Sass Jordan, singer, songwriter and longtime “Canadian Idol” judge, died Oct. 2. He was 65 years old.
His family confirmed his death, stating that he “died peacefully” and was “surrounded by those who loved him most.” They remembered her as “a unique force of nature” and “an irreplaceable being of light and joy.”
Jordan began his recording career in 1986 as a backing vocalist on Bündock’s song “Come On (Baby Tonight)” from the album “Mauve”. She quickly became a sought-after singer in Montreal, most notably appearing on The Box’s breakthrough song “L’Affaire Dumoutier (Say To Me…)” and the band’s video for “Closer Together”.
He was also a well-known songwriter. Michael Breen took his composition “Rain” to the Canadian charts in 1987.
In 1989, Jordan won the Juno Award for Most Promising Female Vocalist of the Year following her debut album “Tell Somebody.”
After moving to Los Angeles in January 1990, he released “Racine” in March 1992. The album became the defining album of his career, selling approximately 450,000 copies worldwide and 100,000 in Canada, with “Make You a Believer”, “I Want to Believe”, “You Don’t Have to Remind Me” and “Goin’ Back Again”. “Who Do You Think You Are” followed in 1993.
“Make You a Believer” reached No. 11 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart, and Billboard named her the top female rock artist of 1992.
She joined “Canadian Idol” as a judge in 2003, the only woman on the panel, and remained on the panel for six seasons. He continued to perform and release music for two decades.
“If you love music and you’ve been around as long as I have, you do what you gotta do,” Jordan once said. “But I love music. I’m a huge, huge fan.”
Sarah Jordan was born on December 23, 1960 in Birmingham, England. She was the daughter of French literature professor Albert Jordan and former English ballerina Jean Lanceman. He began singing with friends at a young age, and by 16 was fronting bands in clubs in downtown Montreal; he later became the singer and bassist for local favorites The Pinups.
She is survived by her husband Derek Sharp, daughter Stella Jordan-Sharp (Daniel Yepes), step-daughter Brianne Sharp and brother Daniel Jordan (Isabelle Courville).