It’s been mentioned more than once that my music-related posts have tended to be about female performers; for whatever reason they’ve generally been the friendlier bunch, even if they’re recently incommunicado or completely MIA. But it’s long past time to give the guys their due, and since it’s Canada Day I’ll focus on some of the Canadians.
Ironically, the first set of guys… aw heck, enough has been made of their name. I’ve been a fan of Barenaked Ladies since near the beginning; not quite the Pink Tape days, but I do have an original copy of the Yellow Tape. The Brothers Creeggan, a side project by current member Jim and former member Andy, are also high on the list.
Moxy Früvous is another since-the-beginning band: I’ve got the self-titled indie tape (featuring Green Eggs and Ham). In fact, I’d have to give Mike Ford credit for re-invigorating my interest in comics through a chat at an in-studio performance at CFNY.
I’ve only seen Bruce Cockburn perform once, and in a fairly non-traditional folk venue at that: Montreal’s Theatre Maisonneuve, during the 1997 Montreal Jazz Festival. Still, his Waiting For A Miracle collection is one that I turn to regularly, and his cover of Always Look on the Bright Side of Life always cracks me up.
Pete O’Connell, before his life as “a feature film compositor and visual effects instructor”, performed as/with a one-man band. His CD The Back Tire, recorded with one-woman-band player Andrea Bonetto, is the only thing I’ve got from those days.
Mike Ford, formerly of Moxy Früvous, and Nathan Caswell, formerly of Nathan Caswell, both perform extremely Canadian songs. They both write songs that alternate between the humorous (Nathan’s Einstein’s Brain; Mike’s Huge on the Luge) and the personal (Mike’s Crossroads (Song for Jane Jacobs) and Nathan’s This Old Farm), and they’ve both got a real sense of place (Nathan’s Pulp Town and Mike’s Tooker (La Monde à Bicyclette)); Mike’s take also leans toward the historical and educational on the two volumes of Canada Needs You and Stars Shone On Toronto.
There are more, but this post is getting a little long; Spirit of the West, John Mann, Gowan, Kurt Swinghammer, Hugh Marsh and others are going to have to wait—although hopefully not until next Canada Day!
