Downie has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, and fans across Canada and overseas gathered at viewing parties to tune in and bid him farewell.
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“There is a Canadianness that runs through them to the point where new citizens should be given a Tragically Hip CD after they take the oath”, said Alan Cross, a radio show host and music historian who called Downie “the rock “n” roll poet laureate of Canada”. What’s more, obviously, by the throat, according to the way this gathering of people filled every last bit of that little, damp with sweat field, with every syllable of Downie’s layered lyrics.
In an emotionally charged final concert in Kingston, Ont., Tragically Hip singer Gord Down paused the show to address the audience, the country, and specifically, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
During Pearl Jam’s concert in Chicago last night, the front man spoke to the crowd and paid tribute to Gord Downie and the Hip.
In the United States, fellow musician Eddie Vedder honored the band at a Pearl Jam concert in Chicago.
“I think Canadians are going to surprise themselves again when we see the results for the Canadian Cancer Society for the fundraising that went on in Gord’s name last night”, Puhallo said.
The Hip then segued into their latest album “Man Machine Poem”, with four tracks including the single “In a World Possessed by the Human Mind”.
Before the show started, Trudeau’s official photographer posted a photo on Twitter of the prime minister embracing Downie.
An energetic Downie and his bandmates played a 30-song set loaded with hits and punctuated by three encores. Forever in our hearts and playlists.
CBC live-streamed the concert and similar viewing parties were held in other cities across Canada.
In a brief interview with the CBC, Trudeau reminisced about how he used to enjoy the band’s music during his high school and university years.
The show ended with fan favourite Ahead By A Century.
The 52-year-old singer and his band are an indelible part of Canadian culture.
The Tragically Hip – frontmanDownie plus guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker, bassist GordSinclair and drummer Johnny Fay – kicked off the tour in Victoria on July 22.
Before performing one song, Downie seemed to reference the outpouring of support from fans since his diagnosis.
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“Thank you, people, for keeping me pushing and keeping me pushing”, he told the audience, dressed in one of the sparkling metallic leather suits now forever linked to the tour.
