mance of “ Lost Together ” with Sarah McLachlan at the 2012 JUNO Awards and , even more recently , Gord Downie joining the band onstage at Toronto ’ s Massey Hall on the initial leg of the 1000 Arms Tour – Cuddy says collaboration was at the core of Blue Rodeo coming together over 30 years ago .
“ We were born of that scene ,” he says . “ Our scene was all about collaboration , so if Handsome Ned was the creator of our scene in Toronto that we came into – this neo-country rock , ‘ Lost Highway ’ kind of scene – he really encouraged people to get onstage and play together . We thought that was part of the ethos of being in a band . After 10 or 15 years , that had become second nature to us .”
On the current tour , that means that in addition to Bowskill , members of opening act The Sadies will often take the stage alongside their friends , just like dozens of others have before them .
“ The nice thing about the
Canadian music scene is that it ’ s not that big ,” Keelor offers . “ It ’ s a small scene and you cross paths and get to hang out with people a lot . You get to know all these different musicians and think , ‘ God they ’ re great . I hope I get to work with them .’” And at this stage in their career , Blue Rodeo have the power
( L-R ) GREG KEELOR , GLENN MILCHEM , JIM CUDDY , BAZIL DONOVAN , MIKE BOGUSKI & COLIN CRIPPS
to grant many of their own wishes . “ There are just so many people that can give you a great musical charge ,” he tacks on .
Having musicians whose company they enjoy and whose work they respect join them on tour is one factor that ’ s kept the band refreshed and enthusiastic about their performances over the years . So too is the ability to draw songs at will from one of the deepest and best-known catalogues in Canadian music .
When it came to curating the set list for the 1000 Arms Tour , Cuddy reveals the song choice was ultimately dictated by the overall shape and direction of this particular tour . The trek supporting In Our Nature found the band performing new songs in the first half of the show and then dedicating the second to the big singles and fan favourites ; this time , the divisions don ’ t come from the songs themselves , but rather their presentation . Partway through the show , the band breaks into an all-acoustic set , bringing a welcome dynamic to an evening of mostly familiar material .
“ The idea is to create a show , create a piece of theatre ,” Cuddy says about the band ’ s general approach to touring . “ It ’ s to keep changing scenes a little bit so it ’ s like you ’ re moving the audience forward with you . You use the songs as building blocks to create movement . Maybe it ’ s familiar , maybe it ’ s unfamiliar , maybe it ’ s acoustic renditions of songs they know , but we want to make people think they ’ ve seen five different scenes over the evening . I think the best concerts are the ones that give you something you didn ’ t expect .”
Despite being massively popular upon its release leading up to the 2015 Canadian election , one song that understandably hasn ’ t been performed at recent shows is the aforementioned anti- Stephen Harper anthem “ Stealin ’ All My Dreams .” The scathing stand-alone single was inherently divisive and earned both praise and disparagement from Canadians .
Criticizing the since-ousted Conservative government on things like environmental policy , a widely perceived disdain for science , and sensationalizing potential security threats , one has to think they ’ d be disheartened by the current political climate in America – though Keelor doesn ’ t keep me assuming for long .
“ It ’ s totally fucked up down there ,” he says , blunt and true to character . “ It ’ s like watching a bad movie . It ’ s totally surreal , but yet it ’ s reality .”
But he ’ s not just pointing a finger to the south . “ We ’ ve got enough things to be ashamed
of here in Canada that we don ’ t need to look south to see shameful political actions ,” he admits . After all , nationalist ideology can bleed across borders like colour running from a sweaty red trucker ’ s cap , and Canada ’ s treatment of indigenous people has become a hot button topic with good reason . Still , Cuddy believes Canada gains great advantage in collectively overcoming such things and better sharing ideas thanks to our social integration . “ We went down to the States right after the election to see what people were thinking ,” he says , “ but I guess our path seems to go through entirely Democratic neighbourhoods . I didn ’ t talk to one single person who was a supporter for that president ; that population is just so incredibly segmented .”
But he believes “ we don ’ t come from that ,” adding : “ When we did the anti-Harper song , we heard about it . We met those people . They said horrible things to us online , to our faces ... They stopped being fans . But at least we ’ re all jumbled together ; we ’ re not just travelling and talking in isolated circles .”
Being outspoken to the point that you ’ re willing to lose fans to say what you need to could be perceived as another privilege Blue Rodeo has earned over time . Having expertly navigated the music industry and all of its shifts for decades – years before the file sharing disruption and years after – Blue Rodeo are now in a place where they can make that industry work for them – where they can make the music they want to make , dictate their own terms , and comfortably use their platform with a keen sense of purpose for causes close to them .
Simply put , like Keelor opting to talk music despite an oncoming malady that would have others in his position silently nursing warm lemon water , they ’ re still doing this because they want to – not because they have to .
Andrew King is the Editor-In-Chief of Canadian Musician .
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