I have seen the Tragically Hip in concert many times. The first time that I saw the Tragically Hip live was in a club in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1991, right after the Hip cd Road Apples was released (link). It was a small, intimate, show and we stood at the very front, right in front of the stage. You have to have somewhere to set your beer, right.
The Hip usually rolls through the South-East United States in support of every cd that they release, and I have been there. There was a bar/small-concert-hall in 5-Points, Columbia SC called Rockafellas. Art Burke was an owner of Rockafellas. We bugged Art until he got the Tragically Hip to play Rockafellas twice. Both times, I was at the very front, standing right in front of the stage. You could go pee, grab a few beers, and still push your way back to the front. One time the Hip even played in Augusta, GA at a bar. Talk about intimate.
Intimate Hip Show Moment - When I was In Law School, The Hip played in Augusta Ga in support of Fully Completely cd. A few of us went and we stood right in front of the stage. When people playing pool can easily see the band, that is intimate. My friend Beattie was standing right in front of the stage, singing very loudly.
The hip played a slow song, I can't remember what song. Beattie was singing super loudly. Not only that, but Beattie was anticipating the words to the song and screaming them just before Gordon Downie, the Hip's singer. Gord was frustrated and yelled "Shut-up" at Beattie. Beattie shut-up and Gord reached down and offered Beattie a sip of his water in consolation.I treasure the memory of those intimate shows, because they don't exist any more.
I have never been back to Europe.
Rockafellas is now "Jake's". Jake's doesn't have bands and If I walked in there, the college kids would wonder who the old guy was.
The Hip have gotten older and they don't waste time playing in small grubby venues in the United States.
The Hip now know that Augusta, GA is grubby.
The Hip only play larger places near me, like House of Blues in Myrtle Beach and Variety Playhouse in Atlanta. I still go see the Hip, but it just isn't the same.
5 comments:
was the augusta show at the post office?? i think i was there that night but my memory is what not to be what was used to be it not was. i'm sorry, did i say something??
Jeff, I'm looking for some Gamecock football parking tickets--can you help?? Gimme a call if so. Billy
Billy, You were there at the Post Office if I remember correctly.
Do you need parking tickets for every game?
Jeff, I'm sure I was there.
As for the parking tickets yes I'm looking for all home games and maybe more than one space. Call me when you have time. Billy
Jeff, you're conflating two different memories. I anticipated and sang in advance the lyrics to "Longtime Running," a slow song, in Frankfurt. The entire band appeared more confused than anything else, I suspect because they did not expect, at that stage of the band's career, any one in a German audience to know the lyrics or speak English. The "Shut up!" repsonse was to my singing along with Gord the bridge part of "Courage" a softer part of an otherwise fast, loud song. On the way home we pulled over so I could puke.
Billy was there, but left early because he had to work. Tony also.
And yes, that was in Augusta, I should have added.
Oh, and you should probably have included that we flew from Greece to Frankfurt just for the show, spending an entire day trying to find the venue, only to miss all but three songs while drinking beer in a bar next door. The show started hours earlier than we were told because two opening bands did not play. The only reason we did not miss the entire show is I recognized "Fight" through the wall of the bathroom in the bar.
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