't ask why, just do it and you'll thank me later when you're not puking. Here is a partial list of things not to order;

1) Caesar salad north of the 52nd parallel (right Daryl?)

2) Fish in any town where the main business is the oil industry

3) Don't ask for french fries in Montreal

4) Pass on any cheesecake served at a gas station restaurant

Other than that you're pretty good to go... just remember the clubhouse. Always a survivable choice. Ok, looks like I am approaching the 9:00am hour which means I can start making my calls and stuff. I'd better eat some breakfast as well since all I've had is 2 cups of coffee so far this morning. I have been using an especially good Italian Espresso blend lately which pretty much gets me so jagged that I'm usually grinding my teeth by now... So, I'm off to find food. Hmm... I wonder if that tuna casserole from last week is still good? Hey, just think of me as a gastronomic Evel Knievel sans the jumpsuit. Hopefully I'll survive breakfast and I'll be back to tell you all about it... bon (scott) appetit. J.

Jeff Wednesday Aug 12/09

Yeah...

So, it has been a busy summer (as you can tell by my absence on the blog) and I just got back from 10 days in Winnipeg. We played Harbourfest in Kenora on Aug 01 and that was such a great night. 2,200 people rockin' the house and as our good friend Howard Mandshein from 92 CITI FM said, "The place was electric!". Yes, it was great and personally, I had a gas that night. It sounded big, the crowd was terrific as expected and it really was big time rock and roll fun. Thanks to David Blake and all his staff for putting on such an excellent event and we are looking forward to playing there again. Come on Dave, lets get that return gig back in Kenora before the year is out!! Oops... did I mention I forgot to give back the dressing room key? Sorry man, I get kinda sidetracked after the shows sometimes. Too much to do I guess (I mean, where the hell was the bottle opener!). It's ok, I gave the key to Kenny last week. He'll get it back to John soon... I hope... lol. One thing I do need to mention was, I wanted to apologize to everyone who waited for the meet and greet after the show. As you well know, we didn't show up and that was because the fire marshall decided to shut things down and therefore the M&G was nixed just as we were about to go out to the table. Sorry kids, the fire marshall is king at these events and we all are subject to their decisions even if they seem unfair at the time. Next time... We had breakfast on the lake with some of our friends the next morning and if you have never been in the Kenora area, this is where God goes fishing on his holidays. I may be biased being a Northern Ontario boy and all but really, this part of the world is amazing. Thanks Chris, Big Chris, Rose and Mel for the beautiful breakfast (I ate 14 pieces of bacon Pete...jealous?) and enjoyed one of my personal favorite things, a Sunday morning beer on the dock. What a great weekend...

Last week we played a couple of shows. One in Norway House MB and one in Gillam MB. Both events were first class and we have so many people to thank for the wonderful experiences and great memories to be added to our summer of '09. First of all, thanks to Glenn Ranville for doing such a great job putting together the shows. Everything was spot on. You rock Glenn, let's keep it goin'... To Mike, George and Maria in Gillam, thank you for your generousity and for making us feel so welcome (did I mention all the great food?). We'll never forget it. Also, to Anthony, Vernon and everyone in Norway House our deepest thanks for your kindness and help as well. Thanks to NCI radio and in particular Melissa Spence for giving us some air time and for your help promoting the shows. Finally to all the great people we met who sang their hearts out, you really touched us and again, these memories will stay with us a long time... Aren't we a lucky bunch? Plus, I got to eat free cashews on our private plane... Oh, did I forget to mention our PRIVATE PLANE? Yeah, yeah, just like Led Zepplin and the Stones. We're rockin' now... So, a little catchup on the life and high flying times of Streetheart, soaring swiftly through the skies in the middle of the night... eating free cashews. Perfect really.

Ok, so you are now sorta up to date. Oh yeah, one last thing. Kenny and I were doing some remixes and tweaks on his solo CD (with award winning engineer Howard Rissen) so that project has been re-energized again and I am looking forward to a release date hopefully before years end on. It is good to have the Witness Inc. Singles CD done and we've been getting some nice feedback and response from a lot of happy Witness Inc. fans. Thanks for your patience on that everyone. Yes, I am also working on getting Live After Dark out on CD somehow due to so many requests for it's re-release. Other than Meanwhile and Streetheart, LAD seems to be (at least according to our poll and email) our most popular CD. Funny how life unfolds for us sometimes... That's it kids, I'm out for now. See you soon.... J.