Canada Rocks

Our friends upstairs, in the Great White North, haven’t been content to give their bigger, more arrogant neighbors to the south – or their cousins across the ocean - a monopoly on good music.  While a few bark out loudest, I’ll also review the B-list.  I can’t really comment on the rest, but they’re out there.

Rush.  Easily the biggest, at least in my humble opinion.  Bassist-singer Geddy Lee’s voice takes some getting used to, but it is distinctive and not unpleasant.  Unusually for most drummers (guys who “hit things with sticks”), Neil Peart actually writes lyrics, and even wrote a few books.  However, guitarist Alex Lifeson is adamant about replicating his solos note for note, so a Rush concert is basically hearing the studio versions faithfully reproduced. 

            Arising from Toronto in 1968, they quickly shed both drummer John Rutsey (RIP) and their initial Led Zeppelin influence in 1974 with Peart’s addition, to veer off into Ayn Rand prog territory, peaking that era with a prog-rock masterpiece, 2112.  Although that album is my favorite Fly By Night, Caress of Steel, A Farewell to Kings, Hemispheres and Permanent Waves are also top quality.  While Hemispheres (side 1) can be a bit tedious and pretentious, “Trees” and “Villa Strangiato” on side 2 make this album a must-have for Rush fans.

            After 1981’s Moving Pictures, though, the band settled into a skinny tie, techno-rock mediocrity of stellar musicianship and talent with zero passion; that album was not only my introduction to the band back in the early 80s, but also the last Rush album I listen to with any regularity.  Listening to anything from Signals to Clockwork Angels is like digesting a textbook for coursework, not music to be enjoyed.  I’ve seen them in concert a few times (the first tour being the Hold Your Fire tour) and they are much more interesting live than on record, even if they never jam or improvise.  2112 got a full treatment a few years back, but Fly By Night and Caress of Steel get scant attention.  Their 60s-retro-covers album, Feedback, was enjoyable, but then they weren’t doing their own material.

Triumph.  Starting in the late 70s and continuing through the 80s before disbanding – guitarist Rik Emmett still tours and plays Triumph material, albeit in small clubs – this band is more straight up rock and roll.  As Emmett himself said, “I’m a Les Paul-though-a-Marshall kind of guy”.  Drummer Gil Moore also sang; bassist Mike Levine just played the bass, well enough.  Thunder Seven is probably their top album, with Never Surrender a close second.  Stages is a good double live album with an impressive set.  I saw them in concert, front row seats at the Patriot Center on 10/31/86 with Yngwie (who?) Malmsteen opening.  Great show! 

Max Webster.  Led by singer-guitarist Kim Mitchell, this band could be the Canadian Blue Oyster Cult: blending commercial sound with offbeat lyrics and quirky sense of humor, but just enough heavy guitar to give it some balls.  They have 5 albums: Max Webster, High Class in Borrowed Shoes, Mutiny Up My Sleeve, Million Vacations, and Universal Juveniles, of which I have the first three.  I got the first one in Ottawa back in 1991, suffering an appropriate “Hangover” the day after overindulging in 7-8 Canadian (full-strength) Labatt Blues.  They used to open for Rush, and were good friends of theirs, but disbanded in the early 80s.  Kim Mitchell continues a modest music career and radio DJ work.

The rest:  I have some familiarity with the rest, even if they can’t qualify as being as important – in my mind – as the foregoing.

Anvil.   I’d call them a NWOBHM band, except they’re Canadian.  “Lips” Ludlow is their singer/guitarist.  Their sound is standard 80s metal, more on the Judas Priest side than hair metal side.  They have a recent documentary which is Spinal Tap-esque, which makes it even more tragic because it’s all true, not just Rob Reiner’s fanciful comedic rock story.

Black Mountain.  I consider them a stoner rock band, very similar to Crippled Black Phoenix (if you know who they are).  Good, but not everyone’s can of Molson.

Jeff Healey.   A blind slide guitarist – he did a good cover of “When a Blind Man Cries” by Deep Purple.  He’s also featured in the Patrick Swayze movie, “Roadhouse”.  He died back in 2008.

Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush.  Marino is one of those Robin Trower & Uli Jon Roth guys who jam extensively with a very strong Jimi Hendrix vibe.  His concerts – I’ve seen him twice – are 2+ hours of nonstop soloing, which is good if that’s what you’re into.  His studio material seems to be an effort to expand Hendrix’s catalog beyond the three albums he did in his lifetime. 

sHeavy.  I read a guy named Toby Manning refer to Mostly Autumn as “de facto Pink Floyd cover band, even if they deny it.”  You could consider sHeavy as a de facto Black Sabbath cover band, and I’d doubt they’d take much offense to that, much less deny it.  Their original material is indistinguishable from Ozzy era Black Sabbath, and vocalist Steve Hennessey does Ozzy’s voice spot on – so much so that some people hear sHeavy and honestly believe they’re hearing some long-lost Sabbath material.  They don’t seem to tour (!!!) and I saw a live video of them in concert, half of the band looking like they have day jobs and can’t tour.  Anyhow.  If the 8 original Black Sabbath albums with Ozzy are wearing thin, and you want to hear more, by all means indulge in sHeavy.  Electric Sleep being a good start.

Voivod.  From Montreal, Voivod are Canada’s top thrash band. I have their album The Outer Limits, which has an awesome 3D design with glasses. They are talented and smart prog-thrash, and even covered Pink Floyd twice: “Astronomy Domine” and “The Nile Song”. 

Neil Young.   I could never get into Neil Young; the only album I have is Harvest.  If you can’t break out of your blues-box rut, I suppose you’re in Neil Young territory.  He’s undeniably honest and down to earth, and rocks hard enough, but his stuff is material you cite to make yourself look smart.  Kinda like Rush.

Honorable (?) mentions.   Clearly there are more than these.  Helix is a band we got on vinyl (for free) and listened to once (the same stash that got us Defenders of the Faith and Y&T); they get a mention by Ricky of “Trailer Park Boys” as the band he prefers over Rush.  Anyone who’s ever heard “Born to Be Wild” knows who Steppenwolf is.  Loverboy was an AOR band from the 80s which I never paid much attention to while they were around.  Thor?  Gives me the impression of a guy who is actually more talented than his image would imply, but I never delved into his music.  Finally, we all know and dislike Nickelback and Avril Lavigne.   I suppose we can’t be too hard on Celine Dion, but she definitely isn’t “rock”. 

Great White North.  Anyone familiar with SCTV recalls Bob & Doug McKenzie (Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas), the pair of egregiously Canadian guys spouting “hoser” and “eh” to mock the CBC’s bizarre requirement for “Canadian” programming, whatever that is.  “Monday Night Curling” and “Magnum: Prince Edward Island” were other brief comedic efforts in that direction by the SCTV gang.  But the point is valid: how do make “Canadian” music?  Remarkably, with all this Canadian music, none of it gives off any particularly Canadian flavor.  Rush sing about “Trees”, but we have trees and communists here in the US.  I suppose “Toronto Tontos” could be a Canadian reference.  

The Power of Three

For some reason, 3-piece bands are quite popular, and have been for some time.  Usually – though not always - the bassist is also the singer.  They’re well done enough to put out enough power to be competitive with more traditional 4 and 5 piece bands, but I don’t think of them as being MORE powerful.

 Jimi Hendrix Experience.  Active from 1966 to 1969. Noel Redding played bass, Mitch Mitchell played the drums, and Jimi sang and … played guitar.  Fairly well, in fact.  Remarkably, they only have 3 studio albums, Are You Experienced?, Electric Ladyland, and Axis: Bold As Love.  Hendrix was one of those rare persons whose skill at guitar was light years more advanced, in terms of intuitive knowledge, beyond anyone else.

 Blue Cheer.  I did a previous blog on this band.  They came out around the same time as Jimi Hendrix and Cream (1967), from San Francisco; I think of them as part of that scene, but to this date all the attention goes to the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, with BC being almost completely ignored, an unwanted stepchild or black sheep, which is a shame, because they are definitely MUCH heavier than the others, but it wasn’t – as the others claim – using excessive volume as a crutch for poor talent.   The classic lineup was Dickie Peterson (bass/vocals), Leigh Stephens (guitar), and Paul Whaley (drums).  Stephens retired long ago, so now Duck McDonald is the guitarist – and Dickie IS Blue Cheer.  BC’s claim to fame is their cover of Eddie Cochran’s popular “Summertime Blues” – which they still play in concert.

 Cream.  Also a contemporary (1966-68): Eric Clapton (guitar/vocals), Jack Bruce (bass/vocals), and Ginger Baker (drums).  “Crossroads”, “Sunshine of Your Love”, “White Room”, “Badge”, “Born Under A Bad Sign”, and “Tales of Brave Ulysses” are the top songs.  Clapton went on to do Blind Faith, Derek & The Dominos, and then his solo career.  While he’s definitely a good guitarist, I think he’s overrated; I also consider his solo material a bit too commercial, ironic given he quit the Yardbirds to join John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers because he considered the YBs were getting too commercial (!). 

 Mountain.  Leslie West’s band, along with Corky Laing (drums) and Felix Pappalardi (Bass).  They were at Woodstock.  West is a big guy – not a bad guitar player, but it’s hard to get past his bulk and appreciate his skill (probably best to LISTEN to him rather than WATCH him).  His most famous song was “Mississippi Queen”.  We saw them open up for Deep Purple in 1985 (Perfect Strangers tour) and he forgot the words to “Nantucket Sleighride”, which didn’t impress us. 

 Emerson, Lake & Palmer.  Keith Emerson (gonzo keyboardist), Greg Lake (bassist/singer – formerly with King Crimson) and Carl Palmer (drummer) – though Cozy Powell stepped in briefly in the mid-80s.  We saw them play at the Cap Center in 1986, but I can’t remember anything.  I’ve heard Pictures at an Exhibition, but didn’t like it – it was too much like King Crimson without a guitarist.  But the first album (self-titled) and Tarkus (2nd album) are both excellent.

 King Crimson.  They qualify only for the Red album, which they didn’t even tour: Robert Fripp (of course) (guitar), John Wetton (bass/vocals) and Bill Bruford (drums).  As I noted in my lengthy KC blog, Red was the pinnacle of a three-album streak including Larks’ Tongues in Aspic and Starless.  Thankfully they did play “Red” on their most recent tour.  And around the time of Thrak (1995), KC was actually a “double trio”: Fripp and Belew on guitar, Trey Gunn and Tony Levin on bass/stick, and Pat Mastelotto and Bill Bruford on drums.

 Grand Funk Railroad.  Mark Farner (guitar/vocals), Mel Schacter (bass), and Don Brewer (drums/vocals), from Flint, Michigan and associated with Terry Knight.  They had their peak in the 70s.  I never liked their top hit, “We’re An American Band”; they had so much better songs, “Walk Like A Man”, “Sin’s A Good Man’s Brother”, “Heartbreaker”, “Mean Mistreater” and “Can’t Take Too Long”.  Supposedly the press hated GFR, even if Homer Simpson was a huge fan. 

 Rush.  From Canada, starting in 1974, and with the same lineup since Neil Peart (drums) replaced John Rutsey after the first album.  Alex Lifeson (guitar) and Geddy Lee (bass/vocals) are the other two.  Lee’s voice took some time to get used to.  My introduction was Moving Pictures and “Tom Sawyer”.  Geddy doubles up on keyboards, filling out the sound a little more.  They are still active, and featured in “I Love You, Man”. 

 Triumph.  Also from Canada, coming out in the mid-70s, and accused of being Rush clones, though their sound is much heavier and more pop-oriented – far closer to Blue Oyster Cult than Rush (though with none of BOC’s quirky and obscure references).  Rik Emmitt (guitar/vocals), Gil Moore (drums/vocals) and Mike Levine (bass).  We saw Triumph at the Patriot Center on Halloween, 1986, with Yngwie Malmsteen opening up – front row seats.  They broke up in 1988, but Rik Emmitt still tours and plays Triumph material. 

 Budgie.  From Wales, England, starting off in the early 70s with Burke Shelley (vocals/bass), Tony Bourge (guitar), and various drummers, most consistently Steve Williams.  Shelley’s voice is somewhat like Geddy Lee’s.  The first four albums were heavy, even to the point of having early Black Sabbath producer Rodger Bain producing them, but with the strangest song titles: “She’s As Hot As A Docker’s Armpit” and “Nude Disintegrating Parachutist Woman”, topping Frank Zappa and Blue Oyster Cult.  The later three of seven albums with Tony Bourge (Bandolier, If I Were Britannia I’d Waive the Rules, and Impeckable) have a snappier, jazzier feel, even vaguely bossa nova, before Bourge left – to be replaced by John Thomas, at which point (1980) they turned into a New Wave of British Heavy Metal Band.  Metallica resurrected their career by covering “Crash Course in Brain Surgery” (on the Garage Days Re-Revisited EP) and “Breadfan”.

 Motorhead.  Fresh from Hawkwind’s ill-advised sacking of him in 1975, Lemmy (bassist/vocalist) lost no time in forming this band.  The classic lineup, which recorded Ace of Spades in 1980, was Lemmy, “Fast” Eddie Clarke (guitar – I always thought he looked like Ritchie Blackmore, even to the point of playing Stratocasters) and “Philty Animal” Taylor (drums).  For one album, Another Perfect Day, the band had Thin Lizzy’s Brian Robertson, but that lasted almost no time.  They also had Pete Gill (Saxon) for some time as well.   Briefly Motorhead had two guitarists, Wurzel and Phil Campbell, but are back to a trio format with just Campbell.  All their albums sound the same to me, but they do rock.  Lemmy is certainly one of the more colorful characters in hard rock.

 Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble.  If I included Hendrix here, SRV belongs here too.  His bassist was Tommy Shannon (who used to play with Johnny Winter), his drummer was Chris Layton.  The Texas blues guitarist died in a helicopter crash in 1990.  He was the younger brother of Jimmy Vaughan, guitarist in the Fabulous Thunderbirds.  His major hits were “Pride & Joy”. “The Sky Is Crying”, and his cover of Jimi Hendrix’ “Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)”. 

 The Police.  I’ve never been a fan of this band, though I do like “Wrapped Around Your Finger”.  Sting (Gordon Sumner) (bass/vocals), Andy Summers (guitar), and Stuart Copeland (drums).  In high school they were the band to see, but I passed on the Synchronicity Tour.  I liked Sting in “Dune” as Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen.  Rik Emmett (as noted above) put it well, commenting on Andy Summers: “he was very much a Telecaster w/chorus kind of guitarist, and my preference was Les Paul through a Marshall.”  The Edge has a similar light and fluffy touch on the guitar – and they both make Mark Knopfler sound like Pete Townshend.

 Nirvana.  I’ve noted them already in my grunge blog: Kurt Cobain (guitar/vocals), Krist Novoselic (bass) and Dave Grohl (drums).  Grohl did a spell in the Queens of the Stone Age as well as his own band Foo Fighters.