George Olliver & Gangbuster

THE BLUENOTE (A Canadian r&b Legend)

In 1958 Al & Jerry Steiner arrived back in town with a great new idea. After visiting New York City with all it's fabulous niteclubs and entertainment, they decided Toronto needed some of the same. So they they started to plan a club of their own. Thus,"THE BLUENOTE" was born, situated at the SW corner of Yonge & Gerrard. Little did the husband and wife team know, that the birth of this Toronto nitespot would etch itself into the hearts of Toronto rhythm and blues lovers for close to 50 years.

Because of Al & Jerry's love for black music (soul music), as it was called then, they searched out the best in and out of town talent in Toronto. And Al Steiner was good at it. For the next 10 years he brought in great local groups such as, KAY TAYLOR & REGENTS, DIANE BROOKS & THE SILLOETTES, THE ROGUES - later becoming the famous Soul Crusade of THE MANDALA (which launched the notable careers of Domenic Troiano and George Olliver), and finally THE STATTLERS (featuring Bobby Dupont). During that time this little club (75 seats tops) became so popular that American recording artists such as, THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS, EDWIN STARR, THE SUPREMES, and STEVIE WONDER to name a few, were dropping in frequently to perform and check out our local artists. Singers like SHAWNE JACKSON, JASON KING, LITTLE JIMMY BROWN, GEO. OLLIVER, PINKY SMITH and ERIC MERCURY. These local artists performed on the Bluenote's exciting "floor Show" backed up by the resident band. The interesting thing about the club was, it had no liquor licence, which made the phenomenon even more amazing. This 1st version of THE BLUENOTE had a fabulous 10 year run and in 1969 finally closed it's doors.

This should naturally have been the end of this little r&b haven of soul. But it was not meant to be. After 10 years of no BLUENOTE, beloved fans of the now defunked niteclub were getting restless. In 1979, BARRY MUSIUK, a former devoted regular, decided it was time for a reunion. After searching out all the original local entertainers (who had by now scattered world wide), and spending the better part of a year promoting the event, gathered 500 raving Bluenoters' together in 1980 at THE TALK OF TORONTO BANQUET HALL on Jarvis Street. This was one of the most memorable and 1st of the local Bluenote Reunion events in Toronto. GEORGE OLLIVER was one of the performers on this reunion and did he have a brainstorm. Why not raise another "Bluenote Club". The timing seemed definitely right! He immediately shopped the idea to a multitude of club owners to no avail. They all thought the idea of a band staying in one place for more than a week (a houseband) was suicide. Olliver was beginning to get discouraged until he approached BILL BALKOU & SID MARKOWITZ at "Peaches on Pears" (Pears Ave. & Avenue Rd., Toronto). This was a fair sized club that Olliver had been working previously. Olliver quickly found out they had been down at The Bluenote Reunion and were knocked out. They immediately adopted Olliver's concept of a new club. This partnership between Olliver, and these operators, would prove more than fruitful. The new ""CLUB BLUENOTE"" was now rising like a phoenix from the ashes of the original club. With the full support of Balkou and Markowitz, Olliver forged ahead, forming as the new Bluenote houseband, "GEORGE OLLIVER & GANGBUSTER", one of the most incredible soul bands ever to hit Toronto. Olliver, came up with the idea of a "GUEST SET" in the middle of the evening remenisent of the original "floor show". Olliver surrounded himself with local talent from the old days at "The Note" like ROY KENNER, JACK HARDIN, SHAWNE & JAY JACKSON, LITTLE JOANNE BROOKS, JACKIE RICHARDSON and TOBY LARK. Also with up and comers such as LIBERTY SILVER, WAYNE ST. JOHN, AUBREY MANN, and CARLOS MORGAN.

In April of 1982 the doors of "THE BLUENOTE" reopened after a hiatus of 12 years. Right from the opening nite it never looked back. The 180 seat facility was packed solid, six nights a week for a period of at least 4 years. Within the 1st year of the reopening, Club Bluenote recorded a live album with "GEORGE OLLIVER & GANGBUSTER", and special guests, produced by DOMENIC TROIANO for Quality Records. During this period, just to turn up the heat on the competition, Markowitz and Olliver came up with an "International Series" approach. Once a month from the 2nd year on, the club brought in dynamic classic r&b/soul recording artists - MARTHA REEVES, JUNIOR WALKER, SAM & DAVE, ETTA JAMES, WILSON PICKETT, SOLOMON BURKE, AVERAGE WHITE BAND, and MARY WELLS. In 1987 WHITNEY HOUSTON had a release party for her 1st album, at the club. Just to keep things fresh, George would leave the club to tour for a few months and would replace himself with great local bands such as, GRANT SMITH & THE POWER, JOHN FINNLEY, and LIBERTY SILVER. Everything was working!! CLUB BLUENOTE was the #1 r&b niteclub in Toronto and became a legend right across Canada. It remained that way (Olliver eventually becoming a full partner in the club) until 1992.

No doubt there'll be more BLUENOTE REUNIONS for the Bluenote's adoring fans. BUT THE BLUENOTE ITSELF HAS PASSED INTO CANADIAN MUSIC HISTORY. OR HAS IT? COULD THERE BE ANOTHER GENERATION THAT REVIVES THIS HISTORIC CLUB AND MAKES IT ONCE AGAIN INTO THE MECCA OF R&B/SOUL IN CANADA??