Johnnie Lovesin

Johnnie Lovesin (May 22, 1949 – February 23, 2019) was a Canadian musician, most noted as a two-time Juno Award nominee for Most Promising Male Vocalist at the Juno Awards of 1984[1] and the Juno Awards of 1985.[2]

Originally from Val-d'Or, Quebec,[3] he was first active as a musician on the Yorkville scene in Toronto in the 1960s.[4] His first band was Black Ballet in 1969.[4] Over the next number of years he performed with the bands Johnnie Lovesin and the Invisible Band; Johnnie Lovesin and the Sidewalk Commandos; Johnnie Lovesin and The Next; Red Hot and Blue; and as a solo artist under the stage name Crazy John Lovesin, the Ace from Space.[5] When the Invisible Band opened for The Ramones at a show in Toronto, one Toronto Sun music critic asserted in his review that Lovesin had blown the Ramones off the stage.[5] He released several singles during his early career.[5]

He released his debut album Set the Night on Fire in 1980,[6] and followed up with Rough Side of Town in 1983.[7] In addition to his Juno Award nominations for Most Promising Male Vocalist, he was nominated for a U-Know Award for Best Male Vocalist in 1985.[5] He then signed to A&M Records, which rereleased Rough Side of Town and his follow-up album Tough Breaks.[8] Soon after releasing Tough Breaks, however, Lovesin suffered a brain aneurysm shortly after performing at the city's annual New Year's Eve show at Nathan Phillips Square,[4] and withdrew from the music business for a time to recover.[4]

Upon his return to music, he became leader of the house band at Toronto's Matador Club,[9] and released the new album Ready to Rumble independently in 1996.[10] After moving to Jordan, Ontario,[4] he still performed occasional shows in Toronto including birthday shows in 2010[4] and 2016.[11]

Lovesin died unexpectedly three months shy of his 70th birthday, on the evening of February 23, 2019.[12]