''The Tragically Hip'' is the first release from Canadian rock band

The Tragically Hip The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, were a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassi ...

. The EP was produced by

Ken Greer Kenneth William Greer (born 25 July 1954) is a Canadian guitarist and keyboardist. He is one of the founding members of the Canadian rock band Red Rider. Biography Greer is the youngest of seven children born into a musical family in Toronto, ...

Red Rider Red Rider, later known as Tom Cochrane & Red Rider, is a Canadians, Canadian Rock music, rock band popular in the 1980s. While they achieved significant success in Canada, the band never had a song in the top 40 in the United States, although "L ...

fame, and consisted of 7 songs (8 on CD).

Release and reception

The Hip's EP was released in the Kingston area in late 1987 and nationally in January 1988. In early 1988 the Hip went on their first cross-Canada tour lasting 5 weeks. In Dec 1988 they signed a long-term contract with MCA. A live version of "Highway Girl" was released in 1991 as a B-side to "

Twist My Arm "Twist My Arm" is the third single from The Tragically Hip's second full-length studio album, '' Road Apples''. The single's B-side is a live version of the song "Highway Girl" from the band's debut EP, in which Gord Downie tells the story of a s ...

", in which

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 forma ...

tells the story of a

suicide pact A suicide pact is an agreed plan between two or more individuals to die by suicide. The plan may be to die together, or separately and closely timed. General considerations Suicide pacts are an important concept in the study of suicide, and h ...

between a man and his girlfriend. It was a hit on Canadian radio, allowing the song to chart considerably higher than in its original form. The story contains some lines which would later recur as lyrics in the band's 1992 single "

Locked in the Trunk of a Car "Locked in the Trunk of a Car" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. It was released in October 1992 as the lead single from their third studio album, ''Fully Completely''. The song peaked at No. 11 on Canada's ''RPM'' Singles Chart ...

"; it ends with Downie exclaiming "Get Mr.

Ry Cooder Ryland Peter "Ry" Cooder (born March 15, 1947) is an American musician, songwriter, film score composer, record producer, and writer. He is a multi-instrumentalist but is best known for his slide guitar work, his interest in traditional music, an ...

to deliver my eulogy", which would also recur in "

At the Hundredth Meridian "At the Hundredth Meridian" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. It was released in April 1993 as the fourth single from the band's 1992 album, '' Fully Completely''. The song peaked at No. 18 on the Canadian '' RPM'' Singles chart. ...

". The album version was also the only song from this EP to be included in the ''

Yer Favourites ''Yer Favourites'' is a two-disc compilation album by the Tragically Hip. The tracks for ''Yer Favourites'' were selected by the band's fans on its website and were remastered. The compilation includes a total of seven songs from ''Fully Complet ...

'' fan-picked compilation of 2005.

Track listing

The Tragically Hip

–

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

* Rob Baker –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

*Paul Langlois –

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

*Gord Sinclair –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

*Johnny Fay –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tragically Hip Ep, The 1987 debut EPs The Tragically Hip albums MCA Records EPs