Canadian singer Sass Jordan is being remembered for a career that helped shape Canadian rock — and for the impact she had on the artists who crossed her path.
Jordan died Oct. 2 at the age of 63, surrounded by her family. A cause of death has not been released.
The Montreal-raised singer built a career spanning nearly four decades, earning a Juno Award and becoming known for songs including “Make You a Believer” and “Tell Somebody.”
For a generation of television viewers, Jordan was also one of the original judges on “Canadian Idol,” appearing throughout the show’s six-season run.
Ryan Malcolm, who became the first winner of “Canadian Idol” in 2003, says he still clearly remembers meeting Jordan during auditions in Ottawa.
Malcolm told MBC news in Kingston, it was a surreal introduction to someone whose music he had grown up hearing.
Malcolm eventually spent the entire first season performing in front of Jordan and the rest of the judging panel.
He says viewers got a fairly accurate picture of who Jordan really was.
Malcolm says he was older than many of the other contestants and sometimes spent time talking with the judges before shows, looking for advice as he tried to understand a suddenly changing music career.
That first season also created a unique bond between contestants and judges.
There had never been a Canadian version of the program before, and the live broadcasts meant everyone involved was learning as they went.
Their connection continued after “Canadian Idol.”
Years later, Malcolm had an opportunity to introduce Jordan during an acoustic tour stop near where he was living. They spent some time backstage catching up before their careers and lives again took them in different directions.
Jordan’s career began gaining national attention in the late 1980s and continued through rock, blues and television work.
But Malcolm’s memories offer another picture of her legacy — an established performer who was honest with emerging artists, generous with her advice and unchanged by the television cameras around her.
For Canadians who watched that first season of “Canadian Idol,” Jordan became part of a major moment in Canadian pop culture.
For Malcolm, she became something more personal: a mentor, colleague and friend whose influence lasted long after the show ended.
