[gsmacleod]

I loved that Flamenco was in the setlist in Ottawa last summer; great to see again and I feel fortunate that in 7 shows, I've seen Flamenco 3 times.

Shane

[cochise]

Both Flamenco and Sherpa are two gold nuggets, not only just on the TATH album, but in the Hip's entire catalog. Both have such a great, relaxed vibe to them. I could never pick a favourite between the two of them.

You could even throw in The Apartment Song to that great, relaxed vibe feel too.

[senrab]

If you remember, Alanis Morissette has a song (Hand In My Pocket, came out the year before Henhouse) with a lyric "I'm sad but I'm laughing, I'm brave but I'm chicken shit" - that was a small/big deal at the time. I think she sang it on TV or something and it was in the news.
Anyway fast forward to 2001 and the Toronto benefit concert after 9/11. Alanis played her set (can't remember if it included that song), she got the "Hip hip hip" chant then The Hip come out and play a set including... Flamenco. Kind of wondered if they threw that in for the "chicken shit" lyric. It was probably more the "go to New York" lyric but still.

Thanks for your time on this random thought !

I remember that Music Without Borders show quite well. I was able to see it over the antenna in Buffalo

[chagrinfalls]

Great thread. I appreciate the 'Flamenco' appreciation, lol--I'm in love with this song right now. I'm having a hard time listening to the Hip in general, but Flamenco eases me into the room somehow. Still heartbreaking, but not as heartbreaking as trying to listen to 'Ahead by a Century' or 'Poets'. I'm not grieving well, I guess, lol.

Flamenco makes me think of Gord's strength & grace on stage:

Flamenco-sweep the air
And weave the sun
And stamp your feet for everyone

It appeared like magic in the Ottawa show last year, & I've listened to it off & on ever since. It's hard to believe Gord wrote it 20 years ago, because it's so relevant to his current circumstances. Yesterday he could have written:

Walk like a matador,
Don't be chicken-shit
And turn breezes into rivulets

If you could sum up how Gord has handled himself since his diagnosis, that's it in 3 lines.

Lyrically tho, the song has always seemed like a collage to me, distinct fragments held together by the music. Before Gord's illness, I always thought of it primarily as a relationship song--a private, turbulent conversation with "you" & "your", lyrically. But also the way it veers between intense emotions, including love & hate, the way couples can when it's not going well. Especially this gem:

"Maybe I'll go to New York, I'll drag you there--
You said, "no one drags me anywhere"

It's just such a perfect microcosm of misunderstanding & hurt feelings, tentativeness & resentment. The failed communication of the Relationship Bad Place, lol, where it feels like neither of you can say anything right. & all of this emotional turmoil counterbalanced by the quiet steadiness & constancy of the music. It's a gem.

This video is interesting--I wonder if 'Flamenco' & 'Coke Machine Glow' actually emerged around the same time, creatively--are linked somehow:

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU</a><!-- m -->

[youtube]xW68VFKh-iU[/youtube]

[chancellor]

Great thread. I appreciate the 'Flamenco' appreciation, lol--I'm in love with this song right now. I'm having a hard time listening to the Hip in general, but Flamenco eases me into the room somehow. Still heartbreaking, but not as heartbreaking as trying to listen to 'Ahead by a Century' or 'Poets'. I'm not grieving well, I guess, lol.

Flamenco makes me think of Gord's strength & grace on stage:

Flamenco-sweep the air
And weave the sun
And stamp your feet for everyone

It appeared like magic in the Ottawa show last year, & I've listened to it off & on ever since. It's hard to believe Gord wrote it 20 years ago, because it's so relevant to his current circumstances. Yesterday he could have written:

Walk like a matador,
Don't be chicken-shit
And turn breezes into rivulets

If you could sum up how Gord has handled himself since his diagnosis, that's it in 3 lines.

Lyrically tho, the song has always seemed like a collage to me, distinct fragments held together by the music. Before Gord's illness, I always thought of it primarily as a relationship song--a private, turbulent conversation with "you" & "your", lyrically. But also the way it veers between intense emotions, including love & hate, the way couples can when it's not going well. Especially this gem:

"Maybe I'll go to New York, I'll drag you there--
You said, "no one drags me anywhere"

It's just such a perfect microcosm of misunderstanding & hurt feelings, tentativeness & resentment. The failed communication of the Relationship Bad Place, lol, where it feels like neither of you can say anything right. & all of this emotional turmoil counterbalanced by the quiet steadiness & constancy of the music. It's a gem.

This video is interesting--I wonder if 'Flamenco' & 'Coke Machine Glow' actually emerged around the same time, creatively--are linked somehow:

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU</a><!-- m -->

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU[/youtube]

The video link is not working

[Tthip]

This video is interesting--I wonder if 'Flamenco' & 'Coke Machine Glow' actually emerged around the same time, creatively--are linked somehow:

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU</a><!-- m -->

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW68VFKh-iU[/youtube]

The video link is not working

[youtube]xW68VFKh-iU[/youtube]

[chagrinfalls]

[youtube]xW68VFKh-iU[/youtube]

That's it!--thankyou! If I can still edit it I'll go back & fix it.