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