Damn. At least I can say, unlike David Bowie, that I did get to see these guys live. Many times.
Have a small collection of the old concert shirts. I know I got rid of quite a few, wish I hadn't. Though I imagine they may have mysteriously shrunk in my closet after all this time.
I think I wore the one with a gargoyle on it at least once a week for a couple years. Have the hockey jerseys too.
Was at the Silver dollar action centre concerts. If memory serves they had 2 or 3 shows in a row. I went to two of them. Awesome experience. Probably my favourite concert memory.
Like undercoverbrother it started with Smalltown Bringdown for me. Still love that song. Then I listened to all of Up To Here 17,000 times in a row. May be exaggeration.
Little Bones, 3 Pistols, 100th Meridian, Nautical Disaster, Scared, Grace Too, Ahead By a Century, Poets, Bobcaygeon, etc.
Last time I saw them was with Matt Good at that Fort Calgary thing. I will certainly do all I can to see them this last time with Gord.
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We don't go to hell, just our memories do,
And if you go to hell, I'll still remember you,
But I thought you beat the death of inevitability to death just a little bit,
I thought you beat the inevitability of death to death just a little bit.
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If we can't fall in love with replaceable bottom 6 players then the terrorists have won.
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I had my hands in the river, my feet back up on the banks, looked up to the Lord above, and said 'hey man, thanks!'
I was so saddened by today's news. The Hip are my favourite band, and a large reason for that is Gord Downie's poetic lyrics and energetic live performances.
Cancer sucks.
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The hip were a massive part of my youth and I saw them several times in concert. The lyrics were so much smarter than anything on the radio and that made me feel pretty proud that they were Canadian. They represented us so well.
I still remember hearing this for the first time in my friend's car. I fell in love with his rant and we both quote it still to this day. It's this kind of live performance by Gord that make them so worth to see live.
An honorable mention to this other stream of consciousness...
Last edited by burnin_vernon; 05-24-2016 at 05:26 PM.
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Always loved the Hip. Seen them so many times, from bars in Ottawa, to music festivals, to a box at Rexall Place and everything in between that I'm not even sure how many times it's been. They are the soundtrack to a lot of my greatest memories.
Gord was always so energetic (and therefore sweaty). Funny story from a Spirit of the West concert, whos lead singer is also not in a good way. He was doing an outdoor summer show and was sweating profusely. In between songs he quipped to the crowd that he "felt like Gord Downie, the sweatiest man in show business". The crowd grew silent and he carried on thinking nothing of it. Apparently, the muffled message sounded to the crowd like: " I feel like going down on the sweatiest man in show business"!
I won't miss this last concert for sure and I wish Gord the best. Can always hope for a miracle.
Jesus Christ. This one stings. When I think of my teenage years the first height comes to mind are The Hip. Up to Here, Road Apples and Fully Completely were both my first tapes and my first CDs. Man did I love the invention of the Discman because it meant I could listen to At the Hundredth Meridian on repeat hundreds of times in a row so I could memorize their best lyric, which today feels too surreal:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fuzz
If I die of vanity, promise me, promise me
If they bury me some place I don't want to be
You'll dig me up and transport me, unceremoniously
Away from the swollen city breeze, garbage bag trees
Whispers of disease and the acts of enormity
And lower me slowly and sadly and properly
Get Ry Cooder to sing my eulogy
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I saw the Hip a few times, and they were always great, especially because of Gord's showmanship. This is truly awful news.
Quote:
Originally Posted by schteve_d
Funny story from a Spirit of the West concert, whos lead singer is also not in a good way.
He has early onset Alzheimer's. I'd say that's arguably even worse than cancer, and he's fought that too. John Mann isn't as famous as Gord, but I'd put Spirit Of The West up there with the Hip as far as important Canadian bands go. I wish them both the best.
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Too many fantastic lyrics, feelings, nostalgia and imagery to post a single favorite. Feeling stunned today. Arguably the finest poet and lyricist of his generation, and someone that we all grew up with, partied with, got introspective with, discussed, evolved, and thought, and got older, and wiser, with. He is us, and we are him. Canadian through and through. And the magic of the band to bring it all together. Feeling pretty lucky that I have seen the hip 4 times, and each was a fantastic show.
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I’m always amazed these sportscasters and announcers can call the game with McDavid’s **** in their mouths all the time.
Last edited by ricosuave; 05-26-2016 at 06:59 PM.
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This is terrible. Cancer again proves to be indiscriminate and prepares to pull down an artistic great. While The Hip haven't been my favourite band for a while I still enjoyed them. I listened to Day for Night while driving around today. I think I'll get tickets for the tour.
I wonder if there are any Canadian acts with as much unanimous respect from almost everybody as The Hip. I can't think of a comparable Canadian musician or band in that sense.
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But living an honest life - for that you need the truth. That's the other thing I learned that day, that the truth, however shocking or uncomfortable, leads to liberation and dignity. -Ricky Gervais
Without question, one of the most influential music acts of my life. I grew up listening to them with my dad, and after he moved away I listened to them more. Every album that came out, I bought and listened to on repeat.
I, too, was at that Fort Calgary show in 2008, and was transfixed by Gord Downie on stage. An amazing performance, and changed the way I saw live music.
Saw them again in September 2009 at the Jubilee and, again, that performance had a significant impact on me.
There is no way I will miss them if they do indeed tour this summer. I will go to the ends of the earth to see them one last time.
Not sure, if anyone has watched the movie One Week, in which Gord Downie makes a surprise cameo in the Banff area if I recall. It's ironic. Good movie and appropriate I guess.
Out of the blue, Ben learns he has stage IV cancer; survival, with treatment, is 10 percent. So this risk-averse, slow-to-act, quiet man buys a used motorcycle, says goodbye to Samantha, his baffled fiancée, and heads west from Toronto. He imagines it's a quest for Grumps, a mythical figure from his childhood; he takes digital photos of various "world's largest" roadside attractions; he chats with strangers, including two women; his bike slips on a dead skunk on the highway.
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Devastating. I tried listening to some Hip tonight driving around and couldn't take it.
Been listening to them all night. Definitely had that lump in the throat feeling a couple times.
I can't even imagine how emotional the shows on the upcoming tour would be.
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A few weeks after crashing head-first into the boards (denting his helmet and being unable to move for a little while) following a hit from behind by Bob Errey, the Calgary Flames player explains:
"I was like Christ, lying on my back, with my arms outstretched, crucified"
-- Frank Musil - Early January 1994
This certainly stings me harder than any other news from the World of entertainment. Like any other Gen X Canadian the Tragically Hip was a huge part of my late teens and early 20's.
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