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Alexander (Al) Kirkcaldy Born and raised in Peterborough, Al produced and hosted the his blues based radio show "Blue in the Face" for 14 years here at Trent Radio and served as a Trent Radio Board member for many years. |
LOCAL BLUESMAN LOSES BATTLE WITH CANCER AT 55
by Sarah Deeth, Examiner Staff Writer
from "The Peterborough Examiner" Saturday, 14 Feb 2009One of the city's greatest blues aficionados died Thursday night after a long battle with cancer.
Al Kirkcaldy's friends say he will never be replaced. He was 55.
He was the host of Trent Radio's Blues in the Face and brought the blues news to Examiner readers in his monthly column.
"He just lived the blues," said Phil Marshall, a local singer and music promoter who also goes by the name Mr. Deluxe.
Mr. Kirkcaldy was first diagnosed with lymphatic cancer in 1991. The music community rallied around him and held fundraisers as he underwent treatment, including a bone marrow transplant. In April The Dobro hosted an Al Kirkcaldy Appreciation Day.
Marshall said he first met Mr. Kirkcaldy about 10 years ago, when he called Mr. Kirkcaldy's radio show during a contest.
He won a CD in the contest, he said, and met Mr. Kirkcaldy at the Red Dog to claim his prize.
The two have been friends ever since.
Mr. Kirkcaldy was the go-to-guy for anything related to the blues, Marshall said, and his passion and love for that music was second to none.
He worked tirelessly to bring international blues artists to Peterborough, Marshall said, and Mr. Kirkcaldy introduced new music on his radio show every single week.
He was also the spiffiest dresser in the city, Marshall said with a laugh. "He had the fanciest shoes in town," Marshall said. "He was a total blues cat." It's unlikely that Mr. Kirkcaldy made a lot of, if any, money, from the shows he promoted and organized, Marshall said. He did it because he loved the music so much. "There'll be a huge void," Marshall said. "His knowledge, he shared it with us all."
Werner Bergen, entertainment editor at the Peterborough Examiner, said Mr. Kirkcaldy travelled everywhere to catch shows, sharing his experience with Peterborough residents. "He knew everything," Bergen said. "He would go anywhere and everywhere for this music." "The city is really going to miss Al."
Mr. Kirkcaldy was the driving force behind the Holiday Inn blues series, which runs during the summer months, Bergen said. "The Holiday Inn booked the acts but they would do it on Al's recommendation," Bergen said. Even when he was in Toronto receiving chemotherapy treatment Mr. Kirkcaldy write and send in his column, Bergen said.
While in the hospital Mr. Kirkcaldy would use a laptop and a microphone to do his show for Trent Radio, said Trent Radio general manager John Muir. Mr. Kirkcaldy began broadcasting for the George Street radio station in 1996 as part of annual request for radio show proposals. He used his weekly program as a jumping point into the blues world, Muir said, promoting and educating listeners about the music he loved. "He was a real force of good in that area," Muir said.
Mr. Kirkcaldy also served on the Trent Radio Board of Directors and helped introduce Trent students to the city where he'd lived his entire life, Muir said. "It's a huge loss," Muir said, adding that Mr. Kirkcaldy is irreplaceable.
"He stands alone."
Mr. Kirkcaldy's last radio show was about two weeks ago, he said. Neither one of them thought it would be his last one, he said.
The blues is about love, pain, hunger, and the spectrum of human emotion and handling it all with a sense of humour, Muir said, which is perhaps what made Mr. Kirkcaldy so passionate about that genre of music.
"Life is precious, and I think that's what Al really taught us all".
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