Spike's
tales from the road
NOVEMBER
1984
The
first time I met Kenny Maclean of Platinum Blonde
 It
was November of 1984 and Platinum
Blonde
were in preproduction preparing for a concert tour of Southern
Ontario to take place over the Christmas holiday season.
I had prepared the rehearsal room at "Safor Rehearsal
Studios" in the Jane and Finch area, and I had left to
run some errands (which came in small plastic bags) before
the band arrived. When I returned there was a guy in a plaid
skirt already in the rehearsal room, standing behind the sparse
keyboard setup.
 I
exchanged pleasantries with the fellow, a Scotsman named Kenny
Maclean. Kenny and I were conversing and he mentioned
to me that, although he would be playing keyboards as a sideman
for the band, he was really a guitar player!
When
I heard that, I replied, quite rudely, "Great, another
band member who can't even play his instrument!"
Although Kenny was originally hired as a side musician, he
quickly showed how talented and valuable he was to the band,
and was made a full time band member during the process of
making the "Alien Shores" record. Which went on
to sell over 400,000 albums and set Canadian sales records.
Those sales became the catalyst for the "Alien Invasion"
tour, which set records for tour sales by a Canadian band.
Kenny enjoys telling this story of how we met, I however,
find it somewhat embarrassing, oh well!
Spike,
November 2005
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