Ben Kerr
Encyclopedia
Ben Kerr was a Canadian
author, broadcaster, musician and perennial candidate
, who was most famous as one of Toronto
, Ontario
's quirky street performers.
, Nova Scotia
and spent fifteen years in the Royal Canadian Air Force
before settling in Toronto. In the 1960s, Kerr frequently played guitar in folk
clubs in Toronto's Yorkville
district working alongside groups such as Steppenwolf
, the Mynah Birds
, Rick James
, Gordon Lightfoot
and Joni Mitchell
, and wrote songs for the then unknown Neil Young
.
In 1969, he had a life changing experience when he gave up his three pack a day smoking habit and started taking a daily cayenne pepper
cocktail. He credited the concoction with turning his health around and saving his life.
For a time, he was an executive at the Toronto Harbour Commission. A fervent anti-smoking
crusader, he quit in a rage in 1981 when a co-worker blew smoke in his face. He wrote a song, "Fire on One End, a Fool on the Other", about the incident. This inspired him to run from Toronto to Los Angeles to promote a smoking ban in offices. The run took him six months. He was also in the 1982 Trees
music video
"Shock of the New", appearing as a guy with an oxygen mask
and a shirt promoting clean air in offices.
for the remainder of his life, singing with a karaoke
machine in front of the Hudson's Bay
department store at the corner of Yonge
and Bloor
streets. He was often voted "favourite street performer" in Now Magazines annual Toronto survey, and it is rumoured that Kerr was once offered a recording contract with Sub Pop Records. He continued to appear frequently on radio and television as an advocate for the health benefits of cayenne pepper, and was the author of The Cayenne Pepper Cocktail Does it All.
As well, he was a perennial fringe candidate
who ran in every Toronto mayoral election from 1985 until 2003, the last municipal election held before his death. In 1997, he placed fourth behind Mel Lastman
, Barbara Hall
and Don Andrews
. In the 2000 election
, he ran on a platform of waterfront renewal
, backed by the self-penned campaign song "Fringe Candidate".
Ben Kerr died on June 17, 2005 at his home on Jones Avenue in Toronto, at the age of 75. In 2007, Toronto City Council
approved a motion to name a laneway near the corner of Danforth
and Jones in Kerr's honour. Ben Kerr Lane was officially named on May 25, 2008.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
author, broadcaster, musician and perennial candidate
Perennial candidate
A perennial candidate is one who frequently runs for public office with a record of success that is infrequent, if existent at all. Perennial candidates are often either members of minority political parties or have political opinions that are not mainstream. They may run without any serious hope...
, who was most famous as one of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
's quirky street performers.
Background
Kerr was born in YarmouthYarmouth, Nova Scotia
Yarmouth is a town and fishing port located on the Gulf of Maine in rural southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the shire town of Yarmouth County. The town is located in the heart of the world's largest lobster fishing grounds and has Canada's highest lobster catch.- History :The townsite may...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
and spent fifteen years in the Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
before settling in Toronto. In the 1960s, Kerr frequently played guitar in folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
clubs in Toronto's Yorkville
Yorkville, Toronto
Yorkville is a district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, well known for its shopping. It is a former village, annexed by the City of Toronto. It is roughly bounded by Bloor Street to the south, Davenport Road to the north, Yonge Street to the east and Avenue Road to the west, and is considered part of...
district working alongside groups such as Steppenwolf
Steppenwolf (band)
Steppenwolf are a Canadian-American rock group that was prominent in the late 1960s. The group was formed in 1967 in Los Angeles by vocalist John Kay, guitarist Michael Monarch, bassist Rushton Moreve, keyboardist Goldy McJohn and drummer Jerry Edmonton after the dissolution of Toronto group The...
, the Mynah Birds
The Mynah Birds
The Mynah Birds were a Canadian R&B band formed in Toronto, Ontario active from 1964 to 1967. Although the band never released an album, it is notable as featuring a number of musicians who went on to have successful careers in rock, folk rock and funk....
, Rick James
Rick James
James Ambrose Johnson, Jr. , better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. James was a popular performer in the late 1970s and 1980s, scoring four number-one hits on the U.S. R&B charts performing in the genres of funk and R&B...
, Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Meredith Lightfoot, Jr. is a Canadian singer-songwriter who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music, and has been credited for helping define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s...
and Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
, and wrote songs for the then unknown Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
.
In 1969, he had a life changing experience when he gave up his three pack a day smoking habit and started taking a daily cayenne pepper
Cayenne pepper
The cayenne pepper—also known as the Guinea spice,cow-horn pepper, aleva, bird pepper,or, especially in its powdered form, red pepper—is a red, hot chili pepper used to flavor dishes and for medicinal purposes. Named for the city of Cayenne in French Guiana, it is a cultivar of Capsicum annuum...
cocktail. He credited the concoction with turning his health around and saving his life.
For a time, he was an executive at the Toronto Harbour Commission. A fervent anti-smoking
Tobacco smoking
Tobacco smoking is the practice where tobacco is burned and the resulting smoke is inhaled. The practice may have begun as early as 5000–3000 BCE. Tobacco was introduced to Eurasia in the late 16th century where it followed common trade routes...
crusader, he quit in a rage in 1981 when a co-worker blew smoke in his face. He wrote a song, "Fire on One End, a Fool on the Other", about the incident. This inspired him to run from Toronto to Los Angeles to promote a smoking ban in offices. The run took him six months. He was also in the 1982 Trees
Trees (band)
Trees was an American New Wave one-man band, fronted by Dane Conover, from San Diego, California. Trees only released one album on MCA Records, which was produced by Earle Mankey called Sleep Convention . It was a critical success but a commercial failure...
music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
"Shock of the New", appearing as a guy with an oxygen mask
Oxygen mask
An oxygen mask provides a method to transfer breathing oxygen gas from a storage tank to the lungs. Oxygen masks may cover the nose and mouth or the entire face...
and a shirt promoting clean air in offices.
Post-retirement
Kerr supported himself as a buskerBusking
Street performance or busking is the practice of performing in public places, for gratuities, which are generally in the form of money and edibles...
for the remainder of his life, singing with a karaoke
Karaoke
is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
machine in front of the Hudson's Bay
The Bay
The Bay is a chain of 91 department stores that operate across parts of Canada. It is the main brand of Hudson's Bay Company , North America's oldest company. It has its headquarters in the Simpson Tower in Toronto. In French, the chain is known as la Baie, short for "Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson"...
department store at the corner of Yonge
Yonge Street
Yonge Street is a major arterial route connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. It was formerly listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest street in the world at , and the construction of Yonge Street is designated an "Event of...
and Bloor
Bloor Street
Bloor Street is a major east–west residential and commercial thoroughfare in Toronto, in the Canadian province of Ontario. Bloor Street runs from the Prince Edward Viaduct westward into Mississauga, where it ends at Central Parkway. East of the viaduct, Danforth Avenue continues along the same...
streets. He was often voted "favourite street performer" in Now Magazines annual Toronto survey, and it is rumoured that Kerr was once offered a recording contract with Sub Pop Records. He continued to appear frequently on radio and television as an advocate for the health benefits of cayenne pepper, and was the author of The Cayenne Pepper Cocktail Does it All.
As well, he was a perennial fringe candidate
Perennial candidate
A perennial candidate is one who frequently runs for public office with a record of success that is infrequent, if existent at all. Perennial candidates are often either members of minority political parties or have political opinions that are not mainstream. They may run without any serious hope...
who ran in every Toronto mayoral election from 1985 until 2003, the last municipal election held before his death. In 1997, he placed fourth behind Mel Lastman
Mel Lastman
Melvin Douglas "Mel" Lastman , nicknamed "Mayor Mel", is a former businessman and politician. He is the founder of the Bad Boy Furniture chain. He served as the mayor of the former city of North York, Ontario, Canada from 1972 until 1997. At the end of 1997, North York, along with five other...
, Barbara Hall
Barbara Hall
Barbara Hall is a Canadian lawyer, public servant and former politician. She was the 61st mayor of Toronto, the last to run before amalgamation. She was elected mayor of the pre-amalgamation City of Toronto in 1994, and held office until December 31, 1997...
and Don Andrews
Don Andrews
Donald Clarke Andrews is a Canadian white supremacist. He is also the leader of the neo-Nazi Nationalist Party of Canada and a perennial candidate for mayor of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.-Early years:...
. In the 2000 election
Toronto municipal election, 2000
The Toronto municipal election of 2000, dubbed "Toronto Vote 2000" was the municipal and school board election held in the City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada on November 13, 2000.Elections were held to elect:* the Mayor of Toronto,* councillors for each of Toronto's 44 wards,* trustees...
, he ran on a platform of waterfront renewal
Toronto waterfront
The Toronto waterfront is the lakeshore of Lake Ontario in the City of Toronto, Ontario in Canada. It spans 46 kilometres between the mouth of Etobicoke Creek in the west, and the Rouge River in the East. The entire lakeshore has been significantly altered from its natural glaciated state prior to...
, backed by the self-penned campaign song "Fringe Candidate".
Ben Kerr died on June 17, 2005 at his home on Jones Avenue in Toronto, at the age of 75. In 2007, Toronto City Council
Toronto City Council
The Toronto City Council is the governing body of the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Members represent wards throughout the city, and are known as councillors....
approved a motion to name a laneway near the corner of Danforth
Danforth Avenue
Danforth Avenue is an east-west arterial road in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its western end begins in Old Toronto from the Prince Edward Viaduct as a continuation of Bloor Street and continues through East York until intersecting with Kingston Road in Scarborough...
and Jones in Kerr's honour. Ben Kerr Lane was officially named on May 25, 2008.
Singles
| Year | Single | CAN Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | "Shoes Keep on Walking" | 82 |
| 1981 | "Distilled Water" | 64 |