Welcome back to the Mothership folks!

March is a complicated month here at Healey HQ. March 2nd being the sad anniversary of Jeff’s passing. *18* years ago now… (how the hell did that happen?) Time goes by way too fast. And today, March 25th, marks what would have been, what *should* have been, Jeff Healey’s 60th Birthday.

The past weekend, we continued the tradition of gathering friends, family, bandmates and colleagues, to share a few hours together catching up, swapping stories, many laughs and lifting a glass (or two) in Jeff’s memory. His birthday has become an annual “family reunion” of sorts, and it’s something we all look forward to… a time to share the love, and remember…

With that in mind, we have a special guest with us today, Jeff’s wife, and Co-Administrator of the Estate of Jeff Healey, Cristie Healey.

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“How have the years just gone by? It seems like yesterday that we were sharing Jeff’s birthday with him. It’s hard to believe it has been 18 years since we celebrated without him for the first time…

And why do we continue get together every year? It’s because the joy Jeff had for life was contagious and I think he would be happy to know we’ve carried that on. Remembering that about him makes my heart smile… And the more people we celebrate with, the more that joy fills the room… wherever that may be.

If Jeff were here now to mark his 60th, I think he would definitely be doing it in style, no doubt with musical festivities… and chocolate cake of course. Either that or towers of Fudgee-O cookies and a euchre match. Lol. Oh how he loved those cookies…

On days like today, I like to remember his laughter, his sense of humour and his intense spirit. I remember how driven he was, his gentle soul…. and the example and encouragement he gave others to succeed at what they love.

One of the most important aspects of Jeff we can carry with us every day…. is the reminder that life is meant to be truly lived. So, today we celebrate Jeff on what would’ve been his 60th birthday. Happy Birthday sweetheart. ❤️ “

–Cristie Healey

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Thank you Cristie…

Now let’s take a few minutes and slide back in time. We want to share a special memory with you from ten years ago. Back then in 2016, to mark the year that should have been Jeff’s 50th birthday, we held a special concert at Toronto’s storied Massey Hall. (and check out all the deets on that epic event HERE) It was a truly epic night filled with amazing performances, laughter, a few tears and much love… Gracing the stage with their incredible talent were The Trews, Shakura S’Aida, Philip Sayce, Randy Bachman, Sonny Landreth, Walter Trout, Albert Lee, Donnie “Mr. Downchild” Walsh, and many more. It was a tremendous show that was capped off by an incredible performance by EVERYONE playing on Jeff Healey staple, ‘See The Light’! And now, finally, the official vid is presented here for the first time! Hope you dig it...

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Jeff Healey: A 50th Celebration May 27, 2016 – SEE THE LIGHT

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It was truly an honour getting to briefly share a stage with all those insanely talented humans…

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And that brings us to 2026. To celebrate Jeff’s 60th, We’d been planning a big show for May. Well, as a friend recently pointed out, no good deed goes unpunished… after almost nine months of work and planning, with only three months to showtime, our promoter, a giant corporation that shall remain nameless, pulled out of the show. To be fair, the whole thing was unexpected on everyone’s part, involved an unforeseen health crisis, and a lack of proper staff to continue with the event as planned.

After a month of scrambling and crazy stress, we were able to secure a new promoter and move forward. However, given the newly reduced timeline, we decided to postpone the show until later this year in order to make the show as great as possible. The new date is now set for November and we’ll have all the details for you as we get a little closer. Jeff Healey: A 60th Celebration is set to be a fantastic night to remember Jeff’s life and musical legacy. A night to share the joy as it were… And as before, all the proceeds will be going to World Eye Cancer Hope (WE C Hope wechope.org), that wonderful organization that deals with childhood retinoblastoma, the same cancer that took Jeff’s sight as an infant.

Stay tuned.

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We also mentioned that part of this year’s celebrations would include some fresh music. Indeed we are moving full steam ahead on that archival project and we’ll have details on that soon as well…

I know, I know… The vagueness is killing you. Me too! Lol. I promise a proper update soon. Patience, it will be worth the wait.

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And if you thought that annoyed you… lol. I’m going to share the briefest of updates on the documentary. Many of you have been reaching out and asking, “when can we see it?” Right now, the plan is to have it done in some form by the end of this year. We are working on it. We are compiling footage, We are pouring through the 50 interviews we conducted… it all takes time, especially when you aren’t a rich corporation, and especially when the priority is to make sure it is as great as it possibly can be. (sense a theme here?). For us, if it isn’t done right, it isn’t worth doing. Period. Jeff deserves all we can give and unfortunately that takes time… Once again, stay tuned… I promise it will be worth the wait.

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Meantime, we have some fresh blog entries that we’ll be dropping every few weeks (did ya dig the Lita Ford piece?) and a reminder that we post a new vid pretty much every week on the Official Jeff Healey YouTube Channel. If you haven’t been there yet, what are ya waiting for! There’s a tonne of cool stuff there. Just follow the link – youtube.com/@JeffHealeyOfficial

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That’s all for now folks. So if you have the time today, take a minute to grab you favourite beverage, fire up your format of choice, vinyl, CD, cassette, your fave streaming service, and pop on some of Jeff’s music… and remember.

See ya soon!

Stay safe out there and be good to each other will ya?

Rog

#JH60

#MarchIsHealeyMonth