Hello everyone.

What a privilege to be in the green room surrounded by such a concentration of my favourite musicians, and what a privilege to stay among them all, all night long. When I wasn't on stage, I was in the front row, glued to every song, every tune, every story. Normally, I have a pretty low boredom threshold, but I could have sat in that front row forever, absorbing all that love, love that was inspired by Rick and expressed through a four-hour flow of top-notch musical performances. Everyone touched me, moved me, spoke to me - but there is a special place in my heart for Glen Reid. I have been partial to singing cowboys all my life, and to my eye and my ear, Glen stands squarely and beautifully in that tradition. He is a humble man, and Saturday night he spoke gratefully of the ways Rick had helped him come through a difficult time. Now I happen to know that Glen was one of Rick's heroes. Rick was not a sentimental man, but on more than one occasion, he shared with me the deep and abiding love he felt for Glen Reid. Listening to Glen sing Lifeline to the Heartland Saturday night - a song Glen wrote, that Rick not only recorded, but named a CD after - hearing Glen sing that perfect song was my breaking point, the moment when I could no longer hold back the tears.

Rick's legacy is that he brought music to life inside so many people - and back to life inside so many others.

R.I.P. my friend.

Joanne