[grooveless touque]

I have no doubts about it...with regard to their entire career, collectively, the Hip are my favourite artists. Bob Dylan is 2nd, but only because he has so many spotty albums, and I listen to at least one Hip album or show a day...and as much as I love albums by my other favourite artists - Mark Knopfler, R.E.M., John Hiatt, Blue Rodeo, etc...I cannot say that, taken as a whole, anyone else's album catalogue or live show BEATS the Hip. The Hip are honestly, absolutely, positively my favourite band.

This is NOT - repeat, NOT - a judgment on anyone who does not feel this way. I am genuinely curious to know how many people in here rate the Hip as their favourite band of all.

[ShannonW]

Without a doubt... most of the time I have to FORCE myself to listen to something else.

[intothenight]

Your poll needs more options. If the Hip are truly your one and only FAVOURITE band. . you need to expand your horizons.

I love them a hell of a lot more than most bands. . but I love many other bands quite a lot too.

[tigerthelion]

They are definitely my favourite. I listen to them too much I think. People think I need to listen to other music and that the Hip aren't the only band in the world. I agree that there is an enormous amount of great music out there.

However, I am adamant that the Hip are still the best band in Canada at the MOMENT and ONE OF the best Canadian bands of all time. They may not be greater than the likes of The Band or Neil Young or Gordon Lightfoot but they are on that list. They are not the best musicians in Canada but they make music that is transcendent. They aren't just a musical band, they are part of Canadian culture. They kind of transcend music in Canada and are more important than just musical notes and lyrics. They are proof that music isn't about technical expertise of the instruments but it is about feeling and songs that mean something. It is about working hard and putting everything you've got into expressing yourself through musical instruments. (OH goodness. Sorry for the inspirational mumbo jumbo. I can't believe how corny I sound)

I like other music like Neil Young, Pearl Jam, Sarah Harmer, Soundgarden, etc. I also like a lot of people just for a few songs. I don't rate The Hip as neccesarily the BEST band ever. I rate Neil Young and others ahead of them on the greatness scale but they are still my favourite. Also, I have respect for most music even if I don't like it.

[grooveless touque]

Your poll needs more options. If the Hip are truly your one and only FAVOURITE band. . you need to expand your horizons.

I love them a hell of a lot more than most bands. . but I love many other bands quite a lot too.

Your second point is exactly what I was trying to get around. Can you think of another band/artist whose albums you listen to more? Whose music you find more expressive? Whose lyrics you find more profound? Whose live show you enjoy so much? If your answers are no, no, no and no, then the Hip are your favourite band. They have everything for me.

Bob Dylan ranks so close it's hard to call...but I have to say that, despite the obvious brilliance of his music, and the depth of my appreciation for it, I love the Hip's material more on the whole.

You're trying to get into too many shades of grey! However, in the event that you cannot elevate one of your favourites above another, this poll does not apply to you. This is a poll for people with an opinion one way or the other - whether the Hip are their favourite, or whether, as the second option states, there is another artist they appreciate MORE.

[lord brazle]

They're my absolute favourite band. They're the only band that I own every album by.

I also own every Kid Rock album but I don't like him enough to go and talk about him on his forum. lol.

:thumb:

[LastStop]

The Hip is somewhere in the middle of my top ten.

Neil Young is number one all-time for me. 8)

[cpierson]

I've had Sloan phases, 54-40 phases, Headstones phases, Zeppelin phases, Talking Heads phases, even Yes phases, but I always come back to the Hip. They're the only band whose CDs I have to buy the DAY they come out, and new CDs tend to get played non-stop for a week or two. I always see them when they come to town, every show if they're doing a multi-night stand. This is the only band-related board I post to, and they're the only band that's ever inspired me to go searching the net for their unreleased and live material.

So yeah, favorite band.

[scottitude]

...They may not be greater than the likes of The Band or Neil Young or Gordon Lightfoot but they are on that list...They kind of transcend music...it is about feeling and songs that mean something...

There's no doubt in my mind that thirty-plus years from now, The Hip will be widely recognized for everything that makes them The Hip; everything that we already know.

As for other artists, yeah there are many I like, many I'll listen to, and many whose CDs I own. But there are more that I won't waste a minute on.

I hate to spout clichés (not really) but when it comes to music, either it'll move me or it'll move right through me. The Hip continue to move me.

~Scott

[direwolf74]

They're definitely my favorite artist of all time. When I first got into music I was a big U2 fanatic. At the time I was quite certain that they'd be my favorite band forever, but that all changed during one magnificent afternoon in 1990. My friend and I were hanging out and listening to his older brother's record collection when we found an album called "Up to Here" by some relatively unknown Canadian band with a weird name. Right from the first notes of Blow at High Dough we knew we had found something new, unique and exciting. Needless to say I haven't been the same since.

This isn’t to say I don’t listen to other music. My friends constantly refer to me as “their friend the music junkie." My CD collection is closing in on 700, and 95% of those are store-bought (wow, what a concept!)
I have an endless list of favorite bands and artists who I could talk about for hours, but for me the Hip are still the kings of the castle. For one thing they're still well into a remarkable 20-year creative run that few other artists can match. Sure they've put out records that aren't as good as others, but they have yet to deliver a complete dud. Personally I don't think they're capable of putting out a bad album. I just don't ever see it happening. The biggest thing is of course their killer live show which is as good if not better than ANY artist out there, past or present. There are a lot of bands who have stellar live reputations (Radiohead, the Boss, Pearl Jam, U2) and I’d put the Hip up against those guys any day of the week.

[Stephen Dame]

I've turned down sex because a Gord interview came on TV... and I'd do it again.

Their work connects emotionally, audibly and intellectually... It's Hip for me.

[thipfan73]

I've turned down sex because a Gord interview came on TV... and I'd do it again.

Dayum! You know how much I LOVE Gord and I don't know if I'd appreciate being rejected because someone's fave singer was being interviewed.

You need to find yourself a woman who is as into the hip who you are because I know if a Gord interview was coming on I wouldn't be wanting to have sex during it!

However, there are VCRs! :lol:

[grooveless touque]

HAHAHA...that reminds me, one time my friend told me (I have no wya of knowing if it's true) that he was on the verge of getting a BJ while he was with his girlfriend and 50 Mission Cap came on the radio and he went "Is that a live version?!?" and ran across the room to turn it up. I heard tell it took days to get her back in the mood!

[Stephen Dame]

You need to find yourself a woman who is as into the hip who you are

Don't. I. Know. It.

[mark]

i love The Hip. but they aren't what i would call my "favorite" band. that honor belongs to DMB. i could listen to them for hours and hours.

the hip place a close 2nd