RIP Leon Redbone

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 30 May 2019 12:03 pm

Another sad milestone ----> https://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/si ... qK?ocid=sf

Bill McCloskey · Post by **Bill McCloskey** » 30 May 2019 12:42 pm

Ah....man. So sorry to hear. I can't believe he was only 4 years older than me. I first saw him at the Philly Folk Festival in 74 or so and he seemed ancient, but he would have been in his 20's, like 24. Incredible live performer, with the timing of groucho marx. One of a kind.

John Lacey · Post by **John Lacey** » 30 May 2019 4:50 pm

He started out playing in coffeehouses around Toronto in the late 60’s, early 70’s. At first, he was known as Sonny then Leon. He seemed to like his anonymity so I respected it and he was friendly to me. We’d play the guest set at Fiddlers Green, a friendly coffeehouse of Ellington Ave. He was totally unique in our little world of singer-songwriters and protest tunes. He’d accept rides home but usually ask to be let off at the Bloor/Yonge pool hall. We loved him yet I had no idea how he’d fit into the music world. Boy was I wrong. He charmed them all. I lost track of him once I took up the steel guitar but managed to see him on TV. So sad he left u# so young.

Bill McCloskey · Post by **Bill McCloskey** » 30 May 2019 5:21 pm

Great article on Leon Redbone published in march https://www.oxfordamerican.org/magazine ... -antiquity

Nick Reed · Post by **Nick Reed** » 30 May 2019 6:23 pm

I never got to meet Leon Redbone, but I was told by Herb Steiner that Leon once owned my old 1966 Emmons D-10 push-pull

Mike Anderson · Post by **Mike Anderson** » 31 May 2019 1:36 pm

He’s been an inspiration to me personally since I bought his first album the year it came out, and now more than ever. It’s so funny to read his bio at for example his Wikipedia page, with all of this weirdness about how “Dickran Gobalian” got straight off the boat from Cyprus and started performing in Toronto coffeehouses. If that isn’t more of his love of privacy misdirecting knuckleheaded journalists, I’ll eat a Panama hat.

I’m perfectly content knowing nothing about how he got to be so amazing by his early 20s, and I like to think he’d be happy knowing his fans feel that way.

Farewell Leon, you will be very sorely missed.

Tiny Olson · Post by **Tiny Olson** » 5 Jun 2019 4:59 am

I met him in Kansas City in the early '80s. We'd done a show and actually got to stay over night. Leon was playing a club about two blocks from our hotel so I went to see him play after our show. That was super cool..!!

I always loved his music and getting to meet him was very, very cool too.

Sorry to hear of his passing. May he rest in peace. He'll be missed.

Chris "Tiny" Olson