Great Canadian Musicians

[Taylor57]

As I listen to Neil Young do Helpless from the Last Waltz, I wonder how many of you Canadians have listened to the Barenaked Ladies?

 

[pmcdonald]

I listen to a lot of contemporary (or near contemporary) Canadian artists: Arcade Fire, Fiest, Metric, Broken Social Scene, Stars, Crystal Castles. The music scene in Montreal seemed to be on fire a decade ago!

 

[JRA]

I nominate Bubbles.

 

[Taylor57]

I listen to a lot of contemporary (or near contemporary) Canadian artists: Arcade Fire, Fiest, Metric, Broken Social Scene, Stars, Crystal Castles. The music scene in Montreal seemed to be on fire a decade ago!

Lets recap the greatest Canadian rock band of alltime. Most humans would say Rush, but the correct answer is BNL

 

[Taylor57]

Whoops I will include Tragically Hip in the conversation, but the greatest Canadian rock band ever to this day is by far BNL

 

[Taylor57]

I nominate Bubbles.

Who is Bubbles?

 

[Dallant]

Joni, of course.

 

[Taylor57]

I knew I could catch the attention of our awesome northern neighbors!

 

[Taylor57]

For me I would not even consider the BNL's as a rock band. Commercial radio band

The BNLs not a rock band? MMC, I am sending your reply above to the department of information.

 

[Art Deco]

The best I couldn't say, but way back in the day a guy named Gordon Lightfoot did a pretty good job with ballads.

 

[Taylor57]

Big Yellow Taxi was played on a Sesame Street episode a long time ago and my 5 year old niece couldn't get it out of her head.
Counting Crows did a great rendition of it

MMC, I will never ever discount J Mitchell. I think her and N Young are in the same boat-awesome solo artists. The greatest rock band however, that ever came from Canada were the Barenaked Ladies with Stephen Page. Thank goodness, I cant name a song from Rush...

 

[McCorby]

Canadian bands/artists are only as good as the marketing behind them.
With that said, there is a lot of great musical talent in Canada yet the marketing and advertising dollars needed to promote them is just not up to scale as with say a new US band/artist.
Bands/artists with lack lustre marketing that may be big in Canada but have little airplay outside of Canada may include: Tragically Hip, Bruce Cockburn, Blue Rodeo, Arcade Fire, Diana Krall, MIchael Buble, and a host of others.
There's a reason why it took so long for RUSH to get nominated for the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, not many in the US listen to them or knew who they are.

I saw Arcade Fire a couple years ago at the Summerfest festival in Milwaukee, WI. They were really good!

Lots and lots of Americans know and listen to Rush! 2112 is one of my favorite albums.

 

[Taylor57]

Oh, Jeez Louise. It's not even close. BNL is by far, the greatest band to ever come out of Canada. (Neil and Joni are solo artists) Tragically Hip is in the conversation even thought with a gun to my head, I couldn't name 1 song.

And the Rush thing? Name a Rush song.

 

[BTfl]

Oh, Jeez Louise. It's not even close. BNL is by far, the greatest band to ever come out of Canada. (Neil and Joni are solo artists) Tragically Hip is in the conversation even thought with a gun to my head, I couldn't name 1 song.

And the Rush thing? Name a Rush song.

roll the bones

 

[Taylor57]

roll the bones

I saw your post and I had to LOL

 

[Taylor57]

Maybe NOW they do after 2 decades of exposure.
2112 was released in 1976 - moreover, Rush was considered a prog-rock band and people in general did not pay much attention to prog-rock ie: ELP, Yes, FM, Mike Oldfield etc.
Back then when it was released it was competing against:

Eagles - Hotel California
Led Zeppelin - Presence
Boston - self titled album
Fleetwood Mac - Rumors
Aerosmith - Rocks
AC/DC - Dirty Deeds
Tom Petty & Heartbreakers - self titled album
Supertramp - Crime of the Century
KISS - Destroyer
Steve MIller Band - Fly Like an Eagle
Queen - Day at the Races
Doobie Bros - Taking It To The Streets
Genesis - Trick of the Tail
Rolling Stones - Black and Blue

Dave Grohl said it perfectly during the Hall of Fame induction on how RUSH was so overlooked

RUSH's worldwide albums sales is only 40million

MMC- I did my best to decipher the code. But just between us girls, the greatest rock band to ever come out of Canada or any of their affiliates is the Bare Naked Ladies

 

[Mulezen]

The Canadians I most listen to nowadays...Colter Wall and Corb Lund...apt pupils of the great Ian Tyson are the present and accounted for of the new generation.
I grew up in the 50s with country music filling my house...and I mean physically which meant Cline and Cash among others. So as a kid I rejected it to play classical in the school concert band. Fortunately I’ve since come to my senses and returned to my roots. I find Colter’s voice as distinctive as the aforementioned Johnny Cash, his song writing sensibility as well.

 

[Taylor57]

Actually Neil was first in Buffalo Springfield and even got indicted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as Buffalo Springfield

Canadians have been a huge part of rock music as kind and benevolent as they always have been. (As I listen to Neil Young do My My Hey Hey)

 

[Taylor57]

Eh?

 

[McCorby]

Oh, Jeez Louise. It's not even close. BNL is by far, the greatest band to ever come out of Canada. (Neil and Joni are solo artists) Tragically Hip is in the conversation even thought with a gun to my head, I couldn't name 1 song.

And the Rush thing? Name a Rush song.

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