Gord Downie

Gordon Edgar Downie (February 6, 1964 – October 17, 2017) was a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, musician, writer and activist. He was the singer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip, which he fronted from its formation in 1984 until his death in 2017. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential and popular artists in Canadian music history.

Downie released seven solo albums, two posthumously: ''Coke Machine Glow'' (2001), '' Battle of the Nudes'' (2003), ''The Grand Bounce'' (2010), ''And the Conquering Sun'' (2014), ''Secret Path'' (2017), and ''Away Is Mine'' (2020). His first to hit number one was ''Introduce Yerself'', shortly after his death. His family and managers said future releases are planned, including solo material and unreleased work with the Hip.

Early life

Gordon Downie was born in Amherstview, Ontario, and raised in Kingston, Ontario, along with his brothers Mike and Patrick, and sisters Charlyn and Paula. He was the son of Lorna (Neal) and Edgar Charles Downie, a travelling salesman, later a real estate broker and developer. In Kingston, Downie attended the downtown high school Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute, where other members of the Tragically Hip also attended. In high school, Downie was the frontman for a band called the Slinks performing at the KCVI Variety show and rivaling older members Rob Baker and Gord Sinclair's band the Rodents. After graduating high school, Downie attended Queen's University where he majored in film studies, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts and Science in 1986.

Career

The Tragically Hip

In 1984, at age 20, Downie formed the Tragically Hip with, Rodents's members, Rob Baker and Gord Sinclair, another younger, Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute alumni, Johnny Fay, and saxophonist Davis Manning. In 1986, Manning left the band as guitarist-vocalist Paul Langlois joined. Originally, the band covered popular British rock songs from the 1960s. In an interview with Canadian music journalist Steve Newton, Downie noted that the Tragically Hip's early setlist was originally drawn to bands such as The Yardbirds and The Stones, a decision that was made because the Hip wished other Kingston bar bands would also play the genre. The Tragically Hip quickly became famous once MCA Records president Bruce Dickinson saw them performing at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto and offered them a record deal.

Downie began pursuing a solo career with the release of ''Coke Machine Glow'' in 2001. He published his first poetry and prose collection alongside the album and under the same title.
The backing musicians, credited as the Goddamned Band, consisted of indie rock band the Dinner Is Ruined, Josh Finlayson of Skydiggers and singer-songwriter Julie Doiron.
He released his second solo album, '' Battle of the Nudes'', in 2003 before returning to the studio with the Tragically Hip. His third solo effort, ''The Grand Bounce'', was released in 2010. Both it and ''Battle of the Nudes'' are credited as Gord Downie and the Country of Miracles.

Collaborations

In addition to his solo works, Downie collaborated with several fellow Canadian and international artists. His most famous Canadian collaborations are with Richard Terfry (better known as Buck 65), Dallas Green of City and Colour and Alexisonfire, the Sadies and Fucked Up. Terfry collaborated with Downie on the song "Whispers of the Waves" off the album '' 20 Odd Years''. Terfry composed the track and with the help of Charles Austen, his co-writer, decided Downie's vocals would be the best fit for their song.
In 2008, Downie appeared as a guest vocalist on City and Colour's single "Sleeping Sickness".
In 2014, Downie released an album with the Sadies called ''And the Conquering Sun''. He commented on working with the Sadies, saying, "I enjoy getting together with those guys; it's a whole other universe. They're writing all the music and I'm writing all the lyrics and we're coming up with some neat stuff. You do it for the company but I'm genuinely shocked by the themes and things you touch based on the music you're singing to. That's really compelling to me." The album consists of ten songs.

Also in 2014 Downie appeared as a guest vocalist on "The Art of Patrons", a song from Fucked Up's album ''Glass Boys''.

On February 2, 2017, Downie joined Blue Rodeo onstage at Massey Hall for a performance of Blue Rodeo's song "Lost Together". This marked his last public appearance before his death.

In other media

Downie had 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 appeared in the 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 was 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 character's garage. Colin James is also featured in the episode. Downie also appeared in Michael McGowan's 2008 film, ''One Week''. A documentary film, '' Long Time Running'', about the Tragically Hip's summer 2016 cross-Canada farewell concert tour, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2017.

Philanthropic work

Environmentalism

Downie was heavily involved in environmental movements, especially issues concerning water rights. He was a board member of Lake Ontario Waterkeeper. With Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, Downie helped work on a cause to prevent a cement company from burning tires for fuel. He was also a part of the Swim Drink Fish Music club, a project that unites artists and environmentalists in a music club to raise money for Waterkeeper organizations in Canada.

The Great Moon Gathering

In February 2012 in Fort Albany, Ontario, Downie and the Tragically Hip played at the Great Moon Gathering, a yearly educational conference that takes place in various communities along Northern Ontario's James Bay coast. Its focus is on youth learning and combining Cree education with the contemporary world. The venue was small and not typical of the band. Author Joseph Boyden, who invited them, said their motivation was to "initiate a guerrilla act of love for a people who are so thoroughly underrepresented but now, somehow, overexposed for only their shortcomings. A guerrilla act of love to show the rest of the country what strength and artistry, grace and humour the Cree possess." In addition to the Tragically Hip's performance, Downie sang a song with a local band, Northern Revolution. The song "Goodnight Attawapiskat" from the album ''Now for Plan A'' was a result of this trip.

Indigenous affairs

On October 13, 2016, Downie and his brother Mike, along with the Wenjack family, announced the founding of the Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund to support reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples."The Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund"
DownieWenjack.ca, 13 October 2016. The fund is a part of Downie's legacy and commitment to Canada's First Peoples. Chanie Wenjack was a young indigenous boy who died trying to escape a residential school, who became the centre of Downie's ''Secret Path'' project. The Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund is a registered charity.

At the Assembly of First Nations in Gatineau, Quebec, on December 6, 2016, National Chief Perry Bellegarde honoured Downie with an eagle feather, a symbol of the creator above, for his support of the Indigenous peoples of Canada. Bellegarde also bestowed on Downie an honorary aboriginal name, Wicapi Omani, which is Lakota for "man who walks among the stars".

Downie took to Parliament Hill on July 2, 2017, to speak out for Canada's young Indigenous people, likening it to the same kind of pain young people suffered in the now defunct residential schools.

Awards and recognitions

In May 2016, Downie and his bandmates received honorary degrees from Queen's University. Downie was not able to attend the ceremony due to his illness which had not yet been made public.

On December 22, 2016, Downie was selected as The Canadian Press's Canadian Newsmaker of the Year and was the first entertainer selected for the title. In December 2017, Downie was again named Canadian Newsmaker of the Year for the second year in a row, in recognition of the public reaction to his death.

Downie, along with his Tragically Hip bandmates, was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada on June 19, 2017, for "their contribution to Canadian music and for their support of various social and environmental causes".

In December 2017, Percy Hatfield, the Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) representing Windsor—Tecumseh introduced the bill ''Poet Laureate of Ontario Act In Memory of Gord Downie'' to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. It was passed in December 2019, establishing the Poet Laureate of Ontario.

Cancer diagnosis and farewell tour

In December 2015, shortly after attending his father's funeral, Downie was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour. The Tragically Hip announced his diagnosis on their website on May 24, 2016. Doctors at Toronto's Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre confirmed the same day that it was a glioblastoma, which had responded favourably to radiation and chemotherapy treatment but was not curable.

Downie toured with the band in summer 2016 to support ''Man Machine Poem'', the band's 13th studio album. The tour's final concert was held at the Rogers K-Rock Centre in Kingston, Ontario, on August 20 and was broadcast and streamed live by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation on television, radio and internet. It was viewed by an estimated 11.7 million people.

The tour was profiled in the 2017 documentary film '' Long Time Running'', directed by Jennifer Baichwal and Nicholas de Pencier. The final concert was released on DVD under the title ''A National Celebration'' on December 24, 2017.

''Secret Path''

In September 2016, Downie announced he would release a new solo album, ''Secret Path

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases