Songwriter behind iconic Cape Breton anthem passes away
It's a song that for years has been the unofficial anthem of Cape Breton Island.
Now, Kenzie MacNeil – who wrote and sang The Island back in the 1970s – has passed away.
"I was quite shocked," said Maynard Morrison, an actor and performer who worked with MacNeil on The Rise and Follies of Cape Breton Island – a successful and satirical comedic sketch in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The show was a precursor to the Cape Breton Summertime Revue.
"If it hadn't been for Kenzie, the Rise and Follies never would have happened … Kenzie really did bring it together into the Revue format that we still use today," Morrison told CTV Atlantic.
MacNeil's death was confirmed by one of his four daughters.The family says he died unexpectedly Saturday night.
Retired Liberal Member of Parliament Rodger Cuzner best knew MacNeil from his days in politics. "He was a natural orator. He had that deep, booming voice," Cuzner said.
MacNeil ran against Cuzner as a Conservative candidate in the Sydney-Victoria riding in the 2004 and 2006 federal elections, and ran again as an Independent in 2019.
"He believed in economic development, and really tried to push those areas there," Cuzner said. "But he was gracious in defeat too, and that's not something you always see in politics."
MacNeil was also editor and publisher of The Cape Bretoner news magazine for many years. He also worked as a development officer with the Nova Scotia Department of Economic Development, but he was best known for his song The Island. Those who knew him say his passion for Cape Breton shone through. "He loved the place and he had a working man's perspective," Morrison said.
There is no word yet on a cause of death. For now, many are remembering MacNeil for his influence on Cape Breton music, comedy and culture.
"He'll leave an impression. And he left us with a piece of music that Cape Bretoners embrace, and will continue for many years to come, said Cuzner.
Kenzie MacNeil was 68.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.