Narrative, include a look at cover bands in Chapter 3, the importance of These extrapolations, which, in sum, eventually weigh down the flow of the Returning to pick it up, using the band’s discography as a guide. They had no agenda to find fameĪnd fortune, seeking only to have a good time, smoke pot and play music.īarclay tells this part of the story within the first couple of chapters,īut then he detours on topics related to The Hip and their cultural impact, Played a mix of R&B, rock and pop covers. Growing up in Kingston, they became a band in high school and The part of The Tragically Hip’s story I found most engaging was how theyĬame together as young men looking to express themselves through music. Own, but don’t enhance or enrich my appreciation for the band. The band’s 32-year career.” Those extrapolations are interesting on their That’sįine, but it creates a distracted and maddening read not only in Chapter 1,īut also in the succeeding chapters that “extrapolate on various themes in Music, Barclay maintains a journalist’s distance from his subject. To exploit Downie’s notion as a way of understanding The Hip and their Leaves it dangling on the page without any further explanation. Work.” It’s a bold statement, borrowed from Gustave Flaubert, but Barclay Regular and ordinary in the hope that we may be violent and original in our Gord Downie’s definition of the band: “We’re basically fairly dull and After surveying his experts, he finally settles on Occasionally leaves the talking to someone else while being careful about Using extensive interviews in the 400-plus pages, Barclay In a way, this reduces whatīeing Canadian is to a stereotype and the members of the Hip are polite to Point of doing the dishes at house parties. Lifestyle as well the group relishes its privacy and is friendly to the “Canadianness” is based not only on their subject matter, but on their By creating a split focus, right down non-sequentialĬhapters, he lessens the impact of the book overall.īarclay’s opening salvo is a successful dissertation on “what makes a band,Īnd especially The Hip, ‘Canadian’.” This particular notion of a so-calledĬanadian sound continues to be fodder for Canadian critics who need toĭiscuss such things and Barclay is no exception. in whatever order you like.” I’m sure theĪuthor had good intentions in setting up his history in this fashion, but the other half extrapolates on various themes He states from the top that “half of this book is aĬhronological history. The tale and invites his reader to think about his book with a smaller Gord Downie, the band’s popular front man and lyricist, whose final yearsīattling cancer made front-page news. Michael Barclay’s biography of The Tragically Hip, published by ECW, is aĬomprehensive tome about one of Canada’s favourite rock groups and Gord Downie performing with The Tragically Hip in Vancouver in 2016.
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