Wholly Voiced
The Vocal Mastery of Jerry DesVoignes
Who Is Having A Birthday?
This Wednesday, June 4th, the extraordinary pop and jazz vocalist Jerry DesVoignes (pronounced D’voine) will add another birthday year to his growing collection. A surprising number of the 3.1 million Canadians on the West Coast will know of Jerry, having listened to him sing in Vancouver's jazz clubs, concert halls, home concerts, and — for a fortunate few — as a star entertainer on cruise ships. Additionally, a variety of spiritual devotees have greatly appreciated his role as a leader in sacred chant, particularly during the vibrant and immensely successful Christmas in the Round productions. His most recent gig saw him as the lead singer in the Frank Zappa tribute band, Zappostrophe.
The Songs
Before moving north from Vancouver to the aptly named Sunshine Coast, I had the pleasure of performing with Jerry in a trio we called Red Monkey.
For this blog, I discovered an early Red Monkey recording of Across The Universe. Given that the flavour of this song was so heavily influenced by Lennon's and the Beatles' interest in Transcendental Meditation, it seems a fitting choice for listening. This remastered version appears below, along with another of my favourite Red Monkey recordings, Samba De Orpheus.
Shoutout
Ladies and gentlemen, with a hearty Happy Birthday, put your ears together for Jerry DesVoignes!
Across the Universe
Samba De Orpheus
Here’s what’s playing on Writers Radio:
The Death of Persephone • A Murder
Author: Yvonne Blomer
An award-winning Canadian poet reimagines the Greek myth of Persephone in her 2024 release from Caitlin Press. “Hardboiled detective tropes meet classical myths and free-form poetry. A breathtaking work of imaginative cross-pollination,” says Will Ferguson, Giller Prize-winning author.
“In Death of Persephone, Blomer stalks back alleys, asking urgent questions: Why is the violence against women and girls in myth still haunting us today?... Blomer walks us out of the old story and into this essential retelling,” notes Ariel Gordon, poet and author of Fungal: Foraging in the Urban Forest. Stylistically varied and always engaging, an excerpt from this long-form poetry book won the Gwendolyn MacEwen poetry prize in 2021.
Click this link to listen.
This richly produced podcast from our Writers Radio website will broadcast until this Sunday, June 8. On the following Monday, The Pace of Grace • Women Who Write will broadcast.
Cheers!
Gary
I have known of Jerry DeVoignes since I moved to Vancouver and heard him sing in the Sacred Music Festival. I’ve been a fan ever since!!
of course the answer is always YES! i’m clapping hard so jerry can hear the joy we feel to have him still singing and chanting! and always a joy to hear the red monkey’s blasts from the past.