Kenny MacLean (ex-Deserters, Platinum Blonde) R.I.P.

It's not often that you wake up to find one of your musical heroes has passed away. Today, however, is one of those days and I find myself at a loss for words at the moment. Kenny MacLean was one of my favorite singers, with a voice so versatile, so expressive. When he wrapped that voice around a song, it became his. The fact that he was also a great guitarist, bassist, songwriter, and producer did not escape me either and I came to regard much of the music he released throughout his life as some of my favorite of all time.

As a kid, I bought the Deserters' second album, Siberian Nightlife, sight-unseen at my local record store back in Michigan because, upon glancing at the album credits, I noticed they were managed by the same company as the Romantics, whom I adored.

Upon arriving home and giving the record a listen, I fell in love with the band. The album received little fanfare, though, and the band quietly called it a day without me ever knowing it. I figured as much, though, as many of the bands I loved back then were subject to the same lack of appreciation by the mainstream and tended to break up out of frustration.

So the Deserters quickly fell into my own little "where are they now" file until one day I took a look at the new Platinum Blonde album, Alien Shores, and noticed the trio had added a fourth member. It took awhile for me to put two and two together, as he certainly looked a lot different in lip gloss and a bottle-blonde hair-do than he had on the Deserters' album cover, but when I realized that the new guy in Platinum Blonde was Kenny Maclean from the Deserters, I felt as if I'd been reunited with a long lost friend.

See, I was already a huge fan of Platinum Blonde's first album, so Kenny joining the band was like a musical Reese's cup for me. Two great tastes that go great together.

Of course, while Alien Shores was a little overproduced for me, and third album, Contact, was more a showcase for Mark Holmes than an actual Platinum Blonde album (original drummer Chris Steffler had left the band by then), I was thrilled to see Kenny get to be part of such a huge success.

That success, while pretty much limited to Canada, was substantial. Thus, there was a great level of interest in Kenny's first solo album, Don't Look Back.

He'd since continued to work with other artists, was a popular hair stylist (!), and had been performing a set of timeless rock covers as part of a production called Rock Of Ages. Most recently, he had completed work on his third solo album, Completely, and two singles ("Deliverance" and "Feel Free") had already been garnering attention.

His passing catches me quite off-guard and I am sure it catches his family and friends by surprise as well. My most heartfelt sorrow goes out to them, as they mourn the passing of a beautiful soul.

To Kenny, wherever he may be at this moment, I just want to say thanks for making music that touched my heart and for being the kind of guy who gives rock stars a good name. That they should all be as warm and genuine as he was.

Here are four of my favorite songs from his last two solo efforts:

Nothing's Forever
Don't You Know It
Walk The Stranger
Because I Love You

And, lastly, a song that's ripping tears from my eyes as I listen:

Lullaby