I still...

Love my blog... But I don't post much here anymore. Just look at the declining numbers over the last 10 years or so... That being said, this space still currently exists in the digital world we find ourselves in and there are many posts and shared links to explore for any passersby... I send them out to people myself from time to time. PEACE 

Today

I receive the most important record of my life... PEACE

Failure??? Age??? Progress??? Evolution???

Kelly Walker (RIP) (1941-2025)

It wasn’t long after my 50th birthday when I met w/ my cousin Kelly Walker on Yonge Street for a hang. A musician, recording artist, public speaker, therapist, author, and one-time Dominican friar and priest, Kelly, who passed on over the weekend, lived an incredible and awe-inspiring life. 

His last chapters were spent in Stratford, Ontario, w/ his husband Ray Harsant, and filled w/ a seemingly never-ending stream of community initiatives and philanthropy. They were the reason why I settled in Perth County for a year after moving back to my birth province of Ontario in 2019 after leaving Vancouver again, and where I completed work on the Grammy-nominated WILLIE DUNN NOTES and anthology project, an 8-year journey for me. 

But back to the street, Kelly and I walked north on Yonge from College after meeting and he regaled me w/ stories from back in the day, of defunct venues and long gone friends like the legendary Bob McBride of Lighthouse, who had fallen on hard times in the 1980s. 

As we passed the boarded up Scientology building at 696 Yonge, just south of St. Mary, I asked Kelly if he had ever done work w/ them. “No,” he said, “but I did stuff w/ the Process Church and they gave me a ring.” My mind exploded! Cue Funkadelic’s Maggot Brain: 

“Fear…” reads the landmark 1971 album's gatefold sleeve album notes.

A fellow student of theology, I loved hearing about the dialogue between faiths and belief systems, not always in unison, yet open for exchange and discussion, which was more common, perhaps, in the 1970s. 

Not far away, we tucked into The Artful Dodger for a couple of cheeky midday drinks, followed by a meal at the excellent Mogouyan Hand Pulled Noodle restaurant, which Kelly enjoyed, to my excitement. Sharing food w/ friends and family remains as good as life gets to me. Kelly was no stranger to kitchens and creating countless meals of celebration and bonding for friends and strangers alike. 

From there, I walked Kelly over to Bay Station so that he could connect w/ his host in the city, another old friend, on the east side of town. We walked past Holt Renfrew and other menswear shops in Yorkville, a far cry from its 1960s hippie era. We admired the tailoring of some suits and jackets behind tall glass windows and bemoaned the prices.

Though financially secure, Kelly had long since abandoned any “high fashion” taste for second hand outfits assembled w/ his trademark brand of flair at Value Village, even pieces of stage wear as he was still performing in his 80s.

Kelly Walker died last Saturday night in Stratford after a piano recital at an early Christmas concert alongside The Stratford Concert Choir. He will be dearly missed by his husband Ray and countless friends and family members around the world. 

“Come visit us, kid,” were his last words to me, and while I won’t be able to hug my cousin again, I remember his hands, smell, touch, presence, and whiskered face, up against mine, for a familial embrace, eternally. 

Play “The Rose” up there for Nicki, will ya, Kelly! LOVE

Bob Williams, Sonic Boom, and VIN Hurricane Melissa relief fundraiser for Jamaica

I’ve known Toronto-based, Montegonian vocalist and producer Bob Williams for a good 20 years now. Along with his original singing partner, the late, great, Jimmy Wisdom (of Wisdom’s Barber Shop and Hairdressing Salon on Eglinton Avenue West), Bob was prominently featured on the landmark 2006 Jamaica to Toronto: Soul, Funk, and Reggae 1967-1974 compilation, which was re-released in an expanded version last November on Light In The Attic Records. 

Bob and I are also neighbours and friends, so when I got a call from him about how we might be able to help generate some much needed funds for Jamaica’s Hurricane Melissa relief initiatives, I was all ears. I immediately thought of the Sonic Boom record store in Toronto, a supporter and stockist of the Jamaica to Toronto album. Their large, street-facing window display late last year reminded me of the cross-cultural and intergenerational love that was shared through the 6-album Jamaica-Toronto series, which I produced in my early thirties over a number of years. 

Without hesitation, Bryce at Sonic Boom was open to collaborate with us and it was an adventure to head downtown with Bob after Toronto’s first snowfall of 2025 to meet his fellow Sonic Boom staff member Margarita, who filmed Bob and assembled an Instagram reel to let our city, and the world, know of a special way to offer financial support to Jamaica in their time of need, while sharing the gift of music connected to this tragedy. 

Bob’s remaining, original 12” vinyl copies of the 1989 Hurricane Gilbert relief single "Wind of Sadness" by Planet Earth and the Charitable People (featuring Bob Williams, Terry Brown, and Carlton Harrison, as well as vocals from Canada’s “First Lady of the Blues,” the dearly departed Salome Bey) are currently available at Sonic Boom (215 Spadina Avenue) for $20 (or more, by donation) with all funds collected going towards Hurricane Melissa support as recommended by the Consulate General of Jamaica, Toronto. Graciously, Sonic Boom will match minimum donations of $20 per record. 

“Stay strong, hold on, and you’ll make it,” says Bob to his fellow Jamaicans.

In this time of need, any word spreading is much appreciated... 

Media requests can be directed to Kevin Howes at voluntaryinnature at gmail dot com

PEACE

The Heritage Award (2025): Ernest Monias

Birdapres + Sipreano x The Little Jerry, Toronto, June 15, 2025

VIN x The Little Jerry, Toronto, May 1, 2025

JA/TDOT: 2-LP re-press available now (w/ expanded booklet)

September 1, 2024

I just like the sound of this for some reason... PEACE

SIP / KAE / TLJ (SAT. MAY 25)

Searching for vinyl at Ontario's largest record show

Kevin Howes: Toronto Mike'd Podcast Episode 1449 (VIN re-post)

*It was an honour to speak on Toronto Mike'd earlier today. Listen and learn HERE!

I Get High

A hammock would most certainly work, also a couch, comfy chair or recliner. No conversation is necessary, only an open heart and ears to hear. Have you listened to Mush Music 002 yet? I Get High, a mix by Voluntary In Nature for Morel Support w/ art by Lukas Baron. Available now on SoundCloud (link below)... PEACE

Mush Music by Morel Support · Mush Music 002: Voluntary In Nature

Mush Music 002: Voluntary In Nature

Mush Music by Morel Support · Mush Music 002: Voluntary In Nature

Now and Then - The Beatles (+ VIN)

"That was a GREAT ending," I said to myself, referring to the final passage of the song. It's time to find new heroes as the old systems fall, and I think it should be everyone together, rather than them, the stars. The powers that be are never the be all.

Within our current reality there is so much to mend, and with that in mind, let's begin to share again, no need to lend. I know I'll remember this moment, "Now and Then..." PEACE

Live Convention 2023

Sixto Rodriguez (1942-2023)

 

Toronto (June 3, 2023)

Sound Travels (Voluntary In Nature)

A few weeks back, I was honoured to sit down w/ Toronto-based multimedia journalist and DJ Ola Mazzuca for the premiere Sound Travels... Listen HERE