On a cold and damp spring night in Cleveland, Ohio, music could be heard blaring from La Cave, an underground haunt that once stood at 10615 Euclid Ave. It was May 12, 1968, and guitarist Domenic Troiano was electrifying the audience with his Toronto-based R&B and soul band, The Mandala. Nearby, British rock supergroup Cream had just done the same; bringing the house down in a sold-out concert at Cleveland Music Hall.
Cream’s guitarist, Eric Clapton, would find his way to the historic venue, and eventually onto the stage with Troiano, where “a big jam session went on till all hours of the morning,” as Troiano would recount in a radio interview decades later. In the audience, two of the three members of the local rock act, The James Gang, drummer Jim Fox and bassist Dale Peters, were utterly blown away by the spectacle. “It was the kind of performance that a fellow musician stores away in the back of his mind, just in case,” Fox would explain in another interview.
The serendipitous encounter between Clapton and Troiano marked one of many occasions where Troiano would share the stage with heavyweights (like Carlos Santana); symbolizing the upward trajectory he was on. Eventually, Fox’s hunch would prove to be an omen, and a musical partnership with Troiano would develop. The exchange was also emblematic of Troiano’s categorization, and ultimately, legacy, as a musician’s musician, whereby he attained prominence and commanded reverence among legions of contemporaries who marvelled at his adeptness, and continuous ability to reinvent himself; seamlessly evolving across musical genres and roles in the industry throughout the 59 years he lived.
Domenic Michele Antonio Troiano, affectionately known as “Donnie,” burst onto the international scene just months after the Second World War had ended. It was January 17, 1946, and devastation loomed over Italy. Peeking out amid the ruins in Modugno, Bari, Apulia, he was the first of three children born to Raffaele Martino Troiano and Pasqua (D’Attoma) Troiano. In September 1949, a grand adventure that would change the course of Troiano’s life got underway as the Troiano matriarch, with a wee Domenic in tow, boarded ocean liner Giulio Cesare. Docking at Ellis Island in New York, they found their way to Canada, their final destination, where they reunited with Mr. Troiano. Eventually, the family would settle in a house in Toronto’s east end at 356 Sammon Avenue, which Troiano immortalized in an instrumental song released on his first self-titled album in 1972. Soon afterwards, the family would welcome another son, Frank and a daughter, Gina.
Growing up in the 1950s and ‘60s, Troiano was fascinated by the R&B he’d hear on Buffalo radio stations, which pushed the boundaries of basic three-chord rock and roll, as exemplified by Chuck Berry, Ray Charles and Albert King. The genre has an intriguing complexity to it, and Troiano was captivated by the shifting backbeats, surprising harmonic turns tinged with jazz, and powerful melodies. He was hooked, and his passion for music reached a crescendo.
“Records provided the requisite schooling,” recalls Roy Kenner, a singer and songwriter, who was in several bands with Troiano and a lifelong friend. “Donnie became kind of obsessive-compulsive toward music. He was really influenced by artists such as James Brown, Steve Cropper and B.B. King.”
In the summer of 1960, when Troiano was 14, and just about to start Grade 10, his father took him to the Eaton’s Department Store and bought him a Harmony guitar. By age 16, it was a literal extension of him. It could be found cradling in his arms, resting on his lap, or slung over his shoulder. Having taught himself to play from chord books and by studying the virtuosos who had inspired him, he played scales, arpeggios, rock riffs, and blues patterns; consistently challenging himself to learn anything and everything.
At the time, Toronto’s live music scene was just beginning to find its pulse. Like many aspiring guitarists of his era, Troiano would go to the Concord Tavern to take in Saturday matinee performances. A vestige from the past, which once stood at 925 Bloor Street West, it closed in 1983. Currently, it’s home to a Long & McQuade.
With an eagle eye, Troiano absorbed all the moves and grooves of Robbie Robertson, the guitarist with the house band, Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks, who were Canada’s most renowned rock and roll act during that seminal period.
One of the most popular up-and-coming bands gaining traction was Robbie Lane and the Disciples. In 1962, 16-year-old Troiano became the band’s guitarist. Performing at school dances, clubs, dance halls and several bars, the band quickly became a fixture in the city’s music scene, attracting the attention of impresarios, one of whom was the Arkansas-born Hawkins, who got the band to perform at Le Coq d’Or Tavern. A legendary venue that once beckoned music lovers, it’s since closed on what was known as the Yonge Street strip, a lively entertainment district between Queen and Gerrard Streets.
In 1964, when the five original members of the Hawks left Hawkins to become Bob Dylan’s back-up band, Hawkins recruited Robbie Lane and the Disciples to be his next iteration of the Hawks. To Troiano, this breakthrough signified the official start of his career. This momentous period of time also came to represent the strong work ethic Troiano would adopt, in addition to the role of leader, which he’d embody throughout his entire life.
“He worked very hard at his craft. He challenged his fellow bandmates in all his groups to be at their best through personal practice and rehearsal,” shares Frank Troiano, who went on to serve as his brother’s road manager.
Hawkins was also at the helm of his own record label, Hawk Records, on which Robbie Lane and the Disciples recorded their first single, Fannie Mae, backed with The One For Me. In the book, Domenic Troiano: His life and music, written by Canadian rock and roll musicologist Mark Doble and Frank Troiano, Doble noted: “Fannie Mae is a straightforward blues/rock, composed and made famous by American R&B singer Buster Brown. However, the B side, The One for Me – a pretty love song featuring tasteful faux-jazz guitar and a beautiful flute solo by [Bert] Hermiston – in fact, represented the first Domenic Troiano composition ever recorded.”
Although Troiano was making headway, it was evident his musical sensibilities were diverging from Hawkins’s. After just six months, he was looking for a project he could lead. Troiano wanted to record blues and R&B songs, whereas Hawkins was keen on pop rock and rockabilly. As Troiano admitted in a television interview decades later, “I wanted to be Muddy Waters and B.B. King and Ronnie wanted to be the Dave Clark Five.”
At the time, Troiano started frequenting Club Bluenote. He joined the house band, Whitey and The Roulettes as the guitarist. Eventually, the band evolved into The Rogues, and then The Five Rogues. They would go on to open for legendary acts, such as Herman’s Hermits, The Animals and The Rolling Stones in 1966.
Their full-on high energy R&B shows at Club Bluenote began generating a buzz, and within weeks, line-ups could be seen snaking their way along the venue, with shows quickly selling out. Pal Di Iulio, associate editor of Panoram Italia magazine, recalls boogying at the club in his heyday, before it closed in 1969.
“My friends and I enjoyed dancing, and love R&B to this day. Troiano and bands like Shawn and Jay Jackson and The Majestics provided the local offering to the far away Americans, such as James Brown, Wilson Pickett and Otis Redding,” Di Iulio recalls.
According to The Canadian Music Hall of Fame, in which Troiano was inducted in 1996, he further solidified his legacy by being one of the principal originators of “The Toronto Sound,” a soulful, Motown-inspired version of rock and roll, which other bands, such as Kay Taylor and The Regents, Shawne and Jay Jackson and The Majestics, among others, also played a pivotal role in shaping.
With a sense of nostalgia, Shawne Jackson-Troiano, a singer, songwriter and actress, who was a life-long friend, collaborator and wife to Troiano, reminisces about what made “The Toronto Sound” so distinct.
“I believe that phrase grew from the heavy guitar-lead rhythm sections emanating from the local music scene. Funky, kick-butt drums, bass and keyboards pulsed, but it was always the guitar that propelled the unit,” Jackson-Troiano explains.
She notes that even with The Majestics, although the band had four horns, it was the guitar-lead rhythm section that drove the band.
“The rhythm section made the audience want to get up and dance. Donnie was like the Pied Piper when he played. People were mesmerized watching his fingers fly across those strings,” she adds.
Eventually, The Five Rogues morphed into The Mandala, which was together from 1966 to 1969. In addition to being popular at home, the band made a successful foray into the United States; attracting throngs of fans, most notably at Whiskey a Go Go in Los Angeles. The band’s 1967 hit single, Opportunity, was written by Troiano. Recognized for its impact on “The Toronto Sound,” it was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2019. Love-itis, which was released on the band’s one and only album, Soul Crusade, in 1968, was another hit.
When The Mandala disbanded, some of the band members, with Troiano at the helm, decided to form Bush, a blues-influenced rock band. They moved to Arizona, and toured throughout the States with two other bands: Steppenwolf and Three Dog Night. Their sole self-titled album was released in 1970.
In 1972, things came full circle for Troiano. Opportunity came knocking on his door, and he joined The James Gang; replacing guitarist Joe Walsh, who’s been with The Eagles ever since. Troiano played on two albums, Straight Shooter and Passin’ Thru, both released that year. During a period of intense creativity, Troiano began working on his first solo project in Los Angeles. It culminated in the release of his eponymous album the same year, in addition to the release of another album, Tricky, the following year.
In 1974, Troiano made inroads with one of Canada’s hottest rock acts by replacing Randy Bachman in The Guess Who. As co-writer with Burton Cummings, his signature flair is evident in both of the albums he played on, which have more of a jazz rock feel: Flavours, released the same year, and Power in the Music, released in 1975.
With the winds of change blowing yet again, the Domenic Troiano Band was formed. Burnin’ At The Stake was released in 1977, followed by The Joke’s On Me in 1978 and Fret Fever in 1979.
The latter’s upbeat, disco-tinged song, We All Need Love, was a smash hit. It received considerable radio airplay across Canada, in addition to making waves overseas, including in Italy. As Doble and Frank Troiano highlighted in their book: “By far the most commercially successful recording of We All Need Love was by Italian Eurodance group Double You, who released the song (off of their debut album) We All Need Love in 1992, peaking at number one in Belgium and becoming a top ten hit throughout Europe.”
The song has also been covered by several musicians over the years, including by Mietta in Italy. Her rendition (Angeli Noi) can be heard on her 1998 album, La Mia Anima.
The last band Troiano fronted was Black Market, which released Changing of the Guard in 1981. As Doble and Frank Troiano explained in their book, it “represented an attempt to revitalize and adapt to the new wave sweeping popular music.” Forever chasing opportunity and taking chances, Troiano then went on to pursue a successful career scoring the music for television shows and films.
Reflecting on Troiano’s life and how entrenched his legacy is, it’s clear he brought something other than his charismatic charm and magnetic stage presence to all his gigs.
“Domenic played with a highly evolved guitar technique,” notes Doble.
Frank Troiano elaborates, explaining his brother’s musical style was varied and expressive; embedding rock at its foundation: “Domenic’s guitar style was very complex. It evolved over time and was influenced by the blues, soul, gospel, R&B, funk, fusion and jazz. He infused all these musical influences and elements into his guitar playing and songwriting.”
Troiano is also remembered for being an incredible mentor and lifelong friend to Paul DeLong, a legendary drummer who’s with several bands, while leading his own, One Word. He joined Troiano’s band when he was 24, performing on the albums The Joke’s On Me and Fret Fever. With Black Market, he performed on Changing Of The Guard.
From the entirety of Troiano’s catalogue, The Outer Limits of My Soul and Willpower are two songs DeLong especially enjoyed playing. He also has fond memories of opening for Tower of Power, an American R&B and funk band. But there’s a piece of advice Troiano gave him about intentionality as a musician and developing a sense of momentum when taking to the stage, which still resonates with him.
“When I first started with the band, I had terrible stage fright, so I’d be shaking. Donnie would tell me the first minute of a performance is what’s most important, so grab the bull by its horns; that’s still stuck in my brain all these years later,” DeLong recalls.
Amid the hustle and bustle of Troiano’s old stomping grounds, where condo developments and cannabis shops compete for space, plaques by Heritage Toronto and the Downtown Yonge Business Improvement Area (BIA) freeze snapshots of the city’s music history in time. Two of them commemorate the indelible impression the legendary guitarist left on city’s musical landscape. At 333 Yonge Street, where Le Coq d’Or Tavern once stood, The Hawk’s Nest, a teenage dance club, which was cocooned on the second floor, is immortalized as a hotspot where The Mandala played.
Nearby, at 372 Yonge Street, where revellers once flocked to dance the night away at Club Bluenote, homage is paid to the storied venue, which helped launch the careers of several renowned musicians; Troiano listed as one of them. It’s also noted that he and his bandmates in The Rogues were one of the venue’s house bands.
The Mandala’s Opportunity, which peaked at #3 on the CHUM Chart on the radio, is mentioned. The plaque is also coloured with an image of the band’s 1968 album, Soul Crusade.
Murals adorning the north and south façades of a supportive housing building at 423 Yonge Street, beckon onlookers from afar. Sponsored by the BIA and beautifully rendered by artist Adrian Hayles, they capture the people and places that ignited the city’s live music scene. Members of The Mandala are depicted; clad in suits, with Troiano appearing on the right.
Although decades have passed since Troiano could be spotted strolling along Yonge Street on his way to a gig, carrying his signature 1963 Fender Telecaster electric guitar and Fender Deluxe amplifier, his presence remains palpable and these tributes are a testament to his enduring legacy.
The autobiographical lyrics he wrote for Fret Fever, for which he received a Juno nomination for Producer of the Year in 1980, are the ultimate embodiment of a passion that defined his life… Then one day, he bought a guitar/lightning struck, and now he’s come so far with Fret Fever, how that boy loved his guitar/Fret Fever, everybody knew he had to be a star…
Domenic Troiano was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1995. He passed away on May 25, 2005. More than 20 years later, he remains larger than life. He continues to be deeply loved and missed by all who knew him. His music is a constant source of intrigue. It withstands the test of time.
Leave a Reply