Jeff Healey: 1966 – 2008

Canadian blues guitarist Jeff Healey died Sunday in a Toronto hospital after a long battle with cancer. He was 41 years old.

Healey lost his eyesight as an infant due to a rare form of cancer, but went on to become a renowned musician and build a successful career. He began playing the guitar when he was only three years old, learning to hold the instrument across his lap in what would become his signature style.

Healey started his first band at age 17, and later formed the Jeff Healey Band with Joe Rockman and Tom Stephen. The trio was featured in the 1989 film Road House and signed with Arista Records the same year the film was released. The band’s first album, See the Light, was nominated for the “Best Instrumental” Grammy Award, and Healey was named Entertainer of the Year at the 1990 Juno Awards.

He went on to release four more albums throughout the '90s, and performed and recorded with musical legends such as B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan and George Harrison. Healey’s focus shifted to jazz later in his career, leading him to host two jazz music-themed radio shows, the first on CBS Radio and the second on Toronto’s Jazz FM. He also recorded three albums with his new band, Jeff Healey’s Jazz Wizards, in which he played trumpet and acoustic guitar. However, shortly before his death Healey returned to his roots with the recording of Mess of Blues, his first blues album in nearly eight years. The album is set for release in the U.S. on April 22.

Early last year, Healey underwent surgery to remove cancerous tissue from his legs and lungs, but chemotherapy and radiation treatments proved unable to stop the disease’s spread. Despite his illness, Healey continued touring frequently in Canada, and was planning a tour of Germany and the U.K. this spring.

Healey is survived by his wife Cristie and his children Rachel and Derek, as well as his father and step-mother Bud and Rose Healey, and his sisters Laura and Linda. Our hearts go out to them during this difficult time.

Related links:
JeffHealey.com
JeffHealeyBand.com
IMDb: Jeff Healey

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