Local Hamilton talent Mark Kasprzyk from the band Redlight King samples Neil Young

Sampling is the act of borrowing or using portions of an existing record for a new song.

Local musician Mark Kasprzyk persisted until the Canadian legend Neil Young gave him the green light to use a sample of the classic Old Man.

His new band, Redlight King, is the first to be granted Young’s personal permission to sample the track.

“It might come across as arrogant, but I always knew he’d like (my version),” said Kasprzyk, who also goes by Kaz.

Kaz is a local boy, best known for his time in Kazzer, a Hamilton-based band that pumped out the 2002 hit Pedal to the Metal. His inspiration for Old Man wasn’t actually Young himself, but a falling out he’d had with his father, an engine builder from Binbrook.
The song was already in the works, referred to initially as Hardworking Hands. When Young’s Old Man came on the radio during a drive to his Hamilton studio, he started mixing and building the track as a guilty pleasure. He never planned on putting it out.
But then he played it for his label in Los Angeles, and they loved it — and knew Young would, too. They approached Young’s people. Everyone said no, without even playing the song.
Eventually Bob Cavallo, president of Hollywood Records, convinced Young to have a listen. And they were right. He gave the thumbs-up.

“It’s thrilling, I’m a big Neil Young fan,” Kaz said. “It’s important. I think it introduces a guy like Neil Young to a whole new generation of listeners. Kids are going to know where it comes from.”
The band’s debut album, something for the Pain, was produced in L.A., but was written with a Hamilton influence.
“I can’t say enough about this place. There’s no shortage of world-class musicians here,” he said. “I wear this city like a badge of honour when I play. I make sure to kill it every night.”
City Life, another song on the album, is a testament to his love for his hometown.
The upcoming video was shot in town (by local director Chris Stacey) with Hamilton’s trademark grit as a backdrop — they filmed under the Burlington Bridge, around north end streets where Kaz bought a house after his Kazzer success. They even snuck onto the field at Ivor Wynne.
His dad was a drag racer in town, which was the inspiration for the band’s name: his car was called Redlight Bandit.
“We’d go up to Dragway Park in Cayuga every Sunday. Saturday we’d fire up the cars and Sunday we’d go to the races. We lost every Sunday,” he laughed.
But that same persistence is present in his career as a musician.
These songs are reflective, they’re about moving forward, but they come from a dark place. When management changes and poor record sales left Kazzer dropped from Sony BMG, Kaz’s career floundered. He struggled with drug and alcohol problems.
A former one-hit wonder, he’s not worried about that fate with this record — or at all.
“That never bothered me, better one hit than none, right?” he said. “I’m not making records to win trophies. I live and breathe music.”
“Plus, we’ve had two hits, so we’re in the clear.”
Personal approval from one of the greatest musicians alive probably doesn’t hurt either.

mhayes@thespec.com THE SPEC