Gordon Downie
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| Gordon Downie | |
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 Gordon Downie performing in Ottawa, Ontario
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| Background information | |
| Born | February 6, 1964 Amherstview, Ontario |
| Origin | Kingston, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | Rock, alternative rock |
| Occupations | Musician |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Associated acts | The Tragically Hip The Dinner Is Ruined Julie Doiron City And Colour |
| Website | www.wienerart.net |
Gordon Downie (born February 6, 1964) is a Canadian rock musician, writer and occasional actor. He is the lead singer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. He has released two solo albums, Coke Machine Glow in 2001 and Battle of the Nudes in 2003; the former was sold with a book of poetry of the same name included with the CD. Canadian indie band The Dinner Is Ruined served as his backing band for both solo albums. It has been cited on hipbase.com that Gord will be reuniting with Julie Doiron and possibly the rest of his solo band in the summer of 2010 to promote an upcoming solo album.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Downie was born in Amherstview, Ontario.[1] He is the godson of former Boston Bruins general manager and coach Harry Sinden.[2] He attended Ernestown Secondary School (Odessa, Ontario) in grade nine and part of grade ten. He graduated from Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute in 1982, a school also attended by his band-mates. Downie then studied film at Queen's University in Kingston.[3] Downie was a minor league hockey goalie and played for an Ontario championship winning Bantam level team in 1979.
[edit] Career
Downie's use of stories and myths about life in Canada, along with his wild antics and rantings on stage, has helped enshrine The Tragically Hip as a home-grown and much-loved Canadian band. Band performances are peppered with his seemingly endless and incomprehensible rantings between song verses—a trait that endears him to his fans. One notable rant is the "KillerWhaleTank" rant from the song "New Orleans Is Sinking".[4] Another is the double suicide story line in the song "Highway Girl".
Comparisons have been drawn between Gordon Downie and Michael Stipe of R.E.M. because both are known for writing intelligent, eclectic, and introspective lyrics, the meaning of which are often difficult to decipher, and also because they share similar performing styles.[5][6][7][8]
Downie has cameo appearances in Men with Brooms, in which The Tragically Hip play a curling team. Downie also made a cameo appearance in the 2008 indie drama, "Nothing Really Matters", directed by Jean-Marc Piché. Downie also appears in the Trailer Park Boys movie The Big Dirty, in which he and Alex Lifeson play a pair of police officers. More recently, he and other members of the band can be seen in the final episode of Trailer Park Boys entitled "Say Goodnight To The Bad Guys", in which he is harassed while eating a bologna sandwich at a singles dance. Downie is also featured in the sitcom Corner Gas in the episode "Rock On!" in which The Tragically Hip are shown as a local band practising in the main characters garage. Colin James is also featured in the same episode. Most recently, Downie appeared in Michael McGowan's film, One Week as a pot smoking philosopher alongside fellow Canadian Joshua Jackson.
Downie is mentioned in the second volume of the Scott Pilgrim series of graphic novels, Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World. In it, the title character and his friend listen to one of Downie's solo albums, and repeatedly describe him as "a genius".
Downie worked with fellow Canadian band City and Colour to contribute vocals on the track "Sleeping Sickness" for the album, Bring Me Your Love.
Downie resides in Toronto with his wife and children and has a summer residence in Picton[9] [10] and is a Trustee of Lake Ontario through his support of the Waterkeeper Alliance.[11]
[edit] Discography
- Coke Machine Glow (2001)
- Battle of the Nudes (2003)
[edit] Compilations
- Our Power (2006): "Figment (acoustic version)"
[edit] Bibliography
- Coke Machine Glow (2001)
[edit] References
- ^ Lake Ontario Waterkeeper
- ^ Gord Downie - Biography
- ^ Alumni Affairs
- ^ Killerwhaletank Rant
- ^ Sasquatch Music Festival 2006: one times one review
- ^ Gordon Downie: Coke Machine Glow - PopMatters Music Review
- ^ Gordon Downie - AOL Music
- ^ Rambles: Gordon Downie, Battle of the Nudes
- ^ The Tragically Hip: A biography by John Kendle Oct. 2005
- ^ http://www.bullfrogpower.com/powered/downie.cfm
- ^ Waterkeeper Alliance Trustees of Lake Ontario
[edit] External links
- Gordon Downie official website
- The Tragically Hip official website
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