Monday, August 29, 2016

Tragic, Hip

I'd heard of The Tragically Hip, but didn't know much about the band until last week other than the fact that they had an amusing name. That changed last Saturday.

I was dicking around on Twitter while enjoying a couple of beers, as I'm wont to do, when my timeline filled up with #thehip. Apparently I follow a lot of Canadians. The tweets were unusual in their emotional rawness and cultural connection.

Intrigued, I started clicking around on the Ghooghles to see what the fuss was about. And, man, it's a hell of a story.

The Hip are a uniquely Canadian thing, perhaps our Northern neighbor's most beloved musical act. (Bryan Adams and Anne Murray notwithstanding). Nine of their 14 albums have topped the Canadian charts. Their songs tell the stories of Canada's cultural heritage - from small prairie towns to hockey to the indigenous First Nation people. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said recently that The Hip has "been writing the Canada's soundtrack for more than 30 years."

Unlike acts with similarly fervent local followings like Midnight Oil, The Hip never broke out beyond the borders of their homeland. But based on the past few months, maybe being a nation's band is more than enough.

In May, The Hip's frontman, Gord Downie, announced that he had untreatable and terminal glioblastoma - an aggressive brain cancer. Despite ongoing chemotherapy, Downie and the band decided to tour one more time.

Their final show was last Saturday in their hometown of Kingston. The Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) showed the concert in its entirety, a marker of the country's connection to the band. After seeing the outpouring of feels and joy on Twitter, I tuned in for the final 30 minutes or so. I knew fuck all about the band, but even I was moved by the moment, Downie's connection with the crowd, with his bandmates, and with his circumstance. At times, he seemed alternately inspired and deeply sad. As an example, go to the 1:50 mark of the video below, the band's performance of Grace, Too. If seeing that and knowing the reality behind it doesn't move you, then you're made of stone.



Here's the entire show, if you've got a couple of hours to burn. The Hip closed out its touring career with Ahead by a Century, their most popular single. You can see it starting at about 2:32 in the video below.



Downie's an incredible showman, renowned for his connection with audiences. His emotion, his passion, his mortality, and The Hip's unique relationship with their homeland made this show unforgettable. I'm glad I stumbled on it, and I wish I'd stumbled on the band long ago.

25 comments:

rootsminer said...

Gordon Lightfoot is pissed that he didn't get a mention in this post.

Marls said...

Anthony Weiner really is the gift that keeps on giving for the NY Post. When HRC gets elected POTUS with Huma by her side, Can we get Bill and Anthony riding around the country in a late model car texting and tweeting dong shots to the lovely ladies of America. It would make fantastic TV or a great "so bad it's good" buddy comedy. They could pick up Brett Farve on the road.

Clarence said...

I prefer the term "dick pics" to "dong shots." Sounds like a bar order I want no part of.

Clarence said...

Also, Greasetruck wrote a song just like that called "George Bush and Slick Will" about 10 years ago. Dave will post the video soon.

Marls said...

Dick pics sounds like the treatment for scabies.

What do we call the Clinton/Weiner opus?

Slick Willie and the Ween
BJ's from a Bear
Bill & Anthony's Excellent Adventure

Clarence said...

A Willie and a Weiner

Danimal said...

Will (and Weiner) Hunting?

Marls said...

Three Men and a Little Weiner

Shlara said...

Huma is FINALLY leaving him. Yay.
And, I try not to be too much of a cheerleader, but this piece is too good--read Fox's post on Kaepernic on The Undefeated

Danimal said...

just ran into David Garrard during my lunch run.

prediction: positive eventually comes of kap's action and will begin with a national groundswell of support in form of fellow players and thousands of fans also taking a seat during Anthem. I see it as a possibility rather than a probability, let's say 1 in 5.

Clarence said...

There's this: https://theintercept.com/2016/08/28/colin-kaepernick-is-righter-than-you-know-the-national-anthem-is-a-celebration-of-slavery/

Danimal said...

Okay, 2 in 5 then?

Having a difficult time being productive today despite much to do. Maybe I'll begin a post.

Dave said...

i too just learned about the tragedy of tragically hip, but i tried to listen to their most popular song on google play music (something about wheat?) and it was incredibly lame. they sound a little better live, and i'm sorry that dude has brain cancer, but i prefer gordon lightfoot. on the other hand, i'm just getting into lemon jelly.

Dave said...

and i guess i need to update george bush.

hillary clinton and donald trump zipping around amsterdam on scooters, high as kites, searching for a good rijstaffel place? or perhaps ice skating together on the canals (high as kites) discussing marijuana legalization and eating kebabs?

T.J. said...

oh man, Gene Wilder...RIP.

Stir Crazy is a wildly underrated comedy classic.

Dave said...

that intercept article about the national anthem is really interesting. what's the term for a group of people in a country that could be swayed to defect if there was a war? i can't think of it.

Dave said...

fifth column! whew, that took all my brain cells

Danimal said...

just getting caught up on the wiener thing. that guy is something else. I don't know what's more unbelievable, the fact that he still cannot resist sexting after all he has gone through, or that it was 2011 when he first got snagged. seems like yesterday.

Danimal said...

And Gene Wilder...We are the music makers. We are the dreamers of dreams.

Clarence said...

You'd be hard-pressed to name 10 Gene Wilder movies (not good for Movie Game I), but his work in Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein (of course Willy Wonka as well) still elevates him above the fray.

And Dave, my favorite Lemon Jelly song is '79 AKA The Shouty Track.

TR said...

Stir Crazy was a classic. Woman in Red and See No Evil, Speak No Evil...not so much.

I think Wilder would've been more appreciated if he died young. Maybe you could say that about a lot of folks, but his low-key later years masked a great 70's/80's run.

Wilder was on Maron's podcast a couple years ago. His reflections on working w/ Pryor were very interesting.

Mark said...

Young Frankenstein is my Mom's all time favorite comedy. She sat me down and made me watch both that and Blazing Saddles as a kid. That's quality parenting.

Marls said...

Joan Wlider? THE Joan Wilder?

Whitney said...

ORF Rock resumes tonight. wodustudios.com, 7-8pm

college rock extravaganza

TR said...

Nice one, (romancing the) Marls