gentlemonkey

Big ticket? I think it's about  time they shell out and get Neil Young! Also- If this Kinks reunion is real, GET THEM! 

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the FUCKING HORROR   Over the last few days I've just been trying to process this incredible loss to the extended social circle I am a part of as well as the extended community of music fans and musicians everywhere. It has been almost impossible to sit down and put fingers to keyboard because I really wish I could pretend it wasn't real.   Brad was, well Brad. A total one of a kind. Legit, straight up unicorn. Based on the many many talks we had about an endless variety of music, I feel that Brad captured and held captive that amazing and beautiful feeling of positivity and endless possibility in terms of his experience of music.( Not to say he wasn't opinionated about things. He certainly would tell you how he felt. Straight faced. No bullshit.) But he was far less jaded than I or (especially) my older music fanatic friends. I feel like he really was just searching for the beauty in the music all the time. I'm sure everyone can picture Brad's facial expression after a set of music he loved. When it came to music, he was passionate. Constanty. In a way I wish I could be.   That positivity was all around Brad's character. Guaranteed big hug, a cheers, maybe a shot. We could both go off on whatever guitar player or band had been blowing our minds in between having seen each other. When Brad retired I remember congratulating him and he had the best response... (imagine BradM voice) "Well Dave, in the 90's I didn't go out so much, I didn't have a girlfriend, and I didn't have a hard drug habit. So I saved a lot of money". Indeed! Every time I think about that, I laugh.   As a musician, you really couldn't ask for anything more. Someone who pays close attention but is really actively seeking the beauty out of every moment. That being said, if you really stunk it up and managed to talk with Brad before he left, he wouldn't bullshit you.    His mark on the Ottawa music community was massive. So much so that I think any of us will have a hard time even comprehending the scope of it. I'll tell my story, but then just imagine the hundreds of other musicians and thousands of listeners that were gifted so much by Brad.   I'm very fortunate that Brad took an interest in every musical thing I did or tried to do. If it weren't for Brad, there would likely have never been any nero reunion shows. Because I had to figure out how to play that stuff somehow! lol. I can't tell you how many times I have been thanking Brad at my desk while trying to figure out how I played something.    That's really just completely secondary though to the real gifts I got from Brad. I am a completely disorganized mess in terms of my music. I also have failed to plan ahead in any aspect of it. I'm so thankful that Brad recorded things that surely would have slipped into the ether.    Brad was at almost every show that I ever performed in Ottawa. He also made it to a bunch of Toronto ones. Just going back and looking at a couple of things I found an early solo show with a song I had written for my infant son. Totally something I had lost track of. I was able to download it and email my now 12 year old son the song to hear. That is really something. Really a gift that Brad gave me.  He also recorded a show that was a day after my grandfather passed. I did a cover of Daniel Lanois "the maker". I remember playing a solo in it and thinking about my grandfather and the bigger picture kinda stuff. Upon relistening, the solo isn't great. hahaha. But I know what was happening for me in that moment and I can go back and experience it. Thanks to Brad. Take those kinds of moments and multiply it by the hundreds of musicians he recorded. He really gave a lot.    I'll miss him very much.

This loss is still quite surreal, but I find it so touching to read these thoughts on this forum that he clearly loved, and to which he also contributed so much. Especially, accompanied by some familiar avatars/handles long unseen.. It's also truly heartwarming to look back on some of Brad's (often really impressive) writings, and to remember that we really made a difference in his life, just by being a welcoming pack of weirdos. He was truly a human adhesive for this strange collective, keeping records, keeping track. We will miss you bud. RIP Bradm

So very sorry to hear this news. RIP BradM. I did not know Brad well, but he was such a fixture in this scene for such a long time - at shows and of course in this forum. It was always a pleasure chatting with him during a set break, and I've enjoyed his recordings over the years. His presence will be missed. Aloha BradM!

What a huge and tragic shock. This leaves such a big hole in our lives and hearts. I just cannot imagine going out in Ottawa and not seeing him there. I used to think I went to a lot of concerts until I met Brad! He was an inspiration, so dedicated to the love of music and always sharing it with everyone. He was one of the first people I met when I moved to Ottawa, of course, as he was always at any show that I attended. He also introduced me to Velvet, for which I cannot thank him enough. We will miss him so much.  Rest in peace Brad.

Such devastating news. I'm still searching for the words to express my sadness.
Obviously he is a legend in our community. Brad was a kind friend and a trusted and generous travel companion. A gentleman and a scholar. He will be missed dearly. Aloha.

My goodness, BradM was such a great friend. We went to Europe together, we saw countless, and I mean countless shows together, he introduced me to my wife, he was ALWAYS the first to arrive at every party I’ve thrown since I’ve known him, he was THE most dedicated music fan I’ve ever known (and in our crowd that’s saying a lot), and of course he recorded every band I’ve been a part of for the last…what…fifteen years? There are so many songs/lyrics/chord changes I would have forgotten if I didn’t have his recordings to go back to. He was so friendly, so smart, and so damn punctual. I mean, if a ticket said “8pm" BradM would be in the room by 7:30.
For years - and I mean years - every time I saw BradM he would pull a handful of CD's out of his ever-present backpack that he had specifically burnt for me.  They might be a show we had seen together, a show I had recently played, or some local band he had  recorded that he thought I should hear.  I have literally boxes and boxes of these CD's, and so do a lot of other people.  Go ahead, put up your hand if BradM ever gave you a CD.  The man was so unbelievably thoughtful.
BradM, I loved you. We all loved you. You were an indispensable, necessary, and utterly unique member of our social circle. You helped make it a community. You were so supportive. Man, you will be so, so very missed.

When I sat down to write this it occurred to me that over the last 16 years or so, more often than not, if I was at a live music event BradM was there. If it was a random last minute night out to see live music, more often than not, BradM was there. If it was a show I felt was worth traveling for, more often than not BradM was there.  If it was one one one of those magic shows that I still reminisce about occasionally, more often than not, BradM was there.   And more often than not, he caught some of that magic on tape and made it available to the world to enjoy.   BradM was a pillar of this community and I am deeply saddened that he is gone. It pains me to think that I won't ever see Brad bound across the bar toward me again or enjoy his enthusiasm for great music.   When my face is melting in the future I will do my best to remember "this is why BradM taped".   Aloha BradM 

Love both the Rheostatics, and Joni Mitchell, and respect them both immensely. 
 I don't think Joni's music requires her to be a politician. Unlike Bidini, and his every-man/every-fan union leader position in Can-Rock. Joni doesn't require the same nice-ness, or approachable enthusiasm, or the explicit artist-audience interaction that defines Bidini's career, because her songs are that good, and her career is that unique. Sometimes assholes make the best art, so I guess deal with it. He has no right to make suggestions about her personality, or opinions- and this piece definitely comes across as desperate, or something... Maybe this is an intentional error in judgement which will eventually act as the opening chapter in a new book about Joni Mitchell? One where after this article, a public feud, and eventual teary reconciliation at the Junos, Bidini is finally invited to meet her for an extensive retreat/interview at her B.C. home, and thoughtfully reflects on stories from her career, and his own, while driving his Chrysler LeBaron across Canada.

Love both the Rheostatics, and Joni Mitchell, and respect them both immensely. 
 I don't think Joni's music requires her to be a politician. Unlike Bidini, and his every-man/every-fan union leader position in Can-Rock. Joni doesn't require the same nice-ness, or approachable enthusiasm, or the explicit artist-audience interaction that defines Bidini's career, because her songs are that good, and her career is that unique. Sometimes assholes make the best art, so I guess deal with it. He has no right to make suggestions about her personality, or opinions- and this piece definitely comes across as desperate, or something... Maybe this is an intentional error in judgement which will eventually act as the opening chapter in a new book about Joni Mitchell? One where after this article, a public feud, and eventual teary reconciliation at the Junos, Bidini is finally invited to meet her for an extensive retreat/interview at her B.C. home, and thoughtfully reflects on stories from her career, and his own, while driving his Chrysler LeBaron across Canada.

Too bad about their stupid name!