Van Buskirk, who died Friday at the age of 75 after a brief battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), was a major contributor to the city\u2019s concert-industry framework.<\/p>\n
By the time the 1980s arrived, Victoria had begun to establish a new cultural identity, one that had little to do with its residents famously being either newlywed or nearly dead, and it was Saskatoon-born businessman, concert promoter, and arts advocate Gary Van Buskirk who played a key role in that redesign.<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk, who died Friday at the age of 75 after a brief battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), was a major contributor to the city\u2019s concert-industry framework, and the foundation he laid as the co-founder of Harpo\u2019s Cabaret continues to bear fruit.<\/p>\n
Kind-hearted and always smiling, Van Buskirk was regarded with reverence by many across the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cGary understood that with great power comes great responsibility,\u201d said Marcus Pollard, his bookings partner at Harpo\u2019s. \u201cHe didn\u2019t abuse any part of his position. And we came across so many promoters who were always a little skeevy, and we decided we were never going to work with those people. Ever.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk and Pollard pioneered an artist-friendly model at Harpo\u2019s, located at Bastion Square (where Upstairs Cabaret is currently located).<\/p>\n
They were a dynamic duo with a sibling-like bond, despite more than 15\u00a0years separating the two in age.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were bound by music, and by the ethical way we went about our business,\u201d Pollard said. \u201cWe had our problems, but we always came back to the centre. Gary would always say, \u2018Water seeks its own level,\u2019 and that\u2019s how we ran our friendship.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk was a thoughtful conversationalist widely known for his generous spirit, but in his later years, he happily retreated from the spotlight. His appearance in July at the 50th birthday celebration concerts for Harpo\u2019s was a highlight, as his presence at shows had long since ebbed.<\/p>\n
For many, it was the last time they spoke with Van Buskirk in person before his medically assisted death.<\/p>\n
A December appointment with a neurologist resulted in his diagnosis of ALS.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first thing that came out of his mouth was, \u2018Where can I get in contact with MAID?\u2019 \u201d brother Jay Van Buskirk said. \u201cHe didn\u2019t want to give in to that disease.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk immediately retreated from public life, choosing to battle the symptoms privately. Very few friends even knew he was ill.<\/p>\n
He was supported throughout his final months by his niece, Amanda.<\/p>\n
Many people working in the Greater Victoria arts community today owe a debt to Van Buskirk, as he was a mentor to countless young bands, promoters, and journalists.<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk\u2019s father was a musician and bandleader who rose to prominence in Western Canada in the 1940s. The banjoist and steel guitarist moved the close family \u2014 wife Molly, daughter Joy, and sons Jay and Gary \u2014 to Salt Spring Island in the 1950s, before landing in Victoria.<\/p>\n
Music filled the family\u2019s home in the Gonzales area, with Gary, the youngest child, playing a key role in the cacophony.<\/p>\n
Though not officially a musician himself, he was always helping bands in his social circle, including ones featuring his brother, a saxophonist, and late drummer and author Daniel (Britt) Hagarty.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a sort of manager who would look after us and get us gigs,\u201d Jay Van Buskirk said. \u201cBut he was also the enforcer, too. If somebody didn\u2019t pay up. He knew how to close the deal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk could certainly be intimidating when needed, but those who knew him from his Harpo\u2019s days saw little of the edge he showcased during the 1960s as a member of Victoria\u2019s London Boxing Club.<\/p>\n
In his teens, he competed as a bantamweight and was a top competitor in Golden Gloves competitions in Vancouver, \u00adPortland and Seattle, often \u00admaking the finals in his weight class.<\/p>\n
Despite being one of the leading boxers in his division, by the early 1970s, he\u2019d left the sport behind. Van Buskirk and business partner Michael Martay opened Harpo\u2019s Cabaret in 1975. Before long, the venue began attracting attention from agents and managers across North America.<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk\u2019s mother was a fixture at Harpo\u2019s, and she attended his shows across the city later in her life. Not long before she died in 2014, at the age of 101, she could be seen on the dance floor at concerts with her proudly attentive son.<\/p>\n
\u201cGary would bring to her all kinds of different shows,\u201d his brother said. \u201cThere was no generational gap between him and mom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Buskirk was the engine behind the jazz, reggae, folk and blues bookings at Harpo\u2019s, from Muddy Waters, k.d. lang and John Lee Hooker to Burning Spear, Bill Evans and Toots & the Maytals, while Pollard handled alternative offerings like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Green Day, No Doubt, Blind Melon, Sarah McLachlan, the Goo Goo Dolls, and The Tragically Hip.<\/p>\n
The pair\u2019s most notable relationship, however, was with a Seattle rock group named Mookie Blaylock, who played the club in 1991, opening for fellow Seattle band Alice in Chains. The show wound up being their last-ever in the city under the Mookie Blaylock moniker. Not long after, the band changed its name to Pearl Jam, now one of the most iconic bands in rock history.<\/p>\n
In 2024, Pollard and Van Buskirk reconnected with Pearl Jam in Vancouver, after its concert at Pacific Coliseum. Though it had been 33 years since Pearl Jam\u2019s last performance at Harpo\u2019s, frontman Eddie Vedder recalled their days at Harpo\u2019s. \u201cIf anybody here knows the guy, his name is Gary \u2014 he ran the place. Just tell him I say hi if you happen to see him,\u201d the singer said from the stage.<\/p>\n
Pollard and Van Buskirk reconnected backstage with Vedder, who spent much of their two hours together in deep conversation with Van Buskirk.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were three other people in the room, but they didn\u2019t get a sentence in,\u201d Pollard said with a laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cGary didn\u2019t have pretension. He never tried to be anyone else but the man he was. And he never wavered from that. He never came into a conversation and changed his personality for anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n