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So the band and many fans don’t consider Kingston to be the highlight of the final tour.
So if not, then what was the high point of this tour?
One of the Toronto shows? I’d certainly vouch for the magic I saw at the last Toronto show. Though I didn’t see any other shows besides Kingston on TV.
Something out west?
Interesting to learn in the Barclay book that that one doctor didn’t even think the band would make it back east. Thank goodness they did. The only thing sadder than what happened would be for that tour to be cut short because of Gord.
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I was at Toronto nights 1 and 2, plus Kingston. I actually thought Toronto might 2 was the best show overall, but that also comes down to what I want to hear personally.
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I think the high point has to be the Kingston show just because of the cultural significance of the event. The final show by a legendary band whose singer was dying, broadcast live and watched by millions of people all over the world. In the Never-Ending Present book, I think it was Kate Fenner who mentioned that she was on vacation in Greece at the time, and the Hip show got a huge mention in the local paper there...in Greece of all places. That's pretty crazy.
I was only able to attend one show on the tour (Vancouver #1), and it's easily the greatest concert I've ever witnessed. For me, nothing will ever come close to topping the emotion and excitement of being there that night. And it sounds like the rest of the shows were equally amazing in their own ways. But Kingston was a cultural event the likes of which we'll probably never see again in our lifetimes.
From a purely musical standpoint, it's not a show I go back to often. But there are certain moments in that Kingston show that will stay with me forever:
-The guys hugging and kissing each other before they took the stage. I was already a teary, blubbering mess at that point, and the damn show hadn't even started.
-Gord's anguished, guttural howl during the outro to Grace,Too and the band firing on all cylinders behind him as if they were carrying him to the finish line. I mean, my god, what an incredible moment. It was transcendent. The power of music, man.
-Gord's challenge to Trudeau and his shaming of the country in regards to our treatment of First Nations. Very powerful stuff.
-That kick-ass performance of "Machine". Holy shit!
-Those final notes of ABAC ringing out across Canada and the world, and the guys on stage together for the last time saying goodbye to the fans. So beautiful.
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Obv that tour was nothing short of miraculous
However after seeing Long Time Running, I find it very difficult to listen to the bootlegs from that tour. Anytime a lyric or cue gets flubbed, I'm taken right out of the song and back to the very upsetting reality of the situation / tour. Recently listened to one of the Toronto shows all the way through (forget which one)... the whole show seemed a bit off to me. I'm sure there are some other shows that Gord nailed, but lots of cues and melodys and lyrics were missed. That whole listening experience was not enjoyable for me. In the past I would just shrug off missed cues and lyrics and not think twice about it. When I listen to 2016 boots, any missed lyric just brings a lump to my throat and a tear in my eye. Hope some people here understand what I'm trying to say.
2004-12-03 - Saint John/2005-09-03 - Moncton/2006-06-30 - Charlottetown/2006-11-09/10 - Montreal/2007-09-11 - Fredericton/2007-09-13 - Halifax/2007-09-14 - Sydney/2007-09-15 - Charlottetown/2008-06-30 - Charlottetown/2009-05-01/02 - Montreal/2011-06-28 - Moncton/2011-06-30 - Charlottetown/2012-06-30 - Niagara-on-the-Lake/2013-02-01 - Moncton/2013-02-02 - Halifax/2015-01-10 - Toronto/2015-02-20 - Montreal/2015-07-17 - Ottawa/2016-08-18 - Ottawa/2016-08-20 - Kingston
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Agree 100% Bonner. I watched the final show and LTR a few times after each came out, and it will almost certainly be the last time I watch/listen to anything related to that tour.
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Very lucky to see both Toronto 1 and Hamilton shows. I had pretty nice seats for the Toronto show and side right of the stage all the way in the last row for Hamilton. The Hamilton show for me was so much better.
Have to agree with Chris T. Periscoping every show late at night was amazing, cheering through my phone at Gord bringing his all every night.
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Got to see the Victoria, Ottawa and Kingston shows, and all three had significant moments for me, but if I had to choose the best show, it would be Victoria. Being the first show of the tour, having no idea what songs they were going to play, then seeing Gord come out in that ridiculously awesome outfit, was something else! Plus, the songs they pulled out were shocking; I got to see The Luxury for the first time, as well as lots of deep cuts that I hadn't heard in years, even decades.
The Ottawa show was special because they played an IBE set, which is one of my favourite albums, and they unfortunately buried those songs for some unknown reason after they toured that album.
The Kingston show was just totally different and I honestly can't really compare it to any other event I've seen. But from a purely musical/concert viewpoint, it was very good but not the best of the three, although I thought the version of M@W was the best I've ever seen, as it had some much energy and intensity (Rob seemed to be playing out of his mind on that one, imho) and Machine was an absolute beast that night, far better than the Victoria show and even the Ottawa show.
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I couldn't name an objective highest point of the tour. I can tell you, at the one show I saw -- the first night in Edmonton, that the moment at the end of Scared, when he sang "I've gotta go, it's been a pleasure doing business with you," and then acknowledged the entire crowd and mimed shaking hands around the arena as if completing a good faith business transaction...it was a gut punch and I cried and didn't recover for a few songs. It was lovely and heartbreaking all at the same time.
Jeff
June 21, 2003 Toronto, ON: SkyDome
July 1, 2004 Toronto, ON: Molson Amphitheatre
November 26, 2004 Toronto, ON: Air Canada Centre
June 24, 2006 Toronto, ON: Historic Fort York
May 10, 2007 Indianapolis, IN: The Vogue
July 14, 2011 Edmonton, AB: Northlands Festival Site
June 30, 2012 Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON: The Commons at Butler's Barracks
January 23, 2013 Edmonton, AB: Rexall Place
July 28, 2016 Edmonton, AB: Rexall Place
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Highest point ?
aimlessly wandering through the wrong underground parking lot in Toronto with my nephew looking for my car
( who had brought his vape and medicinal herb along that day )
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redhill Wrote:Highest point ?
aimlessly wandering through the wrong underground parking lot in Toronto with my nephew looking for my car
( who had brought his vape and medicinal herb along that day )
:lol: :lol:
If that's what we're going for, I could probably tell the story as to how my boyfriend dosed me for the Kingston show unbeknownst to me...
2004-12-03 - Saint John/2005-09-03 - Moncton/2006-06-30 - Charlottetown/2006-11-09/10 - Montreal/2007-09-11 - Fredericton/2007-09-13 - Halifax/2007-09-14 - Sydney/2007-09-15 - Charlottetown/2008-06-30 - Charlottetown/2009-05-01/02 - Montreal/2011-06-28 - Moncton/2011-06-30 - Charlottetown/2012-06-30 - Niagara-on-the-Lake/2013-02-01 - Moncton/2013-02-02 - Halifax/2015-01-10 - Toronto/2015-02-20 - Montreal/2015-07-17 - Ottawa/2016-08-18 - Ottawa/2016-08-20 - Kingston
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Almost a tie between Kingston and Hamilton for me. Kingston for the significance and atmosphere, and Hamilton for the show and crowd.
Across The Causeway '04 | Big Music Fest '08 | Kingston '09 | Bobcaygeon '11 | Cobourg '13 | Bluesfest '13 | Danforth Music Hall '15 | Kingston '15 | Bluesfest '15 | Toronto I '16 | Toronto II '16 | Toronto III '16 | Hamilton '16 | Ottawa '16 | Kingston '16
