hi everyone, just wanted to share this column from the Waterloo Chronicle. enjoy!
Waterloo Chronicle
January 30, 2008
Marshall Arts, Marshall Ward
”I stand transfixed, before this streetlight, watching the snow fall on this cold December night.”
-from the song, Hasn’t Hit Me Yet by Blue Rodeo
Blue Rodeo, one of Canada’s most accomplished and beloved bands, returns to the Centre in the Square this February 9, and I’m reminded it was 14 years ago this week I saw them live in concert for the very first time.
The night was both beautiful and treacherous. Ice-laden tree limbs glittered like diamonds as freezing rain and hail wreaked havoc on the roads to Bingemans in Kitchener. Canadian rock/blues band Big Sugar opened the show with one of the best live performances I have ever seen, and I would go on and see them live more than two dozen times in the coming years.
Due to poor weather conditions on the 401, Blue Rodeo was more than an hour late, but I held my position in the front row. The band eventually made their way through the audience towards the stage as the crowd applauded, with the shy Greg Keelor hidden behind a hood and dark sunglasses.
Moments later, the band kicked off the show with one of my favourites, Heart Like Mine, followed by newer songs like Hasn’t Hit Me Yet, Bad Timing, and Five Days in May. With Keelor’s introspective delivery and Jim Cuddy’s smooth and soulful voice, I was hooked. I would see them in concert several more times on that tour at venues like Stages in Kitchener and Guelph’s Club Denim.
In ’98, I saw Cuddy perform solo at Mrs. Robinson’s in Kitchener, accompanied by his top-notch band that included Joel Anderson (drums) Colin Cripps (guitar), Basil Donovan (Blue Rodeo bassist), and Anne Lindsay who blew the room away with her fiddle. Along with songs from his new album, Cuddy treated the crowd to a handful of Blue Rodeo hits like Till I Am Myself Again, and Trust Yourself, along with a surprising pop-take on Elvis Costello’s, Oliver’s Army.
That same year, I would see Greg Keelor perform at the same venue in support of his new solo venture, Gone. With incense wafting in the air and candles at every table, it was truly a special night as Keelor opened with the beautifully quiet Blue Rodeo song, Dark Angel.
Only one verse in, Keelor stopped the song to address an obnoxious audience member: “Oh would you stop that…Grow up and get yer own f**kin’ gig man.” The crowd roared in approval as the audience respectfully sat back and listened to an evening of music exploring themes of alien worlds and death.
The highlight of the night for me was the yet-to-be recorded Blue Rodeo song, Rage, from the album The Days in Between. Keelor said the song was inspired by his old dead friend Keith Whittaker (The Demics), known for being a hard-living, punk rock wildman.
“Is it fear or courage, that makes a man live so close to the edge, he finds no comfort in the other,” Keelor sang. Later in the show, he was accompanied on stage by local musician Paul MacLeod, along with Canadian songstress Oh Susanna, whose gorgeous, haunting vocals blended nicely with Keelor’s raspy voice.
Not much of a concert-goer in recent years, I would see Blue Rodeo live for the last time in 2000 at the Centre in the Square, delivering an unforgettable show, diverse with their blend of heartbreaking ballads and furious rock intensity.
This tour promises something special once again, as fans in Edmonton saw earlier this month. The show opens with a skit, followed by some, “…stripped down, salt-o’-the-earth arrangements that wouldn’t have been out of place at the Grand Ole Opry – 50 years ago,” according to canoe.ca concert reviewer, Mike Ross.
Looking back on so many great concert memories, it’s good to see Blue Rodeo are still going strong after all these years, as they come to town next week with their dreamy harmonies, keeping us warm on a ‘cold December night.’
Or in this case, a cold February night.
Marshall Ward is a visual artist and independent filmmaker, currently teaching life drawing at the Waterloo Community Arts Centre. Email is welcome at marshall_ward@hotmail.com.