No Dress Rehearsal

 

It's likely that you've seen this four-part television documentary about The Tragically Hip if you're a fan. Mike Downie, the brother of the band's lead vocalist, the late Gord Downie, directed and produced the film, which tells the band's narrative from its infancy to its final performance in Kingston in 2016. 

Although this was released on Prime, I waited to see the show at WIFF (Windsor International Film Festival), which was held on October 26th. Rob Baker and Mike Downie attended and took part in a Q&A after the show. 

It was touching to be around so many fans, all decked out in Hip gear, eager to participate in this four-plus-hour event. While walking downtown Windsor to the Chrysler Theatre, I bumped into Rob and Mike as they were heading into the venue. 

With his infectious smile, his purple blazer, and his warm greeting, it was the perfect start to the show. This isn't the first time I've met Rob. I've had the good fortune to meet every member of the band. He was certainly friendly, gave me a hug, and took a couple of photos before heading inside. 

Previously, I watched The Tragically Hip: We are the Same, which was from the Bathouse recording studio. Back in 2009, this was a live and intimate show with a special Q&A, hosted by George Stroumboulopoulos. I also watched the 2017 documentary, Long Time Running. This film follows the band on their final cross-country tour back in 2016. I was so excited to sit down and see what I would learn from this documentary. 

Sitting through the four-part series, it didn't feel that long. I was mesmerized from the beginning. Watching old footage of the boys in high school was entertaining. Seeing interviews from various friends, fellow musicians, and family members brought a personal and loving element to the series. Learning of how they came up with their name and how the band was ultimately formed was interesting. To learn this band of brothers didn't always get along was heartbreaking, but the fact they lasted as many years as they did was a testament to their love for each other. 

Rob referred to the Q&A afterwards as "Between Two Ferns." This was a great way to hear from them directly as they explained how important making this film was to them. 

We all have grieved the passing of Gord Downie. He was our favourite poet and our frontman and created the lyrics of our lives. Of our stories. Of our Canada. The Tragically Hip continues to touch the hearts of fans, even though they are no longer touring. 

This past week, I had to say goodbye to my 14-year-old dog, Kirby. He was my loyal and constant companion, and my heart broke. I've been listening to the Hip daily, and their music is helping me during this time of grief. I'm so happy this band has been around for as long as they have and continues sharing these incredible songs across our nation and beyond. If you have time this week, queue up some Hip, sit back and enjoy.

~MT

The Tragically Hip Roadie

Back in May, the iconic Canadian rock band announced that lead singer Gord Downie was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a form of incurable brain cancer. Since then, fans have been scrambling to get tickets to one of the final 15 shows across Canada to have one last chance to see the band play live; to hear some new songs, some old hits and to bid farewell.

Since the emergence of the Kingston band in 1984, lead singer Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker, bassist Gord Sinclair and drummer Johnny Fay,  have been engaging fans with songs about Canadian politics, history and geography. Downie is a true poet; his lyrics deep and dark. Their songs are the soundtrack to growing up in Canada. Every road trip had one or two Hip albums involved. Every campfire had a Hip song. Every jukebox at a dive bar had a Hip song. Most of us have memories of rocking out to the Hip at some point in our life. We can't eat chicken without singing Little Bones.

I tried getting tickets during the Fan Club pre-sale. No luck. Within minutes, scalpers were selling the tickets online at a 2000% markup. The Ticketmaster/StubHub monopoly on concert tickets reeks of collusion. With the demand of these final 15 shows at an all time high, scalpers knew they could make money off every fan wanting to see the Hip one last time. The band then introduced a lottery system which I entered, but much like Lotto 649, didn't win.

Tuesday, August 16th was the final show in Hamilton. The Hip had just played three shows in Toronto so I thought my chances for getting a ticket might be better. My brother Gerry and I kept checking online for last minute tickets and there were some...for $600. I couldn't justify spending that much knowing the face value of the tickets. Late afternoon, we decided to jump in the car and head to Hamilton (280 km or 173 miles from Windsor) even without tickets in hand. Hitting the 401 while listening to the Hip's latest album, Man Machine Poem, we prayed we'd get tickets.

Arriving outside FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton with an hour left before the show, my spirits started to dip. There was a throng of people in the streets out front, grabbing up merchandise, wearing In Gord We Trust t-shirts. Street musicians were playing Hip songs, and you could hear Hip music blaring from speakers up and down York Boulevard. The energy from the crowd was palpable and we knew we had to get inside. Checking with the box office, we were told what we already expected...the show was completely sold out. They weren't releasing any more tickets which left us with one last option-a scalper.

I was leery at best. How could you trust the tickets would be legitimate? There were a lot of police milling about and I wasn't sure on the legalities of buying from scalpers. They didn't appear to be hiding from anyone, standing on the corner and yelling, TICKETS, so we approached one of them. He was offering upper bowl seats behind the stage for $700. We moved on.

After talking to a few different scalpers, we found a guy that had two tickets in the lower bowl, 7th row. After a bit of negotiation, with only 30 minutes until the show started, we settled on a price (all the money I had in my pocket) and we were in!                                                          

Locating our seats, we couldn't believe our luck. Our seats were amazing! Taking the chance, driving almost three hours without tickets to what would be the last show we would see our favourite band perform live was worth it. The lights dimmed, the crowd got to their feet cheering, stomping their feet, chanting HIP! HIP! HIP! while waving Canadian flags and hankies, a tribute to the enigmatic frontman Gord, who always performs with a hanky tucked into his pants. The feeling was exhilarating.

The band came on stage and the first thing you noticed (besides Gord's magenta suit and fedora!) was how close their set was. Creating a tight circle, reminiscent of the band playing small venues, they launched into At the Hundredth Meridian followed by Courage. The crowd went wild and we all felt the same way. Downie has shown unbelievable courage and bravery in the face of his illness, deciding to tour one last time for his fans and for his band. Downie joked they had played in Hamilton years before to a crowd of zero. He couldn't remember the name of the bar. Now selling out to a crowd of more than 18 000, the love for the Hip couldn't be denied.

At times the concert was bittersweet. During Grace, Too, Gord sings armed with skill and determination, and grace, too. Hearing him sing the final line of Scared, I got to go, it's been a pleasure doing business with you hit home for the crowd. After 25 songs and almost two and a half hours of an incredible performance, watching him blow a kiss, offer up a peace sign and a thank you to the fans, brought tears to my eyes. Gord simply said, "thank you Hamilton, see you later". Most of us realized we wouldn't be seeing him again. This would likely be the last time we'd see the band perform live.

The final show is on Saturday, August 20th in their hometown of Kingston. CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) has agreed to air the final concert. From coast to coast, the entire country will be watching and singing along with The Tragically Hip. Gord has taught us to live in the moment. No dress rehearsal. This is our life. And we will all be living in the moment with these five guys from Kingston, spending a Saturday night listening to their songs and feeling what it means to be Canadian. I know I will be shedding a tear or two. The lyrics to Done and Done are most fitting at this time:

Done and done

Night accomplished

If I had a wish

I'd wish for more of this

If you get the chance, tune into the CBC to celebrate The Tragically Hip. 

~MT

Let the Music Play

I love music and have ever since I was a kid.  My Dad would play songs on the hi-fi, which became the 8 tracks of my youth. We barely watched T.V. but rather listened to music. I went to my first live concert when I was 13 and the energy in the arena was intoxicating. There's nothing like hearing your favourite bands singing live.

Music is a part of our daily lives, whether we are silencing it as the morning alarm, singing along to the radio on the way to work, or humming along to that awful Muzac in the elevator or in the dentist office. There is such a variety of music and we can access it with a touch of a button. When you hear an old song, a memory will stir and you will be transported back to another place and time.

While living in Japan, my love for music was cultivated with my VIP card at the local karaoke bar. Karaoke is an extremely popular activity in Japan and it became one of my favourite ways to pass the time. You could rent a room with friends and sing by the hour, ordering drinks and snacks as needed. The English selection was limited but a few doozies could still be found on their machines.

*Karaoke bar. These were as popular as Starbucks!

I was fortunate to see a couple of great concerts while living abroad. No, it wasn't J-Pop. I could hardly stomach that shit (with the exception of the group "SMAP" which had more to do with my crush on Kimura Takuya then on their talent. Google him-seriously).

The first concert was KISS at Tokyo Dome. It was January of 1997 and along with 55,000 other crazy fans, we rocked out to "Calling Doctor Love", "Beth", and "Detroit Rock City" (Paul changed the lyrics to Tokyo and naturally, the crowd went berzerk). Seeing them in full makeup and platform boots was something to behold.

The second concert I saw in Japan was Prince.  Hamamatsu was a much smaller venue with only 2300 people. It was during his 2002 World Tour and he played for a solid three hours. That little man is so talented; he played at least 3 different instruments during the concert. My friend Chris was a member of the fan club so got to attend the sound check, stand in the front row and even got to go onstage during the performance. Prince played all of my favourite songs and the show was amazing.

Being Canadian, I have some favourite Canuck bands that I follow. Sam Roberts Band and The Tragically Hip are in my top 10. I've seen both in concert a number of times. Living in Windsor, we are blessed with living just minutes from Detroit, Michigan (blessed?) a popular stop for bands on tour. The Fillmore Detroit and Pine Knob (renamed DTE but will always be Pine Knob to me) are great places to see concerts. We are also fairly close to Ohio and I've traveled to that state on a few occasions to see both Sam and the Hip. They tend to play at smaller venues and the chance to meet them is greater.

*My brother Gerry and I meeting Sam outside of Frankie's bar in Toledo, Ohio (2011). We tailgated outside the bar in my convertible before the show. Parked right behind the tour bus!

My all time favourite band is The Tragically Hip. The 5 member band from Kingston, Ontario has been around since 1984 and I've been a fan for most of those years. The lead singer, Gord Downie is an eccentric front man and seeing them live is quite an experience.

*Meeting Gord for the first time in 2007 in Cleveland, Ohio. 

*Meeting Gord in Windsor wearing a backstage pass around my neck! Show was so good that my sister Jennie and I drove to London (about a 2 hour drive) the next night to see him again. The concert was outdoors, it was pouring rain and we got soaked but still had fun (2010).

No matter where you travel, music is an integral part of the culture. My favourite music while traveling thus far, was in Ireland. It was incredible to visit any pub and there would be live music. Everyone was happy, sitting around enjoying a pint and singing along with the band. People would shout out their requests and the band obliged. Whether they were singing about the "Wild Rover" or the girl with "The Black Velvet Band", their songs tell a tale and it comes across when they sing.

I'm not sure how far I'd travel to see a band I love. The furthest I've gone to date is probably 4 hours. There's just something different about seeing a live performance with the entire crowd joining in the lyrics. Music has changed so much since listening to the 8 tracks in my childhood living room. Even with the price of concert tickets today, I still think it's worth it. So if you get the chance, jump in the car, put on your favourite soundtrack and head to a great show where for a couple hours, you can travel somewhere else; affected and transported by the music.

*Lyrics from one of my favourite Hip songs, Bobcaygeon.

~MT