James Gray
In August 2013, the Toronto music community lost another great friend and talent. James Gray, a brilliant and gifted musician and a pillar of the Toronto music scene, died suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 52.
During his career, James joined a number of seminal Toronto bands including the Rheostatics, Vital Sines, and Blue Rodeo, with whom he played keyboards from 1992 to 2005 (during which time they garnered a number of Juno awards). He was easily able to perform a wide range of musical genres, including reggae, rock, and blues, and his natural talent also enabled him to pick up new instruments very quickly. James was widely respected, he worked hard to help foster a community of musicians, and he served as a mentor to young musicians in Toronto.
After he died, James’ family and friends organized a tribute concert at the Dakota to celebrate his life. So many performers wanted to take part that a second night had to be added. At the end of it all, people had been so generous that James’ family found they had raised a significant amount of money. We are very grateful that they chose to donate those funds to the SHINE Music Bursary. Since that beginning, the Gray family have become integrally involved with the SHINE cause. Their on-going involvement and generosity have almost doubled SHINE’s ability to reach and to support struggling young musicians in the GTA.
It has now become tradition that the Gray family are on hand at our annual SHINE fundraising concert event to present a number of aspiring young musicians with a James Gray Memorial Bursary certificate, along with their much-deserved bursary award.
