The Tragically Hip
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Tragically Hip | ||
|---|---|---|
 In concert.
|
||
| Background information | ||
| Origin |  Kingston, Ontario, Canada |
|
| Genre(s) | Rock | |
| Years active | 1983 – Present | |
| Label(s) | Universal Music Canada | |
| Members | ||
| Gordon Downie Paul Langlois Rob Baker Gord Sinclair Johnny Fay |
||
The Tragically Hip are a Canadian rock band from Kingston, Ontario, consisting of Gordon Downie (lead vocals and occasional acoustic guitar), Paul Langlois (guitar), Rob Baker (guitar), Gord Sinclair (bass) and Johnny Fay (drums). The band is highly popular and influential in Canada and in 2005 was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
Contents |
[edit] History
The Tragically Hip — often referred to simply as The Hip — formed in 1983. They took their name from a skit in the movie Elephant Parts by Michael Nesmith of The Monkees.
In 1987, the band signed a long-term record deal with MCA after former company president Bruce Dickinson saw them perform live at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, Ontario.[1] Later that year they released the eponymous EP The Tragically Hip, though they were largely unrecognized until 1989s Up to Here, which established them as one of the best and most influential bands in Canada. In 1992, they created the Another Roadside Attraction festival, which tours Canada to promote Canadian bands.
In addition to their energetic live performances, the band are also noted for their often improvisational renditions of songs. Lead singer Gordon Downie often strays from the lyrical path to rant to the audience or wander off into fictitious monologues and conversations. Some of these become lyrics for future songs. The most famous live monologue is the "killerwhaletank" version of "New Orleans is Sinking" [2], recorded at The Roxy Theatre, LA, May 3, 1991. During the song, Downie tells the story of how he worked as a diver in a killer whale tank only to have his arm ripped off. This version was released on CD in 1996 as the B-side to "Grace, Too". Other notable monologues include the "Police Frogman" version of "New Orleans is Sinking" (Gord rescues a family trapped in their car at the bottom of a frozen lake), the "Greek Porter" version of "Highway Girl" (in which Downie has an affair with a female porter on a luxury cruise ship while on an ocean crossing), the "Double Suicide" version of "Highway Girl" [3] (in which Downie "accidentally" shoots his girlfriend) and the "Japanese Exchange Student" version of "At the Hundredth Meridian" (the day before Halloween, Downie accidentally shoots a Japanese student trick or treating).
The band is immensely popular in Canada. They have never found mainstream success in the United States, but neither have they specifically sought it. Their most-seen appearance in the United States was on March 25, 1995, when they appeared on Saturday Night Live with fellow Canadian and friend Dan Aykroyd guest starring, and with John Goodman hosting. In 1999, The Hip were also one of the featured bands at Woodstock '99 held in Rome, New York. When touring in Canada they typically play to sold-out arenas; when touring in the United States they play smaller venues and clubs, or festivals where they aren't the headliner. Performances abroad are usually attended by Canadian expatriates. The band permit recordings of their performances, so an active trading community thrives. The tone and content of much of their music is a paean to the Canadian experience and touches on such themes as small-town life, geography, and hockey. The historical, geographical and individual references in many of the lyrics are a source of much internet discussion.
Despite the fact that The Tragically Hip are largely unknown in the United States, their live album, Live Between Us, was recorded at Cobo Arena in Detroit, Michigan in 1996 in support of the album Trouble at the Henhouse. The Hip have a small, but fervent, American following, mostly along the border towns in Michigan and western New York. Standout tracks from the album include a powerful version of "New Orleans is Sinking" and a heavily improvised "Grace, Too," in which Downie alternates between muttering asides ("I was born in a little town / I was on my way down") and spitting four-letter lyrics with something close to disgust. In 1998, the band released their seventh full-length album, Phantom Power, which contains such fan-favorite songs as "Poets", "Bobcaygeon", and "Fireworks".
In 1996, they contributed the song "Butts Wigglin" to the soundtrack to the movie Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy. The song originally appeared on the Trouble at the Henhouse album.
On October 10, 2002, The Tragically Hip performed two songs, "It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken", and "Poets", as part of a command performance for Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
In 2003, The Tragically Hip performed a cover of "Black Day in July", a song about the 1967 12th Street Riot in Detroit, on Beautiful: A Tribute to Gordon Lightfoot.
In 2004 The Tragically Hip released their tenth full-length album, In Between Evolution. Many fans considered the record a return to their classic sound after the more experimental tone of their last two records, Music @ Work (released in 2000) and In Violet Light (2002).
On Sunday, September 12, 2004, the Hip headlined "Across the Causeway" on the grounds of Royal Military College in Kingston, which had more than 18,000 attendees. Joined by Matthew Good, the Hugh Dillon Redemption Choir, The Trews, The Sadies, James McKenty & The Spades, Chris Koster and hosted by Dan Aykroyd, it marked the first time the band played their hometown in close to 9 years. The event raised $355,555 for local charities The Community Foundation of Greater Kingston, Camp Trillium, and the Joe Chithalen Memorial Musical Instrument Lending Library (Joe's MILL).
They have a star on the Canadian Walk of Fame and on April 3, 2005 were inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the 2005 Juno Awards and performed "Fully Completely" and "Grace, Too". The Hip also performed a three-song set at the Live 8 concert in Barrie, Ontario with Dan Aykroyd joining them as a guest harmonica player.
Three full length live shows recorded in 2004 were also released as downloads for purchase at LiveDownloads.com[4] as part of The Hip Live Series. Recorded at Molson Amphitheatre, Toronto, John Labatt Centre, London and the Civic Center, Ottawa.
In October 2005, several radio stations temporarily stopped playing The Hip's classic song "New Orleans is Sinking", out of sensitivity to the victims of Hurricane Katrina, which had devastated the city in early September of that year.
On November 1, 2005, the Hip released a double CD, double DVD box set, Hipeponymous, including all of their music videos to date, a backstage documentary called
"Macroscopic", an animated Hip-scored short film entitled "The Right Whale", two brand new songs ("No Threat", "The New Maybe"), a full length concert from November 2004, entitled That Night In Toronto (which takes its title from a line in the song "Bobcaygeon"), and a 2-CD greatest hits collection Yer Favourites (selected online by 150,000 fans). On November 8, 2005, Yer Favourites and That Night In Toronto were released individually.
2006 saw The Hip complete a summer tour in addition to recording a new studio album produced by Bob Rock. The album, titled World Container, was released in Canada on October 17, 2006 and in the US on March 6, 2007. The album's third track, "In View", was released as both a radio single and as a music video, and reached the #1 spot on the Canadian rock music charts. The mutual love between The Hip, hockey and Canada was further demonstrated when the track "The Lonely End of the Rink" (the second Canadian single) was featured prominently on Hockey Night in Canada the week of the album's release. In support of the album, the band played concert dates in major Canadian cities, then as an opening act for The Who on several US dates. They are currently on a US club tour [5].
The Third Canadian single and video is "Yer Not The Ocean"
[edit] Members
Current
- Rob Baker - lead guitar
- Gordon Downie - lead vocals, acoustic guitar
- Johnny Fay - drums
- Paul Langlois - rhythm guitar, background vocals (1986-present)
- Gord Sinclair - bass, background vocals
Former
- Davis Manning - saxophone (1983-1986)
[edit] Solo projects
Singer Gordon Downie has released two solo albums, Coke Machine Glow in 2001 and Battle of the Nudes in 2003, while Rob Baker released an album with his own side project, Stripper's Union in 2005.
[edit] Honours & Awards
[edit] Canada's Walk of Fame
- 2002
- Inducted in Toronto, Ontario
[edit] Canadian Music Hall of Fame
- 2005
- Inducted at the Juno Awards in Winnipeg, Manitoba
[edit] Royal Conservatory of Music
- 2006
- Presented with an Honorary Fellowship May 24 at the Windsor Arms Hotel in Toronto, Ontario.
[edit] Juno Awards
- 1990
- Most Promising Group of the Year
- 1991
- Canadian Entertainer of the Year
- 1993
- Canadian Entertainer of the Year
- 1995
- Entertainer of the Year
- Group of the Year
- 1997
- Group of the Year
- Album of the Year - Trouble at the Henhouse
- North Star Rock Album of the Year - Trouble at the Henhouse
- 1999
- Best Rock Album - Phantom Power
- Best Album Design - Phantom Power
- 2000
- Best Single - Bobcaygeon
- 2001
- Best Rock Album - Music@Work
- 2006
- CD/DVD Artwork Design of the Year - Hipeponymous
- Music DVD of the Year - Hipeponymous
[edit] Discography
[edit] EPs
- The Tragically Hip EP(1987)
[edit] Studio albums
- Up to Here (1989)
- Road Apples (1991)
- Fully Completely (1992)
- Day for Night (1994)
- Trouble at the Henhouse (1996)
- Phantom Power (1998)
- Music at Work (2000)
- In Violet Light (2002)
- In Between Evolution (2004)
- World Container (2006)
[edit] Compilations
- Live Between Us (1997)
- Yer Favourites (2005)
[edit] Video releases
- Heksenketel (1993)
- That Night in Toronto (2005)
[edit] Box Sets
- Hipeponymous, includes Yer Favourites and That Night in Toronto (2005)
[edit] Singles
|
|
[edit] The Tragically Hip in popular culture
The band had a cameo in the television show Corner Gas, where Brent kicks them out of his garage so that his group "Thunderface" can practice.
The band has a cameo in the movie Men with Brooms, where they play the curling team representing Kingston.
In the Trailer Park Boys episode, "Closer To The Heart", they kidnap Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson, where he asks "Who are you?" to Ricky, to which he replies "Gord Downie".
In Trailer Park Boys: The Movie, the boys go to a theater and all the movies in the theater are named after Rush and Tragically Hip songs. Gord Downie and Alex Lifeson also have cameos as police officers who pull over main characters Ricky (Robb Wells) and Julian (John Paul Tremblay).
[edit] Trivia
- The band did a music video for "The Darkest One" which featured the Trailer Park Boys stealing an engine for their car and Don Cherry delivering fried chicken.
- Drummer Johnny Fay once famously quipped to Billboard that being the biggest band in Canada was "like being the world's tallest midgets."
- The band's music is featured in podcasts released by Jason O'Grady
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Official website
- Hipbase Radio: All Live Tragically Hip Radio Station
- Davis Manning & The Hip
- A Museum After Dark: lyrics and references
- Hipbase: fan forum and database
- Hipfans.com: fan site
- The Hip Tracker: live recording bittorrent tracker
- Hipboots: a trading site for live recordings
- World Container Album Launch
[edit] References
| The Tragically Hip |
|---|
| Gordon Downie | Paul Langlois | Rob Baker | Gord Sinclair | Johnny Fay |
| Discography |
| Albums, EPs and compilations: The Tragically Hip EP | Up to Here | Road Apples | Fully Completely | Day for Night | Trouble at the Henhouse | Live Between Us | Phantom Power | Music at Work | In Violet Light | In Between Evolution | Hipeponymous | Yer Favourites | World Container |
| DVDs: Heksenketel | That Night in Toronto |
| Preceded by Bryan Adams |
Grey Cup Halftime Show 2004 |
Succeeded by The Black Eyed Peas |
