9/27/2023 0 Comments Gord downie cancer![]() He was one of the good guys, a patriot who, in recent months, dedicated his time to addressing Indigenous issues in Canada. The passing of the Tragically Hip frontman leaves a Great Lakes-sized hole in the Canadian landscape, artistic and otherwise. ![]() But that doesn’t make the death of Gord Downie, at age 53 from brain cancer, any easier to digest. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.It was a day we all knew would come. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at for further information. Quickly, follow the unknown.Ĭopyright © 2017 NPR. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "COURAGE (FOR HUGH MACLENNAN)")ĭOWNIE: (Singing) Watch the band through a bunch of dancers. She's remembering Gord Downie, who died last night at the age of 53. SHAPIRO: Talia Schlanger hosts the music program World Cafe produced by WXPN. And he just was the absolute epitome of courage. SCHLANGER: And that was his way to express the love and gratitude that he had in his heart for what he'd been through with these people. He's a straight man with a lot of hockey fans. And the thing that really sticks with me and even makes me tear up now is at the end of the show, he was up there with his bandmates, his brothers, his family, and on national television, in front of a third of Canada who ended up watching it, he kissed each of them on the lips. And about 10 minutes before the concert started, 10 minutes before Gord walked out onstage, the entire crowd erupted in "O Canada," the national anthem, and passed around this Canadian flag that made its way around the entire crowd and paused under the prime minister.Īnd then that show - I mean, nearly three hours - Gord as a performer, he was so magnetic and so mystifying, and he was in his best form that night. And so the mix of people who were there - I was sitting directly across from Canada's prime minister, Justin Trudeau, who was wearing a Tragically Hip T-Shirt. SCHLANGER: The vibe in that arena that night - I mean, the remarkable thing about Gord was that he could unite the deepest poets and the deepest thinkers along with rabid hockey fans who would scream in a crowd and college kids. SHAPIRO: Take us to that venue in what everybody knew would be the band's last performance, this beloved singer onstage for two and a half hours. And to see him take all of that strength and conviction and courage and put it into those final performances - I mean, I'll never forget it. I think that the entire nation mourned when the news came out last May, and the feelings around that final concert - I mean, I was in the crowd, and I'll never forget it as long as I live.Įveryone would cope with news like that in a different way, but what Gord did was use it to dig deeper into the things that he believed in and the things that made him an important artist - working for First Nations and indigenous rights and reconciliation, working for causes to do with water safety in Canada and in Ontario and to really be this beacon of love. I mean, we all - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said today, we all knew that it was coming, and we all hoped that it wouldn't. SHAPIRO: How would you describe this loss? And she was in the crowd about final show. Joining us now is Talia Schlanger, who hosts the music program World Cafe produced by WXPN. SHAPIRO: Gord Downie died last night at the age of 53. Their final concert in August of 2016 back in Kingston was televised nationally by the CBC and seen by almost 12 million Canadians. The Tragically Hip announced one last tour. SHAPIRO: In May of last year, Gord Downie revealed that he'd been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. And all you hear are the rusty breezes pushing around weathervane Jesus. GORD DOWNIE: (Singing) Sundown in the Paris of the prairie, wheat kings have all their treasures buried. Over three decades, frontman Gord Downie and his band rose from high school buddies playing bars in Kingston, Ontario, to a national treasure, singing about Canada's landscape and history. The Tragically Hip has been called Canada's house band, the Canadian Bruce Springsteen, the most Canadian band ever. (SOUNDBITE OF THE TRAGICALLY HIP SONG, "WHEAT KINGS")
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