A music producer from Halifax, who significantly influenced fellow Nova Scotian Anne Murray to embark on her music journey and later worked on albums for renowned artists like Johnny Cash and Emmylou Harris, is being commemorated for his contributions to the music scene.
Brian Ahern, aged 81, passed away on Monday in Minnesota.
Murray recounted her first encounter with Ahern when she auditioned for Singalong Jubilee, a CBC television show that showcased local talent in Halifax during the 1960s and 1970s. Ahern served as the musical producer for the program. Murray mentioned that she didn’t succeed in her initial audition.
“He wanted me on that show,” Murray told CBC on Wednesday. “And that’s where it all began with Brian.”
Two years later, she was invited back to audition and was successful.
Anne Murray of Springhill, N.S., is shown in a 1971 photo. (The Canadian Press)
Ahern later relocated to Toronto, while Murray stayed on the East Coast, working as a teacher. She felt unprepared to fully commit to a music career, but Ahern continuously encouraged her.
“He kept writing to me, urging me to come to Toronto to record an album. At the time, I didn’t see the point,” Murray recalled with a laugh. “Eventually, I relented, left my teaching job, and we recorded an album together.”
She described him as a reserved individual and referred to him as an exceptional musician.
“Sometimes you had to read his mind… but he taught me a great deal in the studio,” Murray shared. “I learned much from him while he was also learning, but he was so astute that he grasped concepts quickly.”
They encountered numerous obstacles together. Upon her arrival in Toronto, Murray noted that Ahern had “no money,” and she had to recover his guitar using her teaching earnings before they could enter the recording studio.
Brian Ahern accepts a lifetime achievement award for producer/engineer during The Americana Music Awards in Nashville on Sept. 9, 2010. (The Associated Press)
“We essentially grew up in the music industry together,” Murray remarked.
Her hit song, Snowbird, from the 1969 album This Way Is My Way, was among the 13 albums he produced for her, according to the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame.
Murray stated that although they “went [their] separate ways, [they] both achieved greater things.”
From left: Ricky Skaggs, Emmylou Harris and Brian Ahern perform on Nov. 18, 2013, in Nashville. (Rick Diamond/Getty Images)
Ahern’s career also led him to cities like Los Angeles and Nashville. He produced albums for George Jones, Ricky Skaggs, and Rodney Crowell, as well as 11 albums for Emmylou Harris, whom he married in 1974.
The last time Murray saw Ahern in person was during his induction into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2006.
“Brian’s faith in my abilities was sufficient to guide me through those formative years,” Murray said while introducing Ahern on stage.
In 2010, he received a lifetime achievement award from the Americana Music Association and was named a member of the Order of Canada in 2019.
Following his passing, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum remarked that Ahern’s contributions “helped forge a vital form of American roots music” and provided a “blueprint for Americana music in the 1990s.”
Ahern was a ‘steward of the artistic process’
Ahern’s daughters, Shannon and Meghann Ahern, shared their cherished memories of sleeping in recording studios as children while their father worked.
“He would take us everywhere, and he even constructed a human-sized dollhouse out of studio baffles (soundproofing equipment) so I could play quietly while he worked,” recalled Shannon Ahern.
They characterized him as a “steward of the artistic process,” emphasizing his dedication to helping artists realize their full creative potential.
“These were individuals I recognized as talented musicians, and my dad was collaborating with them to create art,” Meghann Ahern noted. “That was my environment; I understood that art was significant, but it also demanded hard work, commitment, and perseverance.”
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