Blue Jays Way
View up Blue Jays Way from the bridge over the railroad tracks.
In honor of the Toronto Blue Jays, two-time winners of the World Series, the portion of Peter Street south of King Street West was renamed Blue Jays Way. This street is home to a number of popular entertainment venues, including Jeff Healey's, Wayne Gretzky's restaurant, the Second City, and the Diesel Theater where the popular show "Evil Dead" is playing.
The Diesel Theatre (left) and Jeff Healey's.
Jeff Healey was one of the more popular musicians in Toronto, renowned for his expertise in the blues guitar. I first saw him perform on an outdoor stage in the Queen Street West neighborhood, where he played Oh Canada in the style of Jimi Hendrix. Blind since shortly after birth, Healey never saw how the guitar is normally played, and so when he started to play, he played with the guitar on his lap fingering the strings from above.
Sadly, Jeff Healey died in 2008, succumbing to the same cancer that left him blind. In his later years, Healey turned more and more to the jazz music of the early 20th Century. He also learned how to play the trumpet. Local jazz lovers enjoyed his radio show on Monday evenings on JAZZ-FM radio. He was an amazing and multi-talented musician who never seemed to let his blindness bother him. He will be missed by music lovers around the world.
Sculpture at the corner of Blue Jays Way and King Street West.
Wayne Gretzky's restaurant at 99 Blue Jays Way.
The Second City, on a side street off Blue Jays Way.