Epic Tragically Hip songs to remember Gord Downie by (-- removed HTML --)
Gord Downie, the lead singer of The Tragically Hip, died on October 17, 2017. Downie was the front man for the band from 1984 until his death. In May 2016, The Tragically Hip announced that Downie had been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor. However, despite his cancer diagnosis, Downie toured with the band to promote their 14th album, Man Machine Poem. The tour became known as the farewell tour, with the last show in Kingston, Ontario, the hometown of Downie. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) aired the concert live on TV, radio, and the internet. It’s estimated that almost 12 million people tuned in to watch it. Here are some of The Tragically Hip’s epic songs to remember Gord Downie by:
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The song is about Bill Barilko, a Toronto Maple Leaf who scored the goal that won the Leafs the Stanley Cup. He went on a fishing trip in 1950 and disappeared. The Leafs didn’t win another Stanley Cup until 1962, which was the year his body was discovered. After Downie died, the Toronto Maple Leafs had a minute of silence at their game and lowered from the rafters Barilko’s retired jersey as a tribute.
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Fiddler’s Green
The song “Fiddler’s Green” was on the album Road Apples, which came out in 1991. The song was for Downie’s nephew who died of a heart problem when he was young. Fiddler’s Green is a legendary afterlife. It’s a place of never ending mirth where the fiddle never stops playing and the dancers never tire. The song was never played at a show until 2006 because of its emotional impact. (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --)
These three songs (though there are so many others) will help you remember Gord Downie, the man who deserves to be in Fiddler’s
his death in 1990, making him the third Keyboardist to die while in the Grateful Dead. He was quickly replaced by Bruce Hornsbey. Robert Hunter and John Perry Barlow were in charge of lryics for the most part. Owen Stanely was for years their beloved manager.
Gordon Downie, a Canadian famous singer, songwriter, and activist says, “Music brings people together. So, my function in anything I do is to help bring people closer in” (Maclean’s, 2017). He wrote many songs that the way he loves Canada, and encourage people especially Canadians to unite. Goodnight Attawapiskat is one of his many famous songs that is about Indigenous people who live around Attawapiskat in the northern part of Ontario.
Both these musicians also lost their lives at a very young age. Ritchie Valens was only seventeen years old when he passed away only leaving behind a few recordings. Ritchie Valens was on tour with Buddy Holly and J.P. “The Big Popper” Richardson when their planed crash. The plane took off during a light snowstorm and only traveled about five miles before crashing. Unfortunately, everyone that was on the plane had passed away. Many were shocked by the loss of three talents and that tragedy was memorialized in the Don McLean song “American Pie” as “The day the music died.” 2 Jimi Hendrix also passed away at the age of 27, living 10 years longer than Valens. He passed away on September 18, 1970 in London from drug related complications. Even though his rock star career was somewhat short lived, he left his unforgettable mark on the world of rock. He will always be known for his amazing guitar skills and his impact in music. Even though both these artists had a short career its clear to see that both these artists helped open doors for other minorities and left an impact in the music
This song talks a lot about the baggage of the past that people hold onto instead of letting it go. All that baggage is only going to end up hurting you more and more instead of helping you in any way possible. An example is the opening
During the course of his career, Cocker was a part of several bands: The Cavaliers, Vance Arnold and the Avengers, the Grease Band, and Mad Dogs and Englishmen. During his time with the Cavaliers he was a drummer, and his Vance Arnold stage name was a “combination of Vince Everett, Elvis Presley’s character in Jailhouse Rock (which Cocker misheard as Vance); and country singer Eddy Arnold” (Bean 16). During his United states tour, Cocker and the Grease Band were booked for Woodstock Festival in New York in 1969. His rendition of Beatles’ song, “With a Little Help from My Friends, helped propel Cocker to fame and popularity. The popularity in his cover of the song has not waned over time, in fact in 2010, a Youtube search for “Joe cocker’s ‘A Little Help From My Friends’ show[ed] up with 3,229,953 views” and his cover can be seen in a documentary made about Woodstock (Valkanova, 11). Joe Cocker’s rendition of the song impressed even the Beatles themselves, which lead to Cocker obtaining their permission for him to cover two more of their songs on his subsequent album, Joe Cocker!. His debut album is named “With a Little Help from My Friends” and the title track is a cover of the Beatles Song. His version eventually became the theme song to 80’s and 90’s television series, The Wonder
Although folk music played a big role in most of these artists’ performances, folk links back to the blues, and is similar...
fiddle while the upper right hand portion played the counter melodies, taking the place of a
For more than a quarter century, Rick Bishop was part of the legendary Sun City Girls, alongside his brother Alan and drummer Charles Gocher. Their kitchen sink mix of psychedelic, surf, jazz, doggerel and styles seemingly borrowed from every corner of the globe could be heard on over 100 recordings and countless live shows. Following Gocher’s death from cancer in 2007, the Bishops disbanded the group, but neither has ceased their robust creative musical explorations and output.
The song “When It’s Sleepy Time Down South”, may possibly portray Holiday’s sadness and experience during the Great Depression. The line “Homesick, tired, all alone in a big city” can be ...
The man feels abandoned in a corner and he drinks for the sadness he feels. While drinking, he tells himself I do not understand why you left me, if I know she loved me, so if you ever regret your decision he will be waiting for you. Basically, the man feels broken emotionally because the women he loved, left him for no reason. This song to me is not a dancing song, however the song is more about remembering your ex-wife, ex-girlfriend or ex husband and ex-boyfriend. For me personally, this song reminds me of drinking, the title literally means bitter shots of liquor. The way the song shares the hurt the man feels by the women that left him. I could almost picture a man sitting at a bar drinking to his ex saying, “I’m drinking because of you, you caused this”. I could picture that scene in my head because I have seen my friends in Mexico and my cousins in Mexico do
Tom Petty’s song tells a story about a rockstar named Eddie, rise and demise from fame. When Eddie, an eighteen years old man, just graduated high school, he moved to Hollywood. He gotten a tattoo when he got there. Then he meet a girl who also had a tattoo. Eventually they moved into an apartment together. Eddie got a job as a bouncer
"But February made me shiver, with every paper I'd deliver, bad news on the doorstep. I couldnt take one more step, I can't remember if I cried when i read about his widowed bride. But something touched me deep inside, the day the music died." This line is the day back in February 3, 1959 when Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper died in a plane crash. As a child, McLean was a paper boy and the news papers that were being passed that day was spreading "bad" news to everyones' doorstep and Buddy Holly's wife was pregnent when he died and later she had a miscarage. That date, was also refered to the "day music died."
From the first stanza of this song, you get put into a scene. You know almost immediately that it is about someone, and it is the middle of December, but without stating the obvious, it paints a more illustrated picture for you. The first line states, “A winters day, in a deep and dark December” and I could almost immediately feel a cool breeze around me. When I normally think of a winter’s day, I think of people playing in the snow, and having a good time. This may be because I grew up in Southern California where there has been a lack of snow, but in my head, that is what I imagine. Having them state, in a deep and dark December, turns my attitudes to the more pessimistic way of looking at things. The image of children playing in the snow in my head has now turned to cold and dark emptiness. Reinstating my idea of emptiness, the next line follows with the simply statement, “I am alone”. Personally, I hate being alone. So to have the opening words place us in a deep and dark setting, and then state that you are alone, automatically puts me in a negative mindset.
In the opening verse of the song, the speaker discusses the need to see her childhood home at least once more before moving on with her life. She shares with the current homeowner some of her experiences while growing up in the house. For instance, she says, “I know they say you can’t go home again, but I just had to come back one last time.” This shows that the speaker realizes that returning “home” is going to be a different experience than it was when she lived there, but she cannot resist the temptation of a final visit to the “house”. The speaker says that “Up those stairs in that little back bedroom, is where I did my homework and learned to play guitar. And I bet you didn’t know, under that live oak, my favorite dog is buried in the yard.” This indicates some of the significant memories the speaker has of her time in the house, such as honing her...
In 1991, the world lost a megastar. Freddie Mercury, lead singer and frontman of Queen, became one of the highest profile figures to die in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) pandemic that began in the 1980s. As the face of the group that created such hits as “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Will Rock You,” and “Killer Queen,” Mercury was often in the spotlight. His unique musical style and performances made him and his persona a worldwide, cultural phenomenon. In the mid 1980s, Mercury was caught in the middle of the AIDS epidemic, both as someone infected and as the target for substantial media attention.