Fraser MacPherson documentary

Here's a half-hour documentary on Fraser MacPherson from 1967 called Diary of a Musician. It's basically a day-in-the-life of MacPherson, showing him in the studio with his quintet, featuring Ian McDougall, Doug Parker, Cuddles Johnson and Jimmy Wightman, then playing dance music at the Cave Supper Club, talking about his childhood, travelling to Victoria to take his kids out to the park (that's me singing in the car), rehearsing with comedian Jack Carter, then playing behind Carter that night, and rolling dice in the band room. You'll see Stu Barnett, Frank Mansell, Don Clark and others in the Cave band. It's really well done, I think you'll agree. It's available elsewhere on the internet, but maybe you've never stumbled across it before.

Lance Harrison

Lance Harrison was the trad jazz guy here in Vancouver for years and years. When I was a kid in the 1970s, I loved his album Happy Jazz. Played it to death. Here he is with an all-star sextet featuring Toronto-via-Winnipeg's Paul Grosney on trumpet, and the rest Vancouver musicians: Dave Pepper on trombone, Chris Gage on piano, Stan "Cuddles" Johnson on bass and Jimmy Wightman on drums. Harrison plays the licorice stick. (Interesting side note: Pepper retired from the music biz relatively early and became an optometrist in Victoria. In fact, he was my optometrist for years and years!)

Chris Gage

More from the late great Chris Gage. This clip is from the 1959 Canadian jazz all-stars program. Here's Chris with his usual trio consisting of Stan "Cuddles" Johnson on bass and Jimmy Wightman on drums. They're playing Almost Like Being in Love:

Chris Gage

The late Vancouver pianist Chris Gage was one of the best pianists this country has ever produced. The fact he died in 1964 at the age of 37 only cements his status as a legend. But even when he was alive, he was revered. His only real rival was the cross-country sensation, Oscar Peterson, who admired Gage from afar. Gage recorded lots on CBC radio and television in his career, but it wasn't until 2007 that he was heard commercially when Justin Time released Our Blues by the Fraser MacPherson Quintet. Here's Gage with his trio, featuring Stan "Cuddles" Johnson on bass and Jimmy Wightman on drums, playing A Taste of Honey.

Here announcer Howard Bateman introduces a Gage feature after the pianist's death. It features Don Thompson on vibes, Bob Witmer on bass, and Terry Clarke on drums.