Robert Bruce "Bob" McBride (17 November 1946 – 20 February 1998) was a Canadian rock singer-songwriter. He is best known as lead vocalist for the Canadian band

Lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

. McBride has one

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

. In 2022, Lighthouse members Ralph Cole, Paul Hoffert, Bob McBride and

Skip Prokop Ronald Harry "Skip" Prokop (December 13, 1943 – August 30, 2017) was a Canadian drummer, guitarist and keyboardist. He was also a band leader, was a founding member of the Canadian rock music groups the Paupers and Lighthouse. Early life Pro ...

were honored at the 33rd SOCAN Awards and inducted into the

Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame The Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame () is a Canadian non-profit organization, founded in 1998 by Frank Davies, that inducts Canadians into their ''Hall of Fame'' within three different categories: songwriters, songs, and those others who have m ...

. McBride has one

and two nominations.

Early life and education

McBride was born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

and graduated from

North Toronto Collegiate Institute North Toronto Collegiate Institute is a semestered, public high school institution with over 1,200 students located in North Toronto area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school is operated and governed by the Toronto District School Board. Fro ...

Career

As a young man, McBride was part of

Ronnie Hawkins Ronald Cornett Hawkins (January 10, 1935 – May 29, 2022) was an American rock and roll singer, long based in Canada, whose career spanned more than half a century. His career began in Arkansas, United States, where he was born and raised. He ...

' backup band for several years. He joined the band Lighthouse in 1970, replacing original singer Pinky Dauvin. His voice contributed to successful Lighthouse songs such as "Hats Off (To The Stranger)", "1849" and " One Fine Morning". He also won a 1973 Juno Award in the Outstanding Male Performance category and was nominated for 1974 Juno's in the Best Male Vocalist category, and as Male Vocalist of the Year. In October 1972, while still a member of Lighthouse, McBride embarked on a solo career, signing a record deal with

Capitol Capitol, capitols or The Capitol may refer to: Places and buildings Legislative building * United States Capitol, in Washington, D.C. * National Capitol of Colombia, in Bogotá * Palacio Federal Legislativo, in Caracas, Venezuela * National Ca ...

and releasing his debut album Butterfly Days. The album was both a critical and commercial success, going gold in Canada (selling over 50,000 copies) and spawning the hit singles "Pretty City Lady", "Treasure Song", and the title track. In summer 1973, McBride officially parted ways with the band, some of whom were upset after he failed to appear for a New York recording session for the album ''Can You Feel It''. Fellow member

sang the band's hit song " Pretty Lady" in his place, although Prokop said in an interview that McBride "could have done it bigger and better". McBride continued his solo career, releasing the album ''Sea of Dreams'' in 1973. Although it was another critical success, the album was a commercial disappointment to Capitol and he was dropped from the label soon after. With the exception of some live dates around

Southern Ontario Southern Ontario is a Region, primary region of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada, with approximately 13.5 million people, approximately 36% o ...

with a backup band named "Magic", he all but disappeared from the music scene for a few years. In 1976, McBride was allegedly approached to become the lead singer of

Blood, Sweat & Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is an American jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. BS&T has gone through numerous iterations with varying personnel and ...

, replacing

David Clayton-Thomas David Clayton-Thomas (born David Henry Thomsett, 13 September 1941) is a Grammy Award-winning Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the American band Blood, Sweat & Tears. Clayton-Thomas began his musi ...

. A few months later this was dismissed by Thomas' manager, Fred Heller, stating that this claim was "completely unfounded" and "Blood, Sweat & Tears with lead vocalist David Clayton-Thomas will perform with him fronting the band. Thomas also did all the lead vocals on the band's new album." In 1978, McBride had a

cocaine overdose Cocaine intoxication refers to the subjective, desired and adverse effects of cocaine on the mind and behavior of users. Both self-induced and involuntary cocaine intoxication have medical and legal implications (even in absence of relevant advers ...

. After landing a new recording deal with

London Records London Recordings (or London Records and London Music Stream) is a British record label that marketed records in the United States, Canada, and Latin America for Decca Records from 1947 to 1980 before becoming semi-independent. The London nam ...

, he returned to the studio that same year with a different backup band he dubbed "Expedition". The result was his self-titled album, which produced a handful of singles and yielded a minor hit with "Wild Eyes". McBride set out on the road and a series of dates throughout central Canada ensued into the following spring. He returned with '' Here to Sing'' in the fall of 1979, with famed producer Jack Richardson. It generated more singles, and although the music's maturity was heralded by critics, none of the singles made the Top 40. He reunited with many Lighthouse alumni in September, 1982 for a weekend of four concerts at Ontario Place, which drew 33,000 people; at the end of the weekend the musicians went their separate ways. The band got together again in 1992 with a ten-member line-up, which included the founding members Prokop, Hoffert and Cole, with McBride on vocals. McBride had been addicted to

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

for over a decade, and the drug problems resulted in poor performances and erratic behaviour; by the end of the year he was once again gone from the band. Lighthouse induction to Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame

Lighthouse induction to Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame

On October 17, 2022, McBride, along with his fellow Lighthouse members, was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. His daughter
Lara McBride
accepted on his behalf.

Legal issues

In 1994, McBride was sentenced to 90 days in prison after he robbed an

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

drugstore twice for

morphine Morphine, formerly also called morphia, is an opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin produced by drying the latex of opium poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as an analgesic (pain medication). There are ...

. As part of his sentence, he organized two benefit concerts to raise awareness of the dangers of drugs. In 1996, he was charged with a 1992 jewelry theft. A 1996 trial was postponed due to his ill health. It continued in December 1997, a

mistrial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, ...

was declared, and McBride was scheduled to return to court in March 1998, but never returned due to his death in February 1998.

Illness and death

After his departure from Lighthouse, McBride succumbed to a number of illnesses, including

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

and

Hepatitis B Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the '' hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection. Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. ...

. He also received head injuries during a robbery at his parents' residence in 1996. He died in February 1998 at

North York General Hospital North York General Hospital (NYGH) is a teaching hospital in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Primarily serving the North York district, as well as southern York Region, it offers acute care, ambulatory and long-term services at multiple sites. It is o ...

in Toronto after heart failure and is buried at Westminster Memorial Gardens in Toronto. Later in his life, McBride was married to Janice Fobert-Seaton, who died in 2003. one son was raised by them.

Albums

Singles

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McBride, Bob 1946 births 1998 deaths 20th-century Canadian male singers Canadian pop singers Singers from Toronto Lighthouse (band) members Juno Award for Artist of the Year winners