In life, through song or a quiet, smiling nod, Barry Green touched the lives of thousands. Even in death, Barry's gift, an electronic baby grand piano to be donated to the soon-to-be-built Nipissing Serenity Hospice, will help bring normalcy to patients and assuage the grief of families as they say their goodbyes.
It is fitting that his family and friends are paying forward the musical connection so many of them felt with Green to Nipissing Serenity Hospice patients and their loved ones. Green died of cancer-related illnesses after a lengthy battle for his health and spent time hospitalized before his passing last November.
Ted Chase, a longtime friend, and one of the organizers of the celebration of the life of Barry Green said there was never any doubt that any donation made on behalf of the accomplished musician and Main Street record store fixture, would be musical in nature.
Finding the right organization to donate to, where Barry's gift will do the most good, took only a little while longer.
"Barry was quite ill at the end of his life, and he spent most of the last five months of his life in the hospital, and had there been a hospice, that would have been a much lovelier place for him to be," observed Chase.
Funds raised in conjunction with Saturday's event, held at the Grande Event Centre, met the goal of organizers, and once the hospice is built, a place in the common room will be reserved for Barry's piano. Organizers also expressed a desire to purchase the instrument locally, a touch that Green would have approved of.
"Barry was a phenomenal keyboard player," said Chase Saturday evening. "It was the natural thing to have a keyboard go somewhere, in Barry's name.
The quality of life for the patients is paramount for the organizers as a nod to Green's own end-of-life hospitalization. Musicians will visit the hospice and play Barry's piano, and it will be made available to patients and their families.
Family and friends made touching tributes to Green and his gentle way throughout the evening. The musical portion of the event was a who's who of the North Bay music scene, both past and present, and there was an abundance of talent on stage for the appreciative audience to enjoy.
Jim Harney made a return to the stage amidst his own battle with cancer out of respect for his friend Green, as well as the efforts of Chase and the event's organizers.
"I've been having to face my own mortality issues lately, so some of this stuff meant a little bit more in the face of that, but more so than anything, Barry was there, in the scene, and as quiet as he was, he put himself out there and sort of shared himself.
"He was an inspiration to me, not as a keyboard player, but he was a cool cat to be around. I got the chance to play in a couple of bands with him, and just to be around him, he was cool, and I wanted to be a bit like Barry," said Harney.
Harney gave a nod to nights shared on stage with Green in the adjacent (former Wylder's) building but was especially fond of late-night recording sessions where there were few witnesses on hand.
As a fellow downtown worker, Harney said that he invariably spent slower mornings slipping over to Barry's shop for quiet, yet engrossing conversations. "He was one of those nicely stewing bowls of soup. The more you spend with him, it was a slow, lovely little relationship that people developed with Barry.
Harney agreed wholeheartedly with the choice of a piano to the hospice as a donation, adding "these lovely places like hospices need all the warming up they can get, and I think Barry would be the first to say 'this place needs a piano.'"
Many benefits have been held recently, in what has been a trying time for local musicians, Harney included. "When it comes to lending effort, we've always been a community that bands together. I don't know if we've had more opportunity or reason to do it, but North Bay is quite a place to live. We are in a very caring community, and I think, for the most part, people know that about this place. We're proud of that."
Jake Thomas echoed Harney's sentiments about the tightly-knit fabric of the music community, adding that Saturday's event grew on its own, with musicians eager to donate their time and talent.
Thomas described Green as the voice of reason in musical spats among band members, his words always chosen wisely.
Asked about one of his favourite memories about Green, Thomas harkened back to their days playing together at the old Parkview Hotel. "I always used to marvel at the number of empty Black Labels that Barry could fit on his little keyboard. I think the most we counted was 11 empties one night. It's a synthesizer, if anything would have gone in, it would have wrecked it, but Barry's got them perfectly balanced."
Asked later in the evening how he felt about the turnout, Chase replied with a smile: "It exceeded my expectations in this way: I knew that the North Bay music community would be out in full force, and they are. What I wasn't necessarily expecting was people who have made a point of driving here from Ottawa, Toronto and one of the guys on stage right now drove all the way from Minneapolis. People that thought the world of Barry, who wanted to be here, to come back, that's one step more."
Those fortunate enough to have known Barry on a personal level, through his musical exploits, or from visiting the record store on Main Street, or any combination thereof, will know that Barry would certainly be giving a shy smile and a nod to this honour bestowed by his family and friends.
When Barry's piano is played at the hospice, it will be as if he is tickling the ivories from above, bringing the joy of music to those who need it most, just as he did in life for so many of us.
