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Gowan’s longevity, fan support transcends time

November 16, 2022   ·   0 Comments

By Mark Pavilons
Editor

Canada’s own effervescent “strange animal” is running on pure adrenalin, and a passion for what he does.
Scarborough’s native son and international sensation Larry Gowan is an anomaly. It seems the older he gets, the more energy he has. In fact, few can keep up with his bombastic style and a signature sound that never wavers one iota.
He’s way better than a fine wine.
Active for 47 years, the rock star just turned 66 and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, he’s doing an Ontario tour, hitting The Rose Brampton in December (therosebrampton.ca). If it’s sold out, try to catch him at other venues in southern Ontario.
He’s not only proudly Canadian, he’s iconic. He owned the charts in 1985 with “A Criminal Mind,” and “(You’re a) Strange Animal,” songs that still get adults singing along when they appear on the radio.
He’s the consummate performer, giving you a glance or a nod if you’re within sight. His smile is proof that he’s having the time of his life. He simply loves it, he’s fueled by it.
He sings to his audience, not at them, because he lives through every song, every time he performs it. He says he’s always “in the moment” and wants to convey a message, and not just belt out lyrics. A good singer, he notes, makes you believe every word, every note.
After roughly 100 concerts this year touring with legendary Styx, Gowan loves coming home to the smaller, more intimate venues like Rose. He loves the almost club-like atmosphere. He’ll be performing with his son, brother and long-time friends and former bandmates.
This show is definitely a must-see, just to get your Gowan “fix.”
Local fans can’t get enough, something that was evident when he did a series of solo shows at Fallsview in 2010. Fans were coming from all over Ontario and northern New York state, so now local tours are on the calendar. He’s performing across southern Ontario.
He and Styx sell out where ever they go and the fan base, it seems, is ever increasing. How is this even possible?
Gowan notes it all comes down to music and rock, he says, is the greatest influence of the last half of the 20th century.
During the pandemic, he kept in shape both physically and mentally by reaching out via social media. The tech tools became his friend and he revisited some of his old favourites from a vast catalogue. He got some renewed energy from fans saying just how important music is in their lives.
His “marriage” with Styx seemed like destiny. In 1997, during Styx’s tour, Gowan performed as a supporting act for them at Montreal’s Molson Centre and Quebec City’s Colisée. He noted they clicked right off the bat and all of them have grown together in the past 23 years.
For those who’ve seen him perform, his energy is unrivalled. He notes on stage he feels “timeless,” but admits he does feel it the next day.
While he doesn’t get much down time, he did say his whole life is “time off.” Despite a heavy workload he can’t complain and enjoys every moment.
He’s deeply involved in helping Styx evolve even further and played an integral role in the album released last year. He does have a solo project on the backburner, that’s “almost ready to go.”
Gowan’s 1985 album Strange Animal was his commercial breakthrough in Canada. The album had hit singles like “A Criminal Mind, (You’re a) Strange Animal, Guerilla Soldier” and “Cosmetics.” That year he won a CASBY Award for most promising male artist
His 1987 Great Dirty World gave him another hit single with “Moonlight Desires.” Lost Brotherhood in 1990 gave us “All the Lovers in the World.”
In 1998, Gowan was the recipient of the National Achievement Award at the annual SOCAN Awards in Toronto.
Styx’s 2003 album Cyclorama was Gowan’s first studio album with the band. Gowan sings “Fields of the Brave” and “More Love for the Money,” with that distinctive, signature Gowan sound.
As he glances around the audience during shows for Styx (and his own), fans are getting younger, which is a really great sign that rock has incredible longevity.
Songs like “Strange Animal” seem to transcend time and it’s been used in several films, the most recent was Jordan Peele’s “Nope.” Rumour has it that it may be featured in the coming season of the Netflix hit “Stranger Things.”
There’s nothing strange about the phenomenon that is Gowan.



         

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