Later Life Learning
Toronto Celebrating 40 Years of Great Minds and Giving Hearts
The Toronto Sound
WEEKLY SCHEDULE
January 15: A Tavern in The Town 1947-1960
In 1947, changes to Ontario’s liquor laws paved the way for taverns with live music, and the Yonge Street strip came to life. Le Coq D’Or, the Edison Hotel, the Town Tavern and more brought jazz, rhythm and blues and rock’n’roll to Toronto audiences. Jazz thrived on the local level, and a number of budding rock’n’roll bands enlivened the local scene until 1958 when an Arkansas bandleader named Ronnie Hawkins came, saw and conquered.
January 22: Hootenanny with Pastries 1950-1959
Just as the Weavers and the Kingston Trio were putting traditional songs with acoustic instrumentation on the pop charts, the old Village of Yorkville was converting into a commercial area. Two upscale cafes, the Concerto and La Coterie, catered to the late-night crowd and hired folk singers to entertain the patrons. At the same time, a groundswell of folk song gatherings called hootenannies was solidifying the local folk music scene at a grassroots level.
January 29: The Yonge Street Strip 1960-1964
Ronnie Hawkins and his band the Hawks inspired a slew of imitators, combos in slick matching suits playing tough, well-rehearsed rhythm and blues. What would become known as “The Toronto Sound” developed in the early sixties in the Yonge Street bars and at suburban dances around the city. Scene pioneers Little Caesar and the Consuls and Richie Knight and the Mid-Knights established were joined by David Clayton-Thomas and the Shays, Robbie Lane and the Disciples and more.
February 5. The Folk Boom 1960-1963
The arrival of Joan Baez, Peter, Paul and Mary and Bob Dylan fired up the popularity of folk music, and coffeehouses featuring live folk music sprang up around Yorkville in response. Toronto’s early folk scene was unique in its multicultural mix - several singers like Klaas Van Graft and Malka and Joso sang in multiple languages - and the Yorkville coffeehouses nurtured the budding careers of Ian and Sylvia, Gordon Lightfoot, Bonnie Dobson and others.
Innis College • University of Toronto • 2 Sussex Avenue • Toronto, ON • M5S 1J5 Website: https://llltoronto.org Email: [email protected]
Later Life Learning
Toronto Celebrating 40 Years of Great Minds and Giving Hearts
February 12: The Toronto Sound 1965-1967
Rhythm and blues ruled in Toronto, and Jon and Lee and the Checkmates, Grant Smith and the Power, Shawne and Jay and the Majestics and other legendary local groups would lay the groundwork for what would eventually be called “The Toronto Sound.” Electric guitars, dynamic lead singers, Hammond organs and horn sections defined The Toronto Sound, and the musicians who cut their teeth on the Toronto scene would in many cases go on to great careers in music.
February 26: The British Invasion Hits Toronto 1964-1967
Beatlemania altered the popular music landscape in 1964, putting the emphasis on self-contained rock bands with their own song material. Toronto responded with its own Brit-styled bands like Jack London and the Sparrows, Lords of London and the Paupers, who played Yorkville and made inroads into the U.S. record business. The change in Yorkville from folk and jazz to rock and R&B would bring a youthful crowd to the small area, causing consternation from local merchants, residents, and city politicians.
March 5: The Singer-Songwriters 1964-1968
With the popularity of Bob Dylan and Phil Ochs, folk music began to move away from traditional songs towards original material written by the singers. The large number of coffeehouses in Yorkville would provide a hothouse environment for the development of songwriting. Joni Mitchell would begin her professional career in Yorkville, and Gordon Lightfoot would emerge as a major songwriting talent. Neil Young would have a brief but significant sojourn in Toronto on his way to California and singer- songwriter stardom.
March 12: Psychedelic Blue-Eyed Soul 1965-1968
As rhythm and blues continued to reign in Toronto, the nascent counterculture inspired a number of musicians to make their music more exploratory and progressive. The Mandala was the most promising of the Toronto bands of this ilk, and they were joined by Luke and the Apostles, a pioneering blues-rock combo and the Mynah Birds, a band that would include both future funk star Rick James and Canadian rock legend Neil Young.
Innis College • University of Toronto • 2 Sussex Avenue • Toronto, ON • M5S 1J5 Website: https://llltoronto.org Email: [email protected]
Later Life Learning
Toronto Celebrating 40 Years of Great Minds and Giving Hearts
March 19: Yorkville Psychedelia 1966-1968
The Yorkville rock scene continued to develop in the second half of the decade, influenced by the explosion of progressive rock in the U.S. and Britain. Local bands like the Tripp, the Ugly Ducklings, the Bossmen and many more explored the new possibilities of psychedelic rock. The Paupers would shed their early Beatles influence to become one of the most respected of local groups, and Kensington Market would also make a lasting mark, though both groups would ultimately fall short of international success.
March 26: Yonge and Yorkville in Winter 1968-1978 and the Toronto Sound today
Both the Yonge Street strip and Yorkville would decline in popularity as entertainment districts in the late 1960s for a variety of reasons. Heavy press coverage of hippies in Yorkville brought thousands to the district, and the city responded with police harassment and curfews. Yonge Street was transformed by the arrival of topless dancing, changes to the streetscape and a heavy-handed police effort to rid the area of vice. Live music dwindled in both areas just as Canadian recording artists were handed a gift by the federal government in 1971 in the form of Canadian Content regulations. Today, the Toronto Sound is being commemorated in a number of memorable ways.
Innis College • University of Toronto • 2 Sussex Avenue • Toronto, ON • M5S 1J5 Website: https://llltoronto.org Email: [email protected]