Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland releases third album, talks Maritime roots

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland is known for countless movies and TV shows, but the British-Canadian actor with Maritime roots has another passion — music.

He just released his third album, “Bloor Street,” a nostalgic record dedicated to the city of Toronto where he grew up, and the street where he remembers many firsts.

“My first job was at a little restaurant in the food court in The Bay,” said Sutherland from Los Angeles, where he currently resides. “My first meaningful kiss with a girl was in front of the Bloor Street subway.

“The first time I busked on a corner was right at the corner of Bloor and Yonge you know, with a guitar and catching change in my guitar case.”

The album also gets personal. The song “County Jail Gate” is inspired by the 48 days he spent in jail for driving under the influence.

“There’s certainly no secret that I’ve made mistakes over the course of my life and some of those mistakes have been very humiliating and embarrassing and have required great reflection on my part,” he said.

“I think for me writing the song was a way for me to kind of put it behind me.”

Sutherland started acting when he was just a teen, appearing in movies like “Stand by Me,” “Young Guns,” “Flatliners,” and the cult-classic “Lost Boys” which turns 35 this summer.

“I think about how fortunate I was,” said Sutherland. “I think of the fun we had, I mean I was maybe 18 or 19 years old, and you know, working on what I felt was a big Hollywood movie which was really exciting for a kid from Toronto.”

There’s no shortage of success in the Sutherland’s lineage. His grandfather, politician Tommy Douglas, brought universal healthcare to Canada. His parents are both successful actors, with his father, 86-year-old Donald Sutherland, born on Canada’s East Coast.

“My dad is from New Brunswick and the first film I ever made was in Cape Breton Island, N.S., which was an amazing experience as well, and it’s also one of my favorite places to go,” said Sutherland.

His father Donald has fond memories of growing up on the East Coast, said Sutherland.

“He’s led such an extraordinary life, he’s travelled a great deal, but always goes back to kind of the Maritimes creating the root of who he is, and if I were him, I’d be very proud of that as well.”