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The Tragically Hip
HNIC Intro Features Gord Downie's Retrace
Published May 3, 2010 @ 21:36 in The Tragically Hip
Actually, proper credit goes to Gord Downie and the Country of Miracles. His new album The Grand Bounce drops June 8.
Tragically Hip Live On This Blog
Published December 10, 2009 @ 21:01 in The Tragically Hip
Here's the entire show. And here's my Tragically Hip page. New Orleans is SinkingThe Depression SuiteIn ViewGift ShopAhead By A CenturyMorning MoonPoetsIt's a Good Life If You Don't WeakenYer Not The OceanAt the Hundredth MeridianLove Is A FirstCoffee GirlFiddler's GreenWheat KingsSpringtime in ViennaBobcaygeonNautical DisasterFireworksThe Last RecluseCourage (For Hugh Maclennan)Family BandMusic at WorkBlow at High DoughFrozen In My TracksGrace, Too
A Texan Reviews The Tragically Hip
Published October 24, 2009 @ 10:39 in The Tragically Hip
Here's what Hall wrote. After the blockquote, I'll respond as The Tragically Hip's biggest fan in the blogosphere. The emphasis below belongs to me.
Firstly, that whole 51st state thing isn't funny. Maybe in Texas it's cool to think of Canada that way, but it sure isn't based in reality, and it's offensive to the 30 million plus living in the independent nation of Canada. Describing the Hip as "straightforward rock and roll with a slight Southern twist" makes me think this guy hasn't heard a Hip album since Up to Here. Actually, I'll bet he hasn't heard anything beyond "New Orleans is Sinking". I'm sure he hasn't heard the new album, We Are the Same. His suggestion they've "shrugged away most of (their) raw rock-and-roll persona" with "overpoweringly radio-friendly blandness that reeks of pandering" is so off-base. I actually don't think We Are the Same is particularly radio-friendly at all, and it's still Hip rock and excellent. In my humble opinion, the previous album was far more radio-friendly. Songs like "In View" seemed hooked to be singles, but We Are the Same manages to be amazing without the radio-ready melodies. And finally, this guy clearly wants more "New Orleans is Sinking". He's practically begging for it. NOIS is "their roots" that will finally allow this poor band from the 51st state to live up to it's name. Another NOIS would make them Hip, even thought the original NOIS didn't. My Leafs rant yesterday made me feel a whole lot better, and nothing is more Canadian than following up a hockey rant with a Hip one. I have one thing to say to Nicholas L. Hall and others like him. It's better for us that you don't understand. I think you either get it, or you don't. If you get it, you get it large and you're hooked. If you don't, you don't, and that's just the way it is. I just get it, and there's little in this world that feels as good as being bathed in the poetic ramblings of Gord and being surrounded by those songs I know and love. Here's Your Tragically Hip Primer, if you're interested in more.
Juno Awards: City and Colour with Gord Downie
Published March 31, 2009 @ 11:06 in The Tragically Hip
Because I didn't watch the Junos, I missed City and Colour with Gord Downie performing one of my favourite tracks of 2008. This is "Sleeping Sickness."
Tragically Hip - Love is a First
Published March 19, 2009 @ 19:24 in SLS ~ Smells Like Sour, The Tragically Hip
I wasn't sure I liked "Morning Moon", the first song I heard from the new Tragically Hip album. This tune, however, sounds great. I can't get enough of it. It's a great choice for the first single from We Are The Same. If fellow Hip fans recognize the lyrics, you heard them in Gord's rant in the middle of the song "Fully Completely" on the DVD That Night in Toronto. I was there at the ACC that night, and coincidentally named my review "That Night in Toronto".
Waving the White Flag: Unable to Part with Money
Published March 3, 2009 @ 10:27 in The Tragically Hip
I made sure I was logged in to thehip.com at 9:30 and I started my F5ing at about 9:56 am. That's when I first got this:
That can't be good. A few reloads of Firefox later, and I was welcomed. Unfortunately, it wasn't the welcome I was hoping for.
Eventually, I got this exciting new error message.
After fifteen minutes of this crap, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. An image loaded!
I was determined to see my band for an eleventh time. Now, the header was loading, so I felt optimistic.
Oh great.. a new challenge to overcome...
A half hour in, I had to bail. I have work to do... and a 12 o'clock meeting to prepare for. The real world beckons and I can't afford to play the F5 challenge with thehip.com all morning. I gave it one last shot...
I give up. Unless a fellow Hip fan or a member of the Hip team grants this fan his wish, I won't be updating http://www.torontomike.com/tragicallyhip.html again this May. I know when I'm licked.
Tragically Hip at Massey Hall in May
Published March 2, 2009 @ 13:58 in The Tragically Hip
05/11/09: Toronto: Massey Hall Ticket Pre-sales for the tour start on Tuesday, March 3rd at 10:00am for Registered Users of thehip.com.
We Are The Same's Morning Moon
Published February 12, 2009 @ 08:57 in The Tragically Hip
The full track listing is: Morning Moon Here's that first single, Morning Moon.
Your Tragically Hip Primer
Published December 6, 2008 @ 15:10 in The Tragically Hip
In 1989, I heard "Blow at High Dough" on Q107. The bluesy rock sound so captivated me, my buddy Joe and I headed downtown the next weekend so I could buy The Tragically Hip's Up To Here at Sam the Record Man. He picked up Alice Cooper's Welcome to my Nightmare, but I digress. I came home and played my first Hip album and I was smitten. "New Orleans Is Sinking" and "Boots or Hearts" would also make Q107's Top Ten at 10, but I'm going to share another track from this magnificent slice of Cancon. "38 Years Old" wasn't sung live since 1993 until one magic night at Fort York in 2006. I was there and here's that performance that gave me goosebumps. Again, in a ritual I was loyal to when it involved "my bands", I eagerly anticipated Road Apples and couldn't wait to get my grubby mitts on it in 1991. "Little Bones" exploded on the charts, but there were other gems, including this song which would have been my wedding song had I had a real wedding with music and all. This is "Long Time Running." Then, when you thought things couldn't get any better with this amazing Kingston, Ontario band, they released "Fully Completely." Are you kidding me? This album had amazing rock numbers like "Courage," "Looking for a Place to Happen," "At the Hundredth Meridian" and "Locked in the Trunk of a Car," a Toronto Maple Leafs anthem that introduced me to Bill Barilko in "Fifty Mission Cap" and perhaps the sweetest song I've ever heard, drenched in Canadiana and opening with a call from a loon. Yes, a friggin' loon! Here's "Wheat Kings." Hip fans get it. If you don't, it's probably better for us that you don't understand. If I had to name my favourite band of all-time, my answer would be The Tragically Hip. They offer me an ideal blend of great bluesy rock numbers, tender ballads, amazing live performances while weaving a uniquely Canadian tapestry that evokes both pride and the satisfaction that they belong to us. No, they never made it big in the United States, but that hasn't stopped me from seeing them ten times. I've enjoyed every release since Fully Completely, the album that broke them for the masses. Every release has a wonderful gem or two or three. Here's one of my most recent favourites, "It's a Good Life if you Don't Weaken" from their 2002 CD In Violet Light. If you want to see more official Hip videos, I once compiled them all on one convenient page. Now how to end my Tragically Hip primer... I know! Here's what should have become the new opening for Hockey Night in Canada. This one is "Lonely End of the Rink" from their most recent album, World Container. If you're still interested, check out my Tragically Hip page and my tribute to Bill Barilko. Others in this series:
Start the Fireworks
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Published October 3, 2008 @ 19:15 in The Tragically Hip
Damn, that's sweet. It doesn't get more Canadian than that. When I hear Gord sing this verse, think about the ties that bind this country. I think about our national team successes and the NHL. I think about the sport I love. Games that actually count begin tomorrow. According to my handy dandy Toronto Mike Countdown Clock, there are only 6 days, 0 hours, 36 minutes, and 58 seconds left until the Maple Leafs opener. I can't wait. Another thing I realized while belting out "Fireworks" at the top of my lungs is that I haven't seen the Hip live since February 8, 2007. That's the longest I've gone without a Hip concert in over a decade. We're way overdue for a Toronto show. |
Hockey Night in Canada opened yesterday with a montage set to Gord Downie's new single, "Retrace".
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4 Comments
My favourite band, 
I'm submitting a song for 
Driving home tonight, I heard The Tragically Hip's "Fireworks". I love that song, and it always makes me think about hockey. Here's the opening verse.