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Imagine inspiring Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo to write some lyrics for the song "Five Days in May." That's what happened to Ken McNeill while touring with the iconic Canadian band in New Zealand. For those of you who already know this Toronto-born-and-raised romantic, you know McNeill writes his wife's name, Silvana in the sand of every beach he's been to since meeting her more than 23 years ago. And they say "techs" aren't romantic.
McNeill can recall more than his fair share of great stories from the first gig he had at an all-girl school doing sound for his buddy's rock band with an 8-channel board and two speaker columns - even after his mother had grounded him and forbade him from going. He was hooked. McNeill recalls, "After that I went to every concert at Massey Hall and Maple Leaf Gardens that I could. seeing acts like Alice Cooper, Lou Reed, The Tubes, Kiss, and Supertramp ... that was a great sounding show. It was dien I decided I wanted to mix sound in places like this."
McNeill began music life in the trenches doing sound for local bands throughout Ontario during the 70s, which led to gigs in the early '80s at Larry's Hideaway in Toronto mixing for a fine pedigree of punk rock bands such as...