Kids, families, and gamers both pro and casual are invited to form their own Rock Band teams and participate in Toronto’s Top Rock Stars, a charity competition taking place at FundaySunday in November. Raising funds to support the exceptional work at the Sunnybrook Health Foundation and Canadian Hadassah-WIZO, bands can register themselves online and collect sponsors to help them in their cause. To show just how easy it is, CTV, Flow 93.5, Today’s Parent Magazine, and the Toronto Star gathered this past Tuesday at the Eaton Centre in downtown Toronto for a very public competition. One by one each band took to the stage and played badly, sang horribly, gyrated and danced comically, but thanks to our inventive, fun costumes looked incredibly cool, a good thing considering the number of cameras snapping away (ohh those cameraphones!).

Michelle, Richard, Kris, and Bill unleash their rock powers 

A Canadian Idol-style panel of judges had the unenviable task of sitting front row centre while trying to think up colourful remarks for feedback during each song. Jersey Boys cast members Cleopatra Williams and Jade Elliot joined YummyMummyClub.ca founder Erica Ehm and Eric Alpier of E1 Entertainment in monitoring the Rock Band high scores and rating power stances.

Performing Billy Idol’s “White Wedding (Part 1)” our own CTV band consisted of myself on vocals, Michelle Dubé on lead guitar, Bill Hutchison on bass, and Richard Crouse on drums. As you can see in the clip below, we went for a wedding theme with tuxes and a beautiful veil on Michelle.

If you do enter a competition like this I highly recommend dressing up as it helps make each band a little more interesting. While I couldn’t get clearance for some of the machinery and animatronics I had originally planned to incorporate into our set, I still managed to include a pair of LED lights in the lapels of my jacket and wore a pair of RealD 3D glasses.

The judges were immeasurably kind and charismatic. After describing our first notes as a “car crash” (admittedly we could have practiced more) Erica Ehm, playing the role of the mean judge, praised Michelle for delivering the most impressive guitar work of the day while Bill was awarded for his “intensity”. Cleopatra Williams shocked me with high praise for my “powerful” vocals, while Richard was cherished for his wild man antics.

Jade, Erica, Cleopatra, and Eric prepare to judge in style 

Near the finale I remember looking down and seeing the drum stool go hurtling past my ankles as Richard trashed the drum set behind me. Fun fact, Richard has spent several years playing the drums for real and during our set up dazzled the press photographers by twirling his Zildjian drumsticks.

A trick he didn't learn at the movies, Richard dazzles the Zildjians 

If the competition was based on style alone we might have won, but that achievement went to the team from Flow 93.5 who’s passionate rendition of “Eye of the Tiger” impressed the judges not because they had a high score (they didn’t), but because they had the best groove and synergy as a group. Erica Ehm noted that they all shared a smile as they played, truly enjoying each other and that made them fun to watch.

The bands - Today's Parent, Sunnybrook, CTV, Toronto Star, Flow 93.5 

A big surprise came at the end with the sudden appearance of a band from Sunnybrook themselves, who took to the stage with the declaration of “We save babies”, instantly putting to shame all rock bands in history. They played better than the media bands, showing the value of healthcare professionals in their ability to work as a cohesive team.

One in five babies born in Ontario who weigh less than three pounds is cared for at Sunnybrook where the Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, designed to treat the most critically ill infants, is one of the best in North America. Each year they help deliver approximately 4,250 babies.

I don’t care how many platinum albums you sell, they win.

Raising funds for these important programs, Funday Sunday is a festival taking place in Toronto on November 28th, 2010 that will include a wide range of activities including a Children’s Village of bouncy castles, games and crafts, a marketplace for shoppers looking for deals on designer goods, and a Health Fair where the best medical professionals in the country will be on hand to answer questions and offer guidance.

Show up for the day, have a fantastic time, and know that you’ll be helping the Women & Babies program for these two very important organizations.