In Loving Memory of

David Charles Taylor

of Edmonton
Oct 25, 1953 - Jul 14, 2017

 

David Charles Taylor (AKA: ‘Beard’) was born on October 25th 1953 in Vegreville, Alberta. He grew up in the Bonnie Doon neighborhood of Edmonton with his parents, Charles (Charlie) and Alexandra (Alex), and with his four siblings: Lorraine, Charlene, Doug, and Colin.

He also had two nieces, Michel and Lindsey, as well as a nephew, Jaimie.

Keenly interested in electronics, he moved to Calgary in his 20’s to attend SAIT’s Television, Stage and Radio Arts program.

Dad got into the television broadcast industry as an audio technician during the mid-70’s. -A time and place that seems like some kind of fun wild west; where the squares and the freaks worked in close proximity, and towards the same goal of creating a daily broadcast.

After a stint at Edmonton’s ITV, Dad settled in Calgary, where he began a long career at CFAC (later Channels 2&7, later Calgary 7, now Global TV).

In 1977, David married Molly, and started a family. They had two children: Nathan (me), and Sheena.

His twin passions were music and technology. He was an enthusiastic Commodore Amiga user throughout its brief but interesting lifespan, and would talk with excitement about the possibilities of the Raspberry Pi. Having lived first through the years of cutting audio tape by hand, and then into the current generation of non-linear editing systems, Dad was always enamored by, and cynical about, new technology; I remember his rant about the Digital Audio Tape and MiniDisc being: "just more helical and spinning medium!" -It was pretty funny…

In the house we grew up in, he had an entire room dedicated to his vinyl record collection, and when we were very young, the mixtapes he would make for me & Sheena would include people like ‘The Ramones’, ‘Napoleon XIV’, and ‘Double Dee and Steinski’. For setting me down that road, I am grateful beyond words. His personal favorites were the works of Karlheinz Stockhausen, and lately, Gilbert Gottfried’s Amazing Colossal Podcast.

He was a voracious reader of music history and analysis; at the time of his death he was working on ‘’Every Song Ever,’ by Ben Ratliff, ‘Trouble Boys –The True Story of the Replacements’, by Bob Mehr, and when we went into his apartment after he died, next to the stereo was a library copy of John Zorn’s ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’. -Enter a music trivia contest with Dad at your peril…

I got him into The Melvins, and the last time I saw him, he told me he had bought a ticket to their show in Edmonton. I found the ticket and went in his stead. -It was probably the heaviest (literally and metaphorically) show I’ve ever attended. It felt weird, but ultimately very good.

Despite Dad going through a tough time in the mid 2000’s, I am so happy to have seen how well he pulled himself back up over the last decade, and take heart from the time we spent together since then. Shit happens to everyone, but not all of us come out of it as well as he did.

Among those that deserve extra special mention are his niece Michel, with whom he was very close, and his good pals George and Big Rob. –I shall look to them in the future for comfort, stories & laughs.

Finally, his Granddaughter, Mateya...

Her Grandpa (AKA: Grandpants) was truly blessed to have had the time he did with her. That he should have left this earth while she is still so young is probably the worst part about the whole thing. He was a doting Grandparent of such a free and easy manner, it reminded me of him when I was that young. -Watching him perform Mateya’s strictly choreographed interpretive dance routines disproves what The Specials sing in ‘Enjoy Yourself’:

"‘Cause you can only be young but the once"

He loved, was loved, and will be missed. Goodbye Dad, and thank you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPd_awQuH4o - The Specials ‘Enjoy Yourself’

Friends and family are invited to an informal gathering to remember Dave beginning at 2 pm on Sunday July 23rd at the Social Room at Village at Southgate 10711-47 Ave Edmonton.

If anyone would like to make a donation in his memory, please consider the Edmonton Public Library.