The Tragically Hip Podcast Series

Ten years on, jD sits down with three fans who were there the night the Tragically Hip played Vancouver on the Man Machine Poem tour — the second stop of Gord Downie's final run across Canada. Tina, Joe, and Shaun walk through the whole arc of that evening: the scramble for tickets when floor seats and Ticketmaster luck meant everything, the electric-but-apprehensive mood in the building as everyone wondered how Gord would hold up, and the moment his shaking hand during "Three Pistols" turned nerves into relief.
The conversation ranges from the emotional gut-punches — "Grace, Too," "Bobcaygeon," "Tired as Fuck," and "At Transformation" — to the craft behind the show: the band huddling close around Gord like a bar band again, the retrospective set lists that pulled from nearly half their catalog, and the stripped-down staging that only fully landed watching the final concert on TV. Along the way there's talk of secondary-market ticket gouging and dynamic pricing, the pride of a country coming together over a rock band, and how each of them found their way home that night carrying a feeling Tina sums up perfectly: "How can you feel so empty and so full at the same time?"
Next episode: July 26 — Vancouver Night 2, with a new panel.
Tina from Vancouver
A devoted Hip fan (by her own admission the bigger fan in her household) who scored floor seats, row 26, through Ticketmaster while nearly everyone she knew was shut out. "Grace, Too" was the song that hit her hardest that night. By day she works for a Canadian pet-treat company.
Only One Treats — Canadian-made pet treats with a single ingredient. Find them on Facebook, Instagram, and other socials, and in local pet food stores.

Joe from Vancouver
A lifelong musician (playing in bands since he was 15) and an entertainment-lighting professional — a rental account manager for a major North American lighting company. He got into Vancouver Night 1 on a spare ticket from his cousin's daughter, sat on Rob's side of the arena, and has played Rob Baker in a Hip tribute, which shaped how closely he watched the band that night. "Bobcaygeon" is the song that still takes him back.
Blue Collar Overdrive — his Bachman Turner Overdrive tribute band (Joe on bass, handling the Fred Turner vocals).
Website: bluecollaroverdrive.com
Facebook: facebook.com/bluecollaroverdrive
Upcoming shows: Kamloops Rib Fest (Aug 9), Langley Rib Fest (Aug 14), Retro Fest at Sun Peaks (Aug 24)

Shaun from Vancouver
A big fan who first heard the news — Gord's diagnosis and the one last tour — while riding the SkyTrain out to Surrey. He got a ticket on the first crack through Ticketmaster and watched from the rafters, just happy to be in the building. "Three Pistols" is forever linked for him to the image of Gord's shaking hand. Outside the music, he runs a pair of travel websites and recently drove an EV across Scandinavia to the top of Europe.
thislifeandtrips.com
myevtrips.com

Connect with the Podcast
Website: home.tthpods.com
Reach jD: JD@tthpods.com
A presentation of the Tragically Hip Podcast Series.

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Ten years to the day. Three fans who were in the building for opening night in Victoria tell the story - the tickets, the silver suit, and the night the Man Machine Poem Tour began.
Episode Summary
First stop. July 22nd, 2016. The Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria, where The Tragically Hip opened the Man Machine Poem Tour and, as jD puts it, tore the place up. Ten years later, Yer Hipstories: Reflections From The Final Tour gathers three fans who were there - Chris from Kelowna, Dave from Campbell River, and Jay from Edmonton - to take it from soup to nuts: hearing the news, chasing the tickets, and living the night.
The ticket stories alone are worth the price of admission. Dave had seen The Hip 19 times and never sweated a ticket - until dynamic pricing and the bots turned this on-sale into the most stressful of his life. Chris dumb-lucked into fabulous seats through a venue voucher he had to drive to Victoria to redeem - and ended up on CBC, Global, CTV, and CNNalong the way, posting his mileage in a very Canadian unit: 12 Tragically Hip songs per hundred kilometres. Jay stared down 45 minutes of "sold out" on Ticketmaster before row four on the floor appeared for him, his wife, and his two-year-old daughter - then did it again and landed row two for Vancouver.
Then the lights went down and 'Boots or Hearts' opened the night. The panel remembers the acoustic-style start, the deep cuts up front, Gord Downie's glittering silver suit and feather - and Chris's reading of it all: this was the band flipping the bird at cancer and controlling the narrative. Jay's daughter got a wave from Gord during 'Blow at High Dough' - a moment you can spot in the documentary. Dave got 'The Luxury', played for the first time since 2000, at his 20th show.
There's real talk about the four "Man Machine Poem" songs played each night - 'In a World Possessed by the Human Mind', 'Machine', 'What Blew', and one more with a title we can't print here - plus where everyone was on August 20th, 2016, from inside the Kingston barn to packed small-town bars in Dorintosh, Saskatchewan, and Vanderhoof, BC. The word the panel lands on: gratitude.
The Panel
Chris from Kelowna - longtime search and rescue volunteer, then living in Vanderhoof. Drove 1,000 kilometres to the show with his brother and an iPod co-pilot, and became the national media's favourite Hip fan for a week.
Dave from Campbell River - joining from Halifax on the other end of the country. Victoria was his 20th Hip show; he carried on to Ottawa and Kingston, and he has never said goodbye.
Jay from Edmonton - then in Calgary, tent trailer in tow for a family vacation on the island. His two-year-old daughter is the little girl in the headphones in the documentary. Victoria was show 39 of 40.
Timestamps
00:00 - Welcome and panel introductions
02:01 - Ticket stress: bots, dynamic pricing, and pure persistence
08:27 - Chris's media tour: CBC, Global, CTV, and CNN
11:16 - The opener: 'Boots or Hearts' hits different
13:51 - 'Blow at High Dough' and a wave from Gord
16:29 - The silver suit, the feather, and flipping the bird at cancer
22:14 - The "Man Machine Poem" songs live
28:09 - A farewell party and the beginning of a goodbye
35:47 - August 20th, 2016: Kingston, and the bars that held the rest of us
41:34 - News: the live record and the National Celebration rebroadcast
42:46 - Final thoughts on Victoria
50:42 - Gratitude and what comes next
Resources & References
Setlist and play-count data: hat tip to Hipbase and setlist.fm
The documentary moments discussed come from Long Time Running
National Celebration returns: a live record on August 21st, and the CBC rebroadcast on August 22nd
Related listening: The Tragically Hip On Shuffle - Live Stream: The Darkest One
Join In
This series is a living audio time capsule, and it only works if the community brings the goods. Were you at a stop on the Man Machine Poem Tour? Share your Hipstory and be part of the record. Want more from the network between episodes? Subscribe to Yer Letter, the monthly newsletter from jD.
Closing
Huge thanks to Chris from Kelowna, Dave from Campbell River, and Jay from Edmonton for opening the vault on opening night - the nerves, the tears, the feather, and the wave. The takeaway this week is the word Chris found and everyone kept: gratitude. They chose the stage. We got to be there. So there's that.
In two days, the series crosses the Strait to the mainland: Vancouver, July 24th, 2016. Get after it.
Connect
Facebook group: community.tthpods.com | Instagram: @tthpods | YouTube: youtube.com/@tthpods | Email: jd@tthpods.com
#TheTragicallyHip #TheHip #GordDownie #ManMachinePoem #InGordWeTrust #YerFavourites

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A side-two burner with a secret third verse? The panel digs into the 1988 Horseshoe debut and discovers 'Every Time You Go' was once a song called 'Holding Out'.
Episode Summary
The wheel said 'Every Time You Go', and the wheel does not lie. This week, The Tragically Hip On Shuffle takes on the side-two rocker from "Up to Here" (1989) - played live 61 times between July 15th, 1988 and June 25th, 2004, three of them as encores, and ranked #93 of 169 on the fan countdown, sandwiched between 'Heaven Is a Better Place Today' and 'When the Weight Comes Down'. jD gathers Andrew from Winnipeg, Adam from South Tampa, and Daryl from Belleville to debate, discuss, and dissect it.
The listening party spins the demo from the "Up to Here" box set - a skeleton with muscle, as jD puts it, alive but not quite finished. Then comes the find of the night: both Daryl and Adam independently dug up the song's live debut at the Horseshoe Tavern, July 15th, 1988, where Gord Downie introduces it as 'Holding Out', dedicates it to race car driver Bobby Rahal, and sings a lost third verse - a prom dress, a tear-stained vest, and a waltz - that the band later cut. They did not play it again for a year. So there's that.
From there it's a close read of the lyrics - knowing a Dave, the big snake pit, a birthday suitcase brown from dust from no place, and the formidable "my girl don't just walk, she unfurls" - plus the Thunder Road parallel, the highway girl connection, and Andrew's case that this song is the musical blueprint for 'Little Bones'. The poll lands at 69% love it, the panel wrestles with a front-loaded record and a side two that swings, and Adam asks the question every box-set owner is asking: how did 'Wait So Long' not make this album?
The wheel gets spun twice (a first - the chat caught a repeat), the Kingston gathering gets a massive plug, and a big scheduling announcement lands: next week's live stream moves to Tuesday night, because Wednesday belongs to the debut of Yer Hipstories: Reflections From The Final Tour.
The Panel
Andrew from Winnipeg - host of Alphabet Soup on UMFM (the letter Z is up next), the Radiohead podcast Head Full of Radio, and Threads Bachelorette. This week's cheerful tolerator, and the man who spotted the 'Little Bones'DNA.
Adam from South Tampa - retired, armed with the actual countdown brochure, and the one who caught the play-count error in the listing. Grateful this song is not the Paul Young one.
Daryl from Belleville - survived a last-minute audio miracle (and a spilled plant) to get on the stream. Vintage Hip evangelist who introduced "Up to Here" to his 17-year-old daughter, and co-discoverer of the lost verse.
Timestamps
00:00 - Welcome and panel introductions
01:23 - First hit: favourite Hip summer jams
06:06 - The tale of the tape: 'Every Time You Go' by the numbers
08:32 - Poll check: 69% love it
10:56 - Listening party: the demo from the "Up to Here" box set
14:32 - First reactions: reverb, toms, and background vocals
17:00 - The lost verse: July 15th, 1988 at the Horseshoe, and a song called 'Holding Out'
20:47 - Andrew hears 'Little Bones' in the bones
25:57 - The curse of the first two records
29:31 - The lyrics: Daves, snake pits, and a girl who unfurls
36:11 - Side two of "Up to Here": front-loaded or fully loaded?
44:46 - The 'Wait So Long' problem
46:56 - Final thoughts around the table
53:37 - Spin the wheel - twice
57:05 - Big announcements: Tuesday streams and a new series
58:37 - Plugs and the Kingston gathering
Resources & References
Setlist and play-count data: hat tip to the Hip Handbook and setlist.fm
The 1988 Horseshoe Tavern recording courtesy of The Tragically Hip Archive - preservation work that made the whole episode
The demo of 'Every Time You Go' comes from the "Up to Here" box set
Podcasts plugged this week: Sarah's Tangentially Hip, Head Full of Radio, Alphabet Soup on UMFM, and Threads Bachelorette
Join In
The randomness is the feature, and the community is the point. Join the community Facebook group to catch the next live stream, vote in the polls, and share your take in the chat. Want more from the network between episodes? Subscribe to Yer Letter, the monthly newsletter from jD.
Heading to Kingston? The gathering runs August 20th to 23rd alongside Forever Hip - a mixer at the Merchant Pub, Choir! Choir! Choir! in Springer Market Square, a listening party for the brand new record "The Tragically Hip Live, July 22 - August 20, 2016" on its release day, a Long Time Running screening, the CBC re-airing of a national celebration, and a farewell brunch at Morrison's. Reach out to jD to get in on any or all of it.
Closing
Huge thanks to Andrew from Winnipeg, Adam from South Tampa, and Daryl from Belleville for bringing the goods - lost verses, countdown brochures, and one very good Everly Brothers joke. The takeaway this week: even a side-two album track has a secret history, and sometimes the archive gives you a whole extra verse.
Two dates to circle. Next week the live stream moves to Tuesday night at 8 to talk '700 Ft. Ceiling' from "Trouble at the Hen House". Then Wednesday night, exactly ten years on from Victoria, Yer Hipstories: Reflections From The Final Tour kicks off - a new episode every second day celebrating the Man Machine Poem Tour. Get after it.
Connect
Facebook group: community.tthpods.com | Instagram: @tthpods | YouTube: youtube.com/@tthpods | Email: jd@tthpods.com
#TheTragicallyHip #TragicallyHip #GordDownie #UpToHere #TTHOnShuffle #InGordWeTrust

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A song this beloved, played live only 31 times? The panel unpacks the mystery, the mischief, and the cat at the centre of 'The Darkest One'.
Episode Summary
The wheel landed on a big one. This week, The Tragically Hip On Shuffle pulls 'The Darkest One' - track three and the third single from "In Violet Light" (June 11th, 2002), and number 30 on the Tragically Hip Top 40 countdown. jD gathers Kirk from Chino, Sean from Toronto, and Duxoop from Toledo around the table to debate, discuss, and dissect it.
The tale of the tape raises the episode's central puzzle: first played live December 31st, 2001, last played August 1st, 2003, and just 31 performances all-time. Why did a single this strong vanish from the setlists? The panel has theories - Gord Downie's punishing high notes, his one-of-a-kind delivery timing, and the karaoke bravery both would demand.
There's a listen to a formidable live version from Vancouver, September 20th, 2002, a close read of the lyrics (a darling sky, not a darkening one - and the moment as a wild place), and Duck Soup's honest, funny, and disarming answer to the question the song keeps asking: who's the darkest one in your friend group?
Then it's off to the music video - the Trailer Park Boys, Don Cherry, vintage KFC buckets, and one great cat let in from the rain. The panel ranks the song on the album, mourns Hockey Night in Canada, debates a "Fully Completely" box set, and jD floats a Hip Club conspiracy theory about those suspiciously excellent bonus tracks.
 The Panel
Sean from Toronto - repping The Hip from the West Coast, where he saw them at the Commodore on the World Container tour. This week's cheerfully unrepentant heel on 'All Tore Up’.
Duxoop from Toledo - honorary Canuck (the Duck Canuck), karaoke stalwart, and the self-confessed darkest one in his friend group.
Kirk from Chino - Discovering Downie alum, guitarist with The Daryls, and currently in the studio recording his first solo album, "From the Kirkyard", with producer Joey Delgado. Find him at Kirk Lane Music.
 Timestamps
- 00:00 - Welcome and panel introductions
- 03:14 - First hit: favourite Hip summer jams
- 06:05 - The tale of the tape: 'The Darkest One' by the numbers
- 09:37 - High notes, weird timing, and the karaoke problem
- 11:20 - Poll check: "In Violet Light" gets its flowers
- 13:44 - Listening party: 'The Darkest One' live in Vancouver, 2002
- 18:54 - First thoughts around the table
- 25:35 - The lyrics: every friend group has one
- 32:16 - The video: Trailer Park Boys, Don Cherry, and a great cat
- 37:50 - Final thoughts and album rankings
- 46:24 - Did it break through south of the border?
- 53:16 - Spin the wheel: next week's song revealed
- 55:11 - Plugs
 Resources & References
- Setlist and play-count data: hat tip to Hipbase and setlist.fm
- Live recording courtesy of The Tragically Hip Archive
- The Hugh Padgham stories come from This Is Our Life by Michael Barclay
- Bands plugged this week: The Fabulously Rich (Pacific Northwest), Gift Shop (Vancouver), the Knights of Molino (San Francisco), The Daryls, and the Delgado Brothers
- Related listening: Discovering Downie, wherever you get your podcasts
 Join In
The randomness is the feature, and the community is the point. [Join the community Facebook group](https://community.tthpods.com) to catch the next live stream, vote in the polls, and share your take in the chat. Want more from the network between episodes? [Subscribe to Yer Letter](https://subscribe.tthpods.com), the monthly newsletter from jD.
 Closing
Huge thanks to Kirk from Chino, Sean from Toronto, and Duxoop from Toledo for pinch-hitting on short notice and bringing the goods - from Salt Lake City name-drops to dentures that laugh. The takeaway this week: the wild are strong, the strong are the darkest ones, and every friend group has one. So there's that.
Next week, the wheel says 'Every Time You Go' - a deep cut from "Up to Here". Get after it.
 Connect
Facebook group: [community.tthpods.com](https://community.tthpods.com) | Instagram: @tthpods | YouTube: youtube.com/@tthpods | Email: jd@tthpods.com
TheTragicallyHip TheHip GordDownie InVioletLight TTHOnShuffle InGordWeTrust

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Meta description (155 characters): The Tragically Hip On Shuffle unpacks 'The Darkest One' from In Violet Light - Gord Downie's high notes, the Trailer Park Boys video, and one great cat.

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The shuffle lands on *'Bobcaygeon'* - a love song built on a race riot, and the track one fan ties to losing Gord Downie.
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"This is the song I think of when I think about coming to terms with the fact that Gord Downie was going to die."
Dave from Montreal
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Episode Summary
The Tragically Hip On Shuffle - Live Stream is back after a week off, and the shuffle lands on *'Bobcaygeon'*, the acoustic-leaning centrepiece of "Phantom Power" and one of the most beloved songs in the entire **Tragically Hip** catalogue. The panel - **Chris from Seattle**, **Greg from the Kootenays**, and **Dave from Montreal** - takes it apart from every angle.
They dig into the constellation imagery, the buried 1933 Christie Pitts riot the lyric nods to, the much-debated "Aryan twang" line, and the way **Gord Downie** humanizes a cop caught in the middle of it all. First impressions split the room between love at first listen and slow-burn grower. From there the conversation moves through the song's placement between *'Save the Planet'* and *'Thompson Girl'*, Steve Berlin's organ work, and how *'Bobcaygeon'* became, for more than one fan in the room, the song tied to coming to terms with **Gord Downie's** passing.
Along the way: an icebreaker on favourite live Hip performances, a featured live cut from Austin City Limits, poll results that surprise nobody, and a look ahead to the next shuffle. A real conversation about how a quiet song carries this much weight.
Tale of the Tape
- Song: *'Bobcaygeon'*, from "Phantom Power" (released July 14, 1998), the album's fourth single
- TTHTop40 Countdown ranking: #14
- First played live: May 10, 1997 - a full year before the record dropped
- Last played live: August 20, 2016
- Played as a show opener once, and as an encore 115 times
- Featured live cut: Austin City Limits, September 15, 2006
- Listener poll: 91% Love It, 7% Like It, 1% Tolerate It
The Panel
**Chris from Seattle** returns for his second appearance - the panel's lone American and a working musician. His band Loud Flowers just put out two EPs, the Litho EP and the Earwig EP, recorded in part at Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard's Seattle studio.
**Greg from the Kootenays** has caught The Hip somewhere north of 25 times and brings a scholar's eye. He has published academic work on the band, including the article "Ambiguously Hip: The Tragically Hip and Canadian Nationalism."
**Dave from Montreal** is a writer, journalist, and tour guide who has covered The Hip for years. He runs non-touristy Montreal tours with Spade and Palacio.
Resources, Links & References
- "Phantom Power" (1998) - the album *'Bobcaygeon'* calls home
- Featured live version: Austin City Limits, September 15, 2006
- Setlist and live-performance data sourced from Hipbase and setlist.fm
- Live recordings via The Tragically Hip Archive
- Band history reference: This Is Our Life by Michael Barclay
- Greg's article: "Ambiguously Hip: The Tragically Hip and Canadian Nationalism"
- Chris's band: Loud Flowers - the Litho EP and the Earwig EP
- Dave Kaufman's Montreal tours with Spade and Palacio - Instagram @davekaufman1, Bluesky @davekaufman
- Related listening: Discovering Downie
Support the Show
Editing is hard, and the coffee runs dry. If The Tragically Hip On Shuffle - Live Stream keeps your battery charged, you can drop a caribou in the tip jar at buymeacoffee.com/tthtop40. Tips, always - never an ask.
Big thanks to **Chris from Seattle** for coming back and bringing the musician's ear, to **Greg from the Kootenays** for the scholarship and the 25-shows-deep perspective, and to **Dave from Montreal** for going somewhere heavy and honest with this one. *'Bobcaygeon'* is a slow jam about something dark and ominous under the surface, and this panel found every layer of it. Next shuffle is *'The Darkest One'* on July 8 - no show on Canada Day, so mark the calendar.
- Explore the full discography, lyrics, credits, and mapped live shows at The Hip Compendium: compendium.tthpods.com
The network home: home.tthpods.com
Facebook: community.tthpods.com | Instagram: @tthpods | YouTube: youtube.com/@tthpods | Email: jd@tthpods.com
#TheTragicallyHip #PhantomPower #GordDownie #TheHip #TTHOnShuffle #InGordWeTrust

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