It’s been a year since we lost a beauty. Gord Downie lost his battle with cancer on October 17th, 2017. The Tragically Hip are just one of those bands whom, for a lot of us, provided the soundtrack of our lives.
I was lucky enough to see the boys in action several times. One absolute classic show was at Grandma’s in Duluth in the summer of 2000. I was barely old enough to get into the bar in the States. I’m not sure what the capacity was, maybe a few hundred, but I’m sure about 99% of the people there were from Thunder Bay. It was amazing to see them in a smaller venue, with Peaches, Tito, Savvs, Milly and more by my side. Every time I hear “My Music at Work”, I think about that concert. Fast Forward 16 years and Tito, Savvs, Milly and I were in Winnipeg with another life-long friend, Heebo, to watch The Hip during their farewell tour. It was such a surreal feeling to know that this was the last time we’d see him. More so, looking at it from Gord’s perspective, knowing that he was performing for one of the last times, knowing it would be over soon. That night was many things. Memorable … Fun … Sad … Special.
So many good memories for our group of friends were with The Hip. Parties, shows, driving in the car cranking the radio. Losing Gord a year ago, really was like losing part of our crew.
This video is awesome. The Hip’s Rob and Johnny singing along with Choir! Choir! Choir! to commemorate Gord’s passing. Have fun singing along. I’ll be singing with along with you.