Music community mourning death of beloved Vancouver rock critic
Vancouver music critic Tom Harrison spent a lifetime covering some of the world's biggest rock stars at sold-out stadiums, but it was the hometown acts trying to make a name for themselves in venues like The Town Pump and The Commodore Ballroom that truly fuelled his passion for music.
“As it turns out, I think I came along at the right time,” Harrison said in the 2010 punk documentary “Bloodied but Unbowed.”
Harrison died suddenly on Christmas Day at age 70 – but not before leaving an indelible mark on Vancouver’s music industry.
"He made sure that up and coming local acts, and even more established ones, got their mention in the paper,” said friend Jim Davidson, who worked with Harrison at The Province newspaper.
Harrison covered music for the publication for 37 years, and over that time some of the young musicians he wrote about would go on to become international superstars.
Those acts include Loverboy, Sarah McLachlan and Bryan Adams.
"Tom was from Vancouver and was one of the very first critics and supporters of my work at @theprovince back when I was starting out,” Adams wrote on Twitter.
Along the way, Harrison became close with some of the musicians he covered, including Trooper singer Ra McGuire, who also left a tribute on Twitter.
“RIP Tom. Gonna Miss you,” he wrote.
Fittingly, Rob Frith, owner of Neptune Records, first met Harrison by chance as the pair flipped through crates at a different record shop in the 1970’s.
"When I eventually opened a store, he would come in and we'd always talk music,” said Frith. “And eventually we became friends where we would go to lunch and dinner and go to shows together."
He fondly recalls that one of those shows at BC Place featured an epic lineup that included Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan – but says he will always remember his dear friend as a champion of local musicians.
"He had a big heart and he really did help the music scene in Vancouver a lot,” Frith said.
In 2009, in honour of his lifetime of dedication to the music business, Harrison was inducted into the B.C. Entertainment Hall of Fame.
"The music scene was starting to grow and starting to change,” he said in 2010 about his storied career. “And lo and behold, I was right there with it and so as it grew, I grew."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Israeli forces seize Rafah border crossing in Gaza, putting ceasefire talks on knife's edge
Israeli tanks seized control of Gaza’s vital Rafah border crossing on Tuesday as Israel brushed off urgent warnings from close allies and moved into the southern city even as ceasefire negotiations with Hamas remained on a knife’s edge.
The Met Gala was in full bloom with Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Mindy Kaling among the standout stars
The Met Gala and its fashionista A-listers on Monday included Jennifer Lopez, Zendaya and a parade of others in a swirl of flora and fauna looks on a green-tinged carpet lined by live foliage.
Mediterranean staple may lower your risk of death from dementia, study finds
A daily spoonful of olive oil could lower your risk of dying from dementia, according to a new study by Harvard scientists.
Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, argues he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
An El Nino-less summer is coming. Here's what that could mean for Canada
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Man banned from owning animals after fatal Calgary dog attack
The owner of three Calgary dogs that got loose and mauled a woman to death in 2022 has been ordered to pay a $15,000 fine within one year and banned from owning any animal for 15 years.
Have you been removed from your family doctor’s patient list for visiting an Ontario walk-in clinic?
Some Ontarians are expressing frustration after they said that they were removed from their family doctor’s patient list for visiting a walk-in clinic in a process being called “de-rostering.”
East-end Ottawa family dealing with massive rat infestation
Residents in Ottawa’s Elmridge Gardens complex are dealing with a rat infestation that just won’t go away. Now, after doing everything they can to try to fix the issue, they are pleading with the city to step in and help.
Canadian government proposes new foreign influence registry as part of wide-spanning new bill
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is proposing a suite of new measures and law changes aimed at countering foreign interference in Canada, amid extensive scrutiny over past meddling attempts and an ever-evolving threat landscape.