John Witmer
Encyclopedia
John Douglas Witmer was a Canadian
blues
singer, songwriter
and harmonica
player, most notable as the lead vocalist for the band Whiskey Howl
and the Downchild Blues Band
.
in 1969, when he was eighteen years old. The Toronto-based Whiskey Howl, along with the Downchild Blues Band
, also formed in 1969, were two of the principal influences in the development of Canadian blues music.
One of Witmer's first professional engagements with Whiskey Howl was as one of the acts playing at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival
in September 1969. This was a one-day festival, featuring an historic appearance by John Lennon
and The Plastic Ono Band
, and which resulted in the release of the album Live Peace in Toronto 1969
.
Despite the early success and promise of Whiskey Howl, the band broke up as of 1972, shortly after the release of their first album. Witmer continued to sing locally through the balance of the 1970s, rejoining Whiskey Howl for a reunion concert that resulted in the band's second album release, Live At The El Mocambo
, in 1981.
Between 1982 and 1986, Witmer was the lead singer of the Downchild Blues Band
, one of three singers who replaced Downchild co-founder Richard "Hock" Walsh
, during various periods when Walsh either left the band or was fired as Downchild's lead singer. He recorded one album with Downchild, But I'm On The Guest List (1982), recorded live at Toronto's El Mocambo
club, after Downchild had regrouped following the untimely death of band member Jane Vasey
.
Witmer relocated to Vancouver in the late 1980s, where he joined The BelAirs, a band that existed between 1985 to 1995, after which it became known as The Fabricators. The Fabricators were described by the West Coast Blues Review as "one of Vancouver's hottest R&B acts". The music with which Witmer was associated at the time was described as "the raw & powerful Delta
and Chicago Blues
, rhythmic New Orleans and Tex-Mex tunes, old rock and roll gems, the smooth urban sounds of Detroit and Philadelphia, as well as many original compositions." During this same period and for the last fifteen years of his life, Witmer was an employee of the British Columbia Institute of Technology
, where he worked with Larry Smith, co-founder of The BelAirs and The Fabricators. The Fabricators, established in 1995 as a successor band to The BelAirs, broke up in 2002, and was Witmer's last band. He ceased performing after the band's breakup. Witmer died suddenly two years later, on July 3, 2004, at the age of 53. He was survived by his second wife, a daughter and two sons.
In the week following his death, a memorial service was held for John Witmer in Vancouver, attended by family, musical contemporaries and colleagues from the British Columbia Institute of Technology. In Toronto, on July 27, 2004, John Witmer was remembered by his Toronto family and colleagues in music through an additional memorial service.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
singer, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
player, most notable as the lead vocalist for the band Whiskey Howl
Whiskey Howl
Whiskey Howl was a Toronto-based Canadian blues band, most popular between 1969 and 1972. The band is notable as being one of the early Canadian bands promoting and developing blues music in Canada.- History :...
and the Downchild Blues Band
Downchild Blues Band
The Downchild Blues Band is a Canadian blues band, described by one reviewer as "the premier blues band in Canada". The band is still commonly known as the Downchild Blues Band, though the actual band name was shortened to "Downchild" as of the early 1980s....
.
Biography
Described as "one of Toronto's great blues singers from the late '60s to the mid-'80s", with "a raspy vocal style", John Witmer co-founded the seminal Canadian blues band, Whiskey HowlWhiskey Howl
Whiskey Howl was a Toronto-based Canadian blues band, most popular between 1969 and 1972. The band is notable as being one of the early Canadian bands promoting and developing blues music in Canada.- History :...
in 1969, when he was eighteen years old. The Toronto-based Whiskey Howl, along with the Downchild Blues Band
Downchild Blues Band
The Downchild Blues Band is a Canadian blues band, described by one reviewer as "the premier blues band in Canada". The band is still commonly known as the Downchild Blues Band, though the actual band name was shortened to "Downchild" as of the early 1980s....
, also formed in 1969, were two of the principal influences in the development of Canadian blues music.
One of Witmer's first professional engagements with Whiskey Howl was as one of the acts playing at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival
Toronto Rock and Roll Revival
The Toronto Rock and Roll Revival was a one day, twelve hour music festival held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on September 13, 1969. It featured a number of popular musical acts from the 1950s and 1960s...
in September 1969. This was a one-day festival, featuring an historic appearance by John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
and The Plastic Ono Band
The Plastic Ono Band
The Plastic Ono Band is a conceptual supergroup formed by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969 before the dissolution of the Beatles. Among the various other members of the band were Eric Clapton, artist Klaus Voormann, future Yes drummer Alan White, Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett, & friends, the Who's...
, and which resulted in the release of the album Live Peace in Toronto 1969
Live Peace in Toronto 1969
-Side two:-Personnel:* John Lennon — lead vocals, rhythm guitar* Yoko Ono — vocals* Eric Clapton — lead guitar, backing vocals* Klaus Voormann — bass* Alan White — drums* Kim Fowley — spoken introduction-External links:*...
.
Despite the early success and promise of Whiskey Howl, the band broke up as of 1972, shortly after the release of their first album. Witmer continued to sing locally through the balance of the 1970s, rejoining Whiskey Howl for a reunion concert that resulted in the band's second album release, Live At The El Mocambo
El Mocambo
The El Mocambo Tavern is a live music and entertainment venue in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located on Spadina Avenue, just south of College Street, the bar played an important role in the development of popular music in Toronto since the 19th century...
, in 1981.
Between 1982 and 1986, Witmer was the lead singer of the Downchild Blues Band
Downchild Blues Band
The Downchild Blues Band is a Canadian blues band, described by one reviewer as "the premier blues band in Canada". The band is still commonly known as the Downchild Blues Band, though the actual band name was shortened to "Downchild" as of the early 1980s....
, one of three singers who replaced Downchild co-founder Richard "Hock" Walsh
Richard "Hock" Walsh
Richard "Hock" Walsh was one of the first professional blues singers in Canada. He is particularly notable as the co-founder of the Downchild Blues Band and was the original singer of that band's best-known songs....
, during various periods when Walsh either left the band or was fired as Downchild's lead singer. He recorded one album with Downchild, But I'm On The Guest List (1982), recorded live at Toronto's El Mocambo
El Mocambo
The El Mocambo Tavern is a live music and entertainment venue in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located on Spadina Avenue, just south of College Street, the bar played an important role in the development of popular music in Toronto since the 19th century...
club, after Downchild had regrouped following the untimely death of band member Jane Vasey
Jane Vasey
Jane Elizabeth Vasey was a Canadian blues piano player, best known for her years playing with the Downchild Blues Band. Vasey played with the band from 1973 until her death, from leukemia, on July 7, 1982.-Biography:...
.
Witmer relocated to Vancouver in the late 1980s, where he joined The BelAirs, a band that existed between 1985 to 1995, after which it became known as The Fabricators. The Fabricators were described by the West Coast Blues Review as "one of Vancouver's hottest R&B acts". The music with which Witmer was associated at the time was described as "the raw & powerful Delta
Delta blues
The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, Helena, Arkansas in the west to the Yazoo River on the east. The...
and Chicago Blues
Chicago blues
The Chicago blues is a form of blues music that developed in Chicago, Illinois, by taking the basic acoustic guitar and harmonica-based Delta blues, making the harmonica louder with a microphone and an instrument amplifier, and adding electrically amplified guitar, amplified bass guitar, drums,...
, rhythmic New Orleans and Tex-Mex tunes, old rock and roll gems, the smooth urban sounds of Detroit and Philadelphia, as well as many original compositions." During this same period and for the last fifteen years of his life, Witmer was an employee of the British Columbia Institute of Technology
British Columbia Institute of Technology
The British Columbia Institute of Technology , is a public, coeducational, academic institution of higher education in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. The polytechnic has five campuses located in the Metro Vancouver region, with the main campus in Burnaby...
, where he worked with Larry Smith, co-founder of The BelAirs and The Fabricators. The Fabricators, established in 1995 as a successor band to The BelAirs, broke up in 2002, and was Witmer's last band. He ceased performing after the band's breakup. Witmer died suddenly two years later, on July 3, 2004, at the age of 53. He was survived by his second wife, a daughter and two sons.
- It is with great sadness and heavy hearts that The Fabricators announce the passing of John Witmer (lead singer). He was truly one of Canada's best blues singer-songwriters. ...John's passing is a great loss to the Canadian music scene, and he will be sadly missed by all his fans, friends and family.
- News Announcement, The Fabricators, July 12, 2004.
In the week following his death, a memorial service was held for John Witmer in Vancouver, attended by family, musical contemporaries and colleagues from the British Columbia Institute of Technology. In Toronto, on July 27, 2004, John Witmer was remembered by his Toronto family and colleagues in music through an additional memorial service.
Whiskey Howl
- 1972 Whiskey Howl (Warner Bros. RecordsWarner Bros. RecordsWarner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
; CD Release 2008, Pacemaker) - 1981 Live At The El MocamboEl MocamboThe El Mocambo Tavern is a live music and entertainment venue in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located on Spadina Avenue, just south of College Street, the bar played an important role in the development of popular music in Toronto since the 19th century...
(As The Whiskey Howl Big Band; CD Release 2005, re-release 2009, Solid Gold)
Compilations
- 1992 Canadian Blues Masters K-telK-telK-tel International is an "As-Seen-On-TV" company, which is most noted for its compilation music albums, such as "The Super Hits" series, "The Dynamic Hits" series and "The Number One Hits" series...
; cassette-only release. - 2002 Vancouver BC's Best Blues, Vol. 1 (Raw Records)