Collective Soul at the Grey Eagle
Two concerts in (barely over) a week. This time, it’s Collective Soul. I had a thing for Collective Soul around 1995, largely as a result of my friend (and roommate) Duncan. We both played it, a lot. And it …
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Music
56 posts tagged with this topic.
Arkells at the Saddledome
A couple of years ago, I was given tickets to see the Arkells at the Saddledome from my family. Delays brought on by COVID led to a months delay before the show finally took place, and it was awesome. The only downside …
Marcus King at the Grey Eagle
Every now and then, Jeremy tells me I need to see someone in concert. I trusted him with Styx, which was fantastic, and Big Wreck (despite knowing nearly no songs) was amazing. I sucked it up for The Tea Party, which had …
A visit to the Canmore Highland Games
Another weekend, another whim. And without any specific plan, Alex and I went to the Canmore Highland Games. It feels like something we should do, though I’m not sure why. I’m the one with Scottish heritage …
Blue Rodeo live ... finally!
Twenty years ago, when Alex and I were dating, I’d bought tickets for us to go see Blue Rodeo, a band I knew that she liked – and I liked quite a lot, too – thinking it would be an excellent date night …
Big Wreck
Jeremy takes me to the best concerts. You’ve already heard about some of the others. This one was one that I hadn’t been really prepared for. The last time I’d been at the Palace, I’d had to leave …
I Mother Earth and The Tea Party at Grey Eagle
Jeremy and I have talked about music pretty much as long as I’ve know him. As a former member of a rock band, Jeremy knows a lot, and his passion for music (and especially equipment) always reminds me of how much I …
Turn That Music Down!
Jeremy pinged me a few weeks back: Big Sugar is coming, did I want to go? Given our previous two concerts this year alone, I was in. But more important, this is Big Sugar, which was a notable part of my late-1990s life. …
The Arkells at the Saddledome
Speaking of the next show… For Christmas 2021, I got tickets to a concert. Two of them. To The Arkells. The last time I saw The Arkells, they were opening for The Tragically Hip in Red Deer. That was the first …
Heart and Styx at the Jubilee
Jeremy and I have been to a few concerts together, notably a few Tragically Hip shows and John Fogerty’s “1969”. So, to a degree, I’m lucky that he pings me to go to shows with him. I was a bit …
My Hip Stories
In two days, I’m going to see The Tragically Hip play at the Saddledome. I will freely admit that, somewhat stereotypically Canadian of me, The Hip is my favourite band. So I will also state that I’m excited to see them …
A musical evening in Red Deer
I know what you’re thinking: Red Deer? Music? Honestly, what on Earth are you thinking, Geoff? You haven’t exactly had the most … inspiring of times in Red Deer. Okay, I admit, I’ve not got the best stories of …
TV is dead. Long live the internet!
I feel like an old man. I can now look at my kids, and say with far too much vigour: “When I was your age…” I refer to, of course, having to get off my ass, walking over to the cathode ray tube-based …
Why SOPA will (and must) fail
Across the internet, the letters S-O-P-A have inspired a particular level of hatred and vitriol. Beyond the internet, the Stop Online Piracy Act has barely registered any significant presence within mainstream media. The …
Copyrights are the new Colonialism
The late 16th Century was the dawn of the British Empire. England had triumphed on the seas, and had set its eyes on colonising the New World (before its enemies did). Patents were issued, companies were founded, and …
Day of the Ya Ya
Well, Monkey, today was your Ya Ya day. In case you don’t remember what “Ya Yas” are when you get around to reading this, this is your name for The Backyardigans. And a couple of weeks ago, Mommy noticed …
Music industry's future - Creators and Performers
The music industry is falling apart. Not in the way your under-maintained 1991 economy car with rust spots is leaving a breadcrumb trail of broken parts, but in the way your high school clique drifted apart as everyone …
Which Beatles is better - British Invasion, or Studio?
The other day, as Mark was driving us to work, we were treated to Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da on Radio Dos as we were inching our way through the daily Lindora grind. I’ve heard this song at least 100 times (iTunes reports a mere …
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My 10 favourite cover songs
In the annals of music, there will always the be homage to the giants that came before, who created the sound, and inspired the ones yet to come. That usually lends to things like the ubiquitous cover track — a …
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The Network Connection
With all the problems we’ve been having down here, you eventually start to become inspired to find an outlet, a way of bringing forth all your frustrations and desires into a singular vision. For some, it is art, for …
Dear Canada, I'm going to break the law
Well, it would appear that short of an Act of God (or, heaven forbid, some actual common sense runs through Parliament), Bill C-61 will forever handcuff Canadians and prevent long-term technological evolution. It’s one …
Steve Jobs blows it. Again.
Sigh. There’s nothing more frustrating than watching Apple come so close to finally tying the knot, only to leave threads dangling. I speak, of course, of yesterday’s Let’s Rock event where the apparently-not-dead (but …
Kids' music kinda sucks, but there is good stuff out there!
I remember kids music when I was young. A lot of it was Disney (or published by Disney), available on vinyl 45s that we played on our Mickey Mouse record player — you remember, the one where Mickey’s arm is the arm for …
An open letter to Jim Prentice
Dear “Honourable” Jim Prentice, Allow me to express my sincerest feelings when I say you are responsible for fucking over the Canadian people. This bill you are introducing this morning — likely as I write …
Movie and Music Piracy in Canada all wrong?
If you’ve been reading this site for any length of time, you’ve probably come across a rant or two of mine about all the garbage surrounding things like DRM and the MPAA saying stupid things. Recently, Canada passed …
What is that irritating whine?
A word to the RIAA: SHUT UP! Who the hell do these people think they are? Why are they telling me what I can do with the material that I’ve legally paid for? Why should I do anything more than punch the first RIAA rep I …
iTunes experience is better than Windows Media
I have two iPods. One I purchased (a Nano) and one I received as a gift. The music on my iPods comes from a rather large (700+) CD collection and iTunes. I do not download (anymore). I find that the experience using …
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Rankin Family Reunion in Calgary
Last night, we attended what I can only describe as a typical Maritime house/kitchen party. Except without the screech or incomprehensible accents. Back in the early 1990s, Canada had a brief flirtation with popular …
Stuart McLean and Vinyl Cafe come to Banff
Not long after I met Alex, I was introduced to The Vinyl Cafe. This is a weekly show on CBC Radio, featuring the short stories of author and host Stuart McLean. It’s a wonderful show, and I try to listen to it as much as …
A little scoot around Ulaan Baatar
[This entry originally posted on How To Get Lost: A little scoot around Ulaan Baatar.] We arrived early this morning. We were up by 5:00, but only arrived an hour later or so. After a sort-of-nap (couldn’t sleep), we …
Football and music
[This entry originally posted on How To Get Lost: Football and music.] Turns out that our excursion to Tinkoff to discuss politics turned into a football lesson. (That’s “football” as in how the rest of the …
Cheap music will save the music industry
The dinosaurs died off because they couldn’t adapt. They couldn’t evolve fast enough to cope with a rapidly changing environment. As a result, “dinosaur” is often an apt description for any entity unable or …
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Mercedes-Benz meetings, team building
Allard and I hit the restaurant in the main atrium for breakfast, joined shortly thereafter by Christian and a very tired-looking Jules. Powdered eggs aren’t exactly the breakfast of champions. Jules has been up late …
Thanksgiving 2004
If I had a list of top ten bands that would never play Calgary, KMFDM would have been on list. But more on that in a minute or two. Today began fairly normally for a Sunday: Alex and I rose, ate, showered, and prepared …
Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra's Mozart on the Mountain
A busy weekend this most certainly was. But it was a fun, productive one. The first major thing was on Saturday. Mom’s in town to help out with Nana’s recovery from surgery (she had her knee replaced at the beginning of …
Jazz Up Your Weekend at the Banff Centre
Alex and I have been seeing each other for a couple of months now, and we felt it secure enough to try something a little adventurous: a weekend away from the city. Exactly how we found out about it, I’m not sure (I …
Try This Triathlon and the 2004 Lilac Festival
When spring is in full-swing in Calgary, there are always fun things to do. The only problem, though, is having to choose which ones — once the warm weather hits, there can sometimes be a few too many things to do all at …
David Bowie plays Kelowna Prospera Place
We all woke at about the same time. I was awake, though eyes closed, when I heard Tamara and Andrea whispering. I joined into the conversation, joined shortly thereafter by Dan. At that point, there wasn’t much reason to …
David Bowie Plays the Calgary Saddledome
Tonight, David Bowie reminded us all how a concert should be done. Well, technically last night, but since it’s just after midnight as I write this, it’s still the same night. Anyway, you get the point. Tamara and I had …
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Eric Idle's Greedy Bastard Tour hits Calgary
Tonight, the Greedy Bastard hit Cowtown. The Bastard in question, in case you’re wondering, is Eric Idle. For those of you buried under rocks since the day of your birth, Eric was one of Britain’s Monty Python comedy …
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2003 planning meeting wrap party
There were green alligators, and long necked geese, Some humpty-back camels and some chimpanzees, Some cats and rats and elephants, but sure as your born, The loveliest of all was the Unicorn. — “The …
Riding VIA Rail’s Bras D’or, Sydney to Halifax
It was still dark when the alarm clock (bolted to the night table) tuned in the local classic rock station. Great thing about radio – there’s always a classic rock station available. Showered and bags packed, I hiked my …
Riding VIA Rail's Bras D'or, Halifax to Sydney
Waking early after a few days of sleeping in (even if just a little) was difficult. But given the day’s activity, I couldn’t wait. I was taking a train. Yes, a train. A month on the CBC special hadn’t dampened my spirit …
CBC TV 50th Anniversary VIA Rail train, Remembering 9/11
[This entry written by Geoff Sowrey, ©2002 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). Text used with permission of CBC. The opinions expressed within do not necessarily reflect those of the CBC, employees, affiliates, or …
CBC 50th Anniversary VIA Rail train, Opening Event Pacific Central Station
T-Minus 2 days I think it’s safe to say no-one left today’s event pain-free. This was the VIP Event day. This was when we had to be near perfect, as the executives from both CBC and VIA would be on hand, along with many …
Canada Day on Parliment Hill in Ottawa
It was a hot night in Ottawa, following Stuart and Therese’s wedding. It was only going to get hotter. A lot hotter. The next day was 1 July, otherwise known as Canada Day. Otherwise known as the single biggest excuse to …
Lilac Festival and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra
Warm weather has come late to Calgary, but it is quite a relief that it finally has. Shorts, sandals, t-shirts, and (almost) no fear of waking up to a White Christmas every morning. I haven’t seen my breath in well over …
Seeing Spirit of the West at the Commodore Ballroom
Sometimes I wish we celebrated American holidays. At least then we’d have one more Hallmark Holiday(tm) between Hallowe’en and Christmas. As it stands, we now have a two-month Christmas season. Don’t fool yourselves, …
Wedding in Naramata
Several weeks ago, we received an invitation to a gala event in the Okanagan for one of Allison’s friends, Heather. She was getting married to her significant other, Brian. We were asked to attend the three-day event in …
Playing Softball with the Rad Sox, Visiting Granville Island, Seeing Alanis Morrisette
A few weeks ago, I made the decision to join the company softball team, the Rad Sox (Rad, as is “Radical”). This was for several reasons: I’d get out more, meet more people in the company that I wouldn’t …
Pacific National Exhibition (PNE), Mom Visits
Summer has begun its slow end — the Pacific National Exhibition opened this weekend. I can only assume that its Toronto counterpart, the Canadian National Exhibition, also started this weekend. As back home in Ontario, …
Canada Day in Vancouver, Lee Aaron, Fireworks on English Bay
Last Wednesday (1 July 1998), I celebrated my first Canada Day outside of Ontario. Until that day, I had always had the luxury of being in the same time zone (and twice being in the same city) as the National Canada Day …
Music Trip to Orlando, the Heritage Music Festival and Wet 'n Wild
I do need to mention that I was 18 when I wrote this, and ... oy, the mind of an 18 year-old man-child... A Dream… Carrots, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the U.S.S. Rabbit. It’s continuing mission: …
Music Trip to Orlando, Singing and Shopping in Malls
A Dream… Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Its continuing mission: To explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations; To boldly go where no-one …
Music Trip to Orlando, Visiting Walt Disney World and the Magic Kingdom
A Dream… The choir was set, standing on a stage in a rather large auditorium. Four bright lights shone on us, one on Paul and Dave Kaye on one side, a sixth light on Shawn and Andy on the other. The audience was …
Music Trip to Orlando, All-nighter in Oakville and Arrival in Florida
A Dream… “Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking.” came a husky voice over the p.a. I shut off my walkman to listen to the message. “We have encountered some technical difficulties, …