Life can be a cruel bastard sometimes.
I had the pleasure to meet Jon Horvath a number of times over many
years...many many years at Shambhala, Burning Man and other big electronic Canadian
festivals....but also here many times at Saskatoon. Here at my home where he came to play
sometimes and he and J talked music and laughed. He always made a point
of saying hello to us whenever and wherever we found him. He let a shared love of music link up us and so many others with him and them. Considering
the very social life he lived and the tragic loss of his lovely wife a
few years ago he was kind and inspiring...and, dammit, he loved
funk. He and his group Fort Knox Five made funk and brought it to the
world. It was a unique funky sound I discovered and loved. Damn...I loved it.
Still do. So many people do.
Sadly Jon H died a few days ago. He drifted away from a coma after a sudden illness...and a
whole musical community, me included (if I can even consider myself a part of it), are struck a bit dumb. It's really
sad that a great guy who finally was really seeing his music getting
successful and making a great life for himself and putting so much energy into other artists to help them is just...gone.
A really great eulogy for Jon is here.
If you like funk or Fort Knox Five have a read and remember. Or better...play some
funk. Dance under the stars. Look up Fort Knox Five on Soundcloud...tracks like Fire in My Belly and Swinging on a Rhyme? Well your ass will thank you and dance a little and bring a smile to your face. Listen to a few Funk The World mixes to hear some great funk Fort Knox Five gathered from all around the world...because we all need a little more music in our lives.
This man brought a lot of joy to my life and a whole lot of others I know and hold dear.
We will keep the funk alive.
RIP Jon.
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