Olympic Music

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It's always a big deal to Canadians whenever we are front and center on the World Stage, how we come off looking. I think the reason for this is a combination of Pride along with a small Inferiority Complex. We spend a lot of our time in the shadow of the elephant and when we do emerge, we don't want to fuck it up. The US does Big Time better than anyone. Big occasion, big venue, big entertainment, and big production. It's quite amazing actually.

I enjoyed reading the article below. See my comments after the article and feel free to leave your own.

Pique'n'yer Interest
Show of force

By Andrew Mitchell

Back in "the day" governments really knew how to put on a show of force. Tanks and missile launchers plodding across Red Square while soldiers marched behind in lockstep, a president striding around the deck of an aircraft carrier in a flight suit beneath a "Mission Accomplished" banner, his bulge prominently displayed beneath his parachute straps. Sadly, only China and North Korea have kept this proud tradition alive.

Canada has never been one for the show of force (although we have sent the odd jet squadron over a Grey Cup), which is probably because our strength has never been in arms. However, our lack of military might has never stopped us from rocking the free world to its foundations. From a cultural perspective we are a bona fide nuclear power - so why not use the Olympics to flaunt it?

When the Olympics come to Vancouver and Whistler the medal ceremonies will be followed by musical guests. While I like the lineup for the most part (and there are a few spots still being confirmed) something is definitely missing. I'm wondering where the show of power is, the musical acts and entertainers to bring the world to its knees?

I know money is an issue for organizers, but this is a chance to show the world what we're all about, while bringing Canadians closer together in a show of national pride. No expense should have been spared. It's like throwing the world's most lavish birthday party then skimping on a cake.

Where, for example, is Rush? I know that not everyone is a fan, but their 30th anniversary concert tour in support of Snakes and Arrows was one of the best selling concert tours of 2007-08 and they remain one of the biggest stadium bands of all time.

And where is the Tragically Hip? We always lament the fact that this stellar band and incredible live act has never found success outside of Canada and then we deny them an opportunity to reach the widest audience ever.

If we really want to show off, where is the Leonard Cohen show? Where is Celine Dion, for that matter (not one of my own personal favourites, but still one of the best-selling artists of all time)? Where is Sarah McLachlin? Shania Twain? Alanis Morissette?

They got Burton Cummings to play Vancouver but where are Randy Bachman and the rest of the Guess Who? How about Neil Young, who spent his formative years in Winnipeg and Toronto? And why not Bryan Adams, who actually wrote the song that accompanied our bid video for Pete's sake! Billboard magazine picked Nickelback as the band of the decade (again, not my personal favourite) but you wouldn't know it by the Olympic lineup.

Looking forward, where are the Stills, Broken Social Scene, Black Mountain, Sloan, Dragonette, The New Pornographers, Sam Roberts Band, Arcade Fire, Alexis On Fire, Tokyo Police Club, Metric or any of the dozens of new music bands that put Canada on the musical map once again?

And where, for the Love of Mike, is Stompin' Tom Connors?

That's just for starters because music should only be one component of our show of force. Why not use the Games to showcase our comedians as well as our musicians? The Kids In The Hall could do sketch comedy on one night, Bob and Doug McKenzie another, the Trailer Park Boys the next. Why not reunite the cast of SCTV for one night only? I'm sure the National Lampoon's Band Camp factory would probably let Eugene Levy out for a couple of weeks in between sequels.

We should have stand-up comedy from Norm McDonald, Russell Peters and Harland Williams. Mike Myers could show up dressed as Austin Powers and play a set with his band Ming Tea. Michael Cera could stand around looking awkward for half an hour and still draw rave reviews for it. Seth Rogen could spark up a joint of B.C. Bud in an easy chair and tell the crowds his Jewish summer camp stories.

And where the hell is Cirque du Soleil? While Cirque is hardly new anymore, there is really no company on the planet that does spectacle better. Despite criticisms of their performance at the closing ceremonies of the Torino Games I thought they did an awesome job and should probably be on stage every night during the Games.

Kenny Vs. Spenny should have a different challenge every night. There should be late night screenings of the extremely funny Jon Dore show in public squares. Tom Green should be encased in a plastic bubble and forced to do his web show 24 hours a day.

Why, I ask, did we hire INXS to play Vancouver or Usher to play Whistler? Why cede one inch of stage to performers from outside Canada when we're more than capable of filling that space with homegrown talent?

The organizers and our governments keep telling us that the Olympics are our "time to shine," in which case I don't see why we would share the spotlight with anyone - it's our spotlight to hog.

OK. I like what Andrew is trying to promote here and I agree with him on some levels. The only problem I have is that to follow his plan might over-do it a bit. I know this is a Tragically Hip themed blog, but at the end of the day from the Global Perspective, they just don't register. Would they do one of their TV/radio friendly "Pop" songs? I don't think that is The Hip that Andrew's talking about if he is a fan. The Hip are at their best when they're getting down and dirty, jamming as Gordie rants and pops blood vessels.

I also don't think the Olympics is the time to introduce new (to them) products to the world. How many people will get Trailer Park Boys, Bob & Doug, Kenny vs Spenny? There is always a lost in translation factor when projection to a global audience.

So what would work? Andrew mentioned a bunch of names and groups that are internationally recognized and loved. Rush, Adams, Cohen, Dion, Young, Joni Mitchell, Cirque, Mike Myers, Dan Aykroyd for starters. We should have entertainment that represents our country from coast-to-coast-to-coast. We should also have room for international talent as well since this is a global showcase. We just happen to be hosting it.

Now that we have come fully into HD broadcasts, the real star will be BC. Vancouver & Whistler are going to sparkle and these events are going to look amazing. At the end of the day it will be the athletes and the setting that will make up the lasting memories for visitors and viewers alike and not who played a song after the 2-Man Bobsled medal ceremony. After all, if people are tuning in just to see a musical act, I think they may be missing the point of the entire exercise.

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Original content written and provided by mrjackstraw from Tragically Hip Tour at http://tragicallyhiptour.blogspot.com. All rights reserved. RSS feeds are for non-commercial use only.

ESPN Quotes The Hip

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So much is being written right now about the upcoming hockey tournament at the Olympics here in Canada and for good reason...this is ground zero for hockey and the expectations here in Canada are a Gold Medal and nothing less. For me this is too much, too soon and too fast. But it is what it is. Pierre LeBrun wrote this article that appeared on ESPN...

Pressure? There's no American equivalent to what Team Canada faces in 2010 Olympics

If there's a goal that everyone remembers, it was back in ol' 72.
We all squeezed the stick and we all pulled the trigger
And all I remember was sitting beside you

That is the opening line of "Fireworks," a song by Canada's favorite rock band, The Tragically Hip. No need for The Hip to provide more details than it did in that opening line. Every living and breathing Canadian knows it refers to the 1972 Summit Series and Paul Henderson's game-winning goal, which beat the communists from the former Soviet Union.

You said you didn't give a f--- about hockey
And I never saw someone say that before
You held my hand and we walked home the long way
You were loosening my grip on Bobby Orr

I still get chills every time I hear that Bobby Orr line from lead singer Gord Downie. Somehow, right in that instant, Downie's unique voice captures Canada's obsession with the sport it invented and still clings desperate ownership to.

All of which should help underline to my American readers here at ESPN.com just what kind of pressure and hype await the host country in less than six months. When Canadian hockey fans stop me to chat Olympics these days, it's not to ask me who I think will win men's hockey gold in Vancouver, but rather which country I think will lose to Canada in the gold-medal game. Gulp.

It doesn't seem to matter that Russia is the two-time reigning IIHF world champion and Sweden is the defending Olympic champion. The perception is, "This is our sport and we're going to win on home ice. Case closed." Yikes.

I've asked colleagues in the business about this over and over in the past few months and nobody can come up with a concrete parallel in American sports. There's never been a single sporting event that anyone can remember in America's successful and glorious history that will compare to what hosting the Olympic hockey tournament north of the border will mean to Canadians.

The first Dream Team in basketball? Not even close. We're talking about a gold-medal game in Vancouver (if Canada makes it) that will be watched on TV by an entire country. Remember 1972? People who are old enough remember having the day off from school to watch Game 8 or at least have class stopped during the game so kids could watch it on TV in the gym. Canada stood still that day.

Canadians also watched in record numbers in February 2002, when a 50-year Olympic gold-medal drought was snapped in Salt Lake City. I was too busy writing about it in Utah, but to this day, I hear about the thousands of Canadians who took the streets in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver to celebrate the historic win over the United States.

Now, imagine winning it all on home soil.

In hockey terms, the "Miracle on Ice" in 1980 was an amazing moment in American sports history (and, quite frankly, in my mind, the greatest hockey moment ever) and it certainly brought together the country at a time of political and economic duress. But seriously, was the whole country on pins and needles when the tournament started in Lake Placid? No, of course not. Interest in the game increased as the Americans hung in there with the favored Russians. It was a fantastic moment, but not one in which an entire country dialed in from the beginning of the tournament expecting a gold medal. That, of course, will be the case in 2010 for Canada.

The best I can think of for an American equivalent in terms of hype and focus is the Super Bowl, the most-watched sporting event in the world. But again, not everyone is cheering for the same team, and the outcome of the game doesn't matter so much to an entire nation. Perhaps there is no parallel because America is so darn good at so many sports; it doesn't channel its national identity through one single event.

You see, we're little ol' Canada. We scream for attention. We want to be recognized so badly. We want Americans to know we don't live in igloos, and we even have HBO. For a country that battles so hard to get international recognition in anything, hockey has always been our passport to the world. We're good at it. We produce the largest quantities of high-end players in the world. This is the one sport that routinely put us on the map and brings us together. And believe me, that's not an easy thing in Canada. We don't naturally rally behind the flag like our American neighbors. Around sporting events, mostly hockey, is when we do it.

Team Canada coach Mike Babcock said a Monday night news conference that people at his summer lake retreat in Saskatchewan were picking the team for him every day.

"How many people in Canada?," the Red Wings coach asked the large media contingent. When told 37 million [the last population count was actually 33 million], he added: "So 37 million people are going to tune into every game. I think that's awesome."

I guess if I had to find one close comparison to what it will mean to Canadians to host the Olympic hockey tournament, it would be England hosting and winning the World Cup. No need to explain that one to you.

You may remember Wayne Gretzky's famous rant during the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics. His Canadian hockey team was struggling out of the gates and his attention-seeking speech after a tie game with the Czech Republic cleverly meant to deflect pressure off his players. It worked. Now, imagine how much more intense that pressure will be on home soil.

I can't imagine what it's going to be like for Sidney Crosby & Co. in February, tying on their skates before the first game of the Olympics and feeling GM Place shake from the dressing room.

Win, and 23 players will be legends forever, just like the boys in 1972. Lose? Well, get used to answering questions from friends, family, the postman, the customs guard and every single Canadian for the rest of your lives.

Nah, no pressure.

Original content written and provided by mrjackstraw from Tragically Hip Tour at http://tragicallyhiptour.blogspot.com. All rights reserved. RSS feeds are for non-commercial use only.