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| 1969 this track was bleachers and entrance |
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| Varsity Stadium in 2013 |
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| Lucky Ladybug |
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| Johnny Brower |
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| Rare Beatle's Art Showing |
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| Brower greets guest at Pop69 gala |
He was complimentary of the new sports field though. Still, as he described what it used to look like as an open field surrounded by seating on three sides, I got the sense J.B.thought they missed an opportunity for it's use as a concert venue over the years with this new design.
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| CanWood's Gordon Weiske & Billy Talent's Ian D'sa at Pop69 Party |
Shortly in, he took a call from what sounded like one of the guys from back in the day, as he'd chuckled, " Hey, I was just talking about you..." Whoever it was could be represented in the Pop69 movie ,which is being developed by CanWood Entertainment, about this famous part of what has become world music history.
Some guys you can never turn off the wheeler-dealer, promo mentality, and I suspect Brower's one of those. His passion for rock & roll is obvious as he speaks, and it's history and his part in it are fascinating as well - which all came together this day in a nice bundled package.
Toronto's Rock N Roll Revival concert was headlined by The Doors but also featured Bo Diddley, Chicago Transit Authority, Tony Joe White, Alice Cooper, Jerry-Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Cat Mother & the All Night Newsboys, Gene Vincent, Junior Walker & The All-Stars, Little Richard, Doug Kershaw, Screaming Lord Sutch, Nucleus, Milkwood and Whiskey Howl - the only "local band. Alice Cooper's group was the backing band for Gene Vincent, while local act Nucleus provided support for Chuck Berry, and The Doors closed out the festival.
"We were full of junk too. I just threw up for hours till I went on. I nearly threw up in Cold Turkey (the song) - I had a review in Rolling Stone about the film of it - which I haven't seen yet, and they're saying, 'I was this and that.' And I was throwing up nearly in the number. I could hardly sing any of them, I was full of shit."John Lennon
Lennon is also is quoted by Johnny B to have said afterwards back stage,
" I haven't felt so alive in years"
But there was more to his reasoning for wanting to visit Toronto, as back then T.O. was a major rock & roll mecca and hub, and still is, but especially during the war being the biggest destination for draft dodgers, just as John Lennon was becoming very controversial with his messages of peace and anti-war. As JB would tell me, " A lot of powerful people at the time very much wanted to squash his music and message " - Even trying to stop future Brower concerts by using various tactics such as revoking permit allowances close to concert dates. John Lennon with a return visit to Toronto with Johnny B in December of that same 1969 year, would go on to change Canadian history next.
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| Lennon's Limo and JB arrived here |
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| Former site of Mcluhan's office |
"And so you have to imagine the walk was very spiritual for John". Johnny Brower
As we walked the same route he and Lennon had I'd tried to imagine the atmosphere of the time, envisioning an area abundant with nature sights and sounds - tough to do on the now road-like maze of paths leading to non-descript concrete buildings. Of course I didn't have the drugs in my system he did either. Ha.
With the Vietnam war raging at the time, along with Lennon's powerful influence, the powers that be wanted him silenced, and so, almost by default, Toronto became the place - being the southern most spot to the U.S. - and home to bastions of war resisters and defectors. It truly was an explosive time - literally! And that aspect of those times has, in itself, cemented Toronto's place into the world history of rock and roll, and a very important role it was / is.
As we strolled, Johnny B pointed out where the office of Mcluhan had been - now a drab unappealing old / new hybrid - a far cry from when the philosophers had discussed language and music and the difference between them. Afterward they'd arranged for JB and Lennon to take the train to Ottawa to meet the Prime Minister of Canada at the time, Pierre Elliot Trudeau. He'd set up the meeting through Bill Clement an undercover RCMP operative who was Brower's friend and whose job it was to keep an eye on American draft dodgers living in Toronto. Bill was a wild character, almost like Wild Bill Donovan, the U.S. C.I.A. agent who many times got very close to the people he was shadowing. And Bill Clement partied hard with the rock and rollers that Brower brought through town. Here is actual filmed footage of when Yoko and John enter showing an arm coming down after Lennon, stopping Clement, who was right behind, at the P.M.'s office door . The guard is frozen with an icy glare, and, recognizing him, hastily lets Clement in!
Upon arrival, they were met by two members of the Le Dain Commission which had been tasked with interviewing John Lennon on his views about marijuana since the commission was considering the possibility of legalization. So, What's a guy to do? They ended up smoking dope with the two men, and everyone had a jolly great laugh when one asked John if he thought it was addictive..."Meantime the guy was bogarting the damn joint the whole time!", laughed Brower, "Lennon at one point looked at him and said, pointing to the burning joint clutched in his hand, Well, what do you think ( about it being addictive )?" and everyone had exploded into fits of laughter at that. Maybe so, however there is no doubting Trudeau's waning image at the time took a considerable swing upwards after his 50 minute visit scheduled for only 10, giving him a new resurgence politically - winning the election - in step with Lennon's endorsement of the Canadian P.M.
So Brower's setting up of this meeting, may indeed have changed a country as well!
" I was pleased to receive (Lennon and Ono),” Trudeau wrote in his memoirs, adding that the Beatle “was kind enough to say afterwards, ‘If all politicians were like Mr. Trudeau, there would be world peace.’ I must say that Give Peace a Chance has always seemed to me to be sensible advice " Pierre E Trudeau
" So how did you ever get involved in all this?" I'd offered as we drove towards an old stomping ground of his, and Johnny relayed a little about how he'd been a placed in a prestigious private boys school because of his close living proximity to it as was done back then, growing up on Kilbarry Road which ran along the north side of the Upper Canada College, where he rubbed shoulders with the kids of the elite of the elite from 1961-65.Many of his chums there were from international families, as a boarding school was part of the college where he met George Eaton (Eaton's Department Stores) and his brothers - one of whom Thor Eaton would eventually become his partner, along with Ken Walker, in Brower Walker Productions. These years were very formative for Brower musically too as he also played and sang in a couple of Toronto's most well known bands at the time - The Diplomats being the most well known - from 1963-65. Brower used to be the one to get gigs for his band and became good at it, so often he was asked to do the same for other bands - some of which he also began to promote.
At 19 he took on L.A. too - returning in 68 with a wife.
I envision a rat pack of guys with bands, putting on concerts at various venues, and embracing everything rock & roll of the times. J.B. gave me a little hint of what it might of been like to hang with them when as we drove through Toronto's Yorkville district to spark some memories - not a great idea since Brower told me only The Pilot remains from back then - but as we sat in slow traffic in the now upper-scale boutique-y tourist lure, he spied two beautiful youngish women dressed to the 11's, looks at them out the rolled down window and deadpans with a straight face,"Excuse me, are you the escort girls were supposed to be meeting?"
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| Tom Pearson outside Toronto's famed Maple Leaf Gardens |
Eventually he and Kenny had taken an office downtown, and a salary of $350 a week pay. But the concert promoter-pioneers ran into all kinds of roadblocks while learning the ropes - like trying to promote "Blind Faith" with Clapton et al when the record wasn't ready until the day of the show - so they had nothing with which to promote it with! And there was no internet or instant news back then either which exasperated the whole promotional process.
It's well known, when Lennon and Ono arrived in Toronto in December 1969 to begin
planning for the 1970 concert that wouldn’t happen, the city had been
strategically plastered with posters, billboards and print
ads bearing the message “WAR IS OVER! " If you want it ” and
“Happy Christmas from John & Yoko.” An original copy of the poster
is counted among the most coveted artifacts held today by the Canadian
Museum of Civilization and Canadian War Museum and was featured in
their 2011 illustrated volume, Treasures. What's not so well known is that it was mostly Johnny Brower and his buddies in Yorkville that put most of those up, with Johnny able to obtain some of the biggest and most prominent downtown spots literally overnight! And all this during a time when it's been revealed in de-classified documents released in 2007 in an RCMP
report dated Dec. 30, 1969, that the Canadian Security Service began
spying on ex-Beatle John and Yoko after they announced their plans for
the Toronto Peace Festival. |
| I wonder how Lennon would feel about suits taking over Yorkville |
Ha.... Oh well, we shall see. Until then the #Pop69movie will move forward in production, and I know Johnny wanted to auction off the rare Beatles art replica he revealed at a Hard Rock Cafe Gala to a good kids cause as well, reminding me of our parting that day, as I noticed just before we were about to, Johnny walked over and gave some guy in need some cash, like he never forgot where he came from perhaps, or maybe the messages of love & peace he so passionately embraced back in the day is still part of who he is.
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| Beatles Influence today as seen on Toronto Sidewalk 2014 |
These guys, like Johnny Brower and Kenny Walker, pioneers of music / event promotion, who paved the way for the rest - including holding the first multiple day event concerts - could really show em how it's done today...old school! 'Know'mean!? Ha, and frankly, I think we'd all enjoy the ride!
Definitely candidates for The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Stay tuned to TPE for future update blogs on the POP69 Movie coming to screens soon!@
Peace out!
Tom Pearson
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