Celebrating the life of Gord Downie in song
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A group of musicians wants Torontonians — in an effort to honour the late Tragically Hip frontman Gord Downie — to bring their singing voices, fully, completely.
Choir! Choir! Choir!, the open choir group, is inviting people to Nathan Phillips Square Tuesday at 8 p.m. to sing the lyrics of some of the Hip’s classic tunes.
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“The things we do when someone passes away — like David Bowie, or Prince, Glen Campbell and now, Gord Downie — these are icons and when that happens, we feel like it’s almost like an obligation to this community that we built that celebrates song,” C! C! C! founder Daveed Goldman said Saturday.
“We’re proud to create that space for people to come celebrate, mourn or commemorate music that matters to them, people to them.”
Goldman, who formed the choir organization with Nobu Adilman in 2011, said these public singing events can be quite cathartic for people being able to belt out lyrics in a community and he’s seen people gain something if they’re struggling with depression or grief.
“Gord Downie means so much to so many,” reads the event listing on the group’s Facebook page. “He made us all feel so proud to be Canadian, yet continually challenged us to make our country stronger. His voice will live on in his music, poetry and our hearts forever.”
As of Saturday afternoon, there were about 550 people slated to attend the two-hour sing-in with another 2,000 interested. The group said lyrics will be posted on the page Monday for attendees to print. The organizers stress “it doesn’t matter if you can sing” and for people to bring candles and blankets.
“It almost feels like you have to be Canadian to get (the Hip),” said Goldman. “It has this aesthetic that Americans don’t get why we like the Hip. It’s like maple syrup or peameal bacon or poutine. They have that kind of status in Canada.”
The group suggests bringing a minimum $5 donation that will go to the Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund, which works to improve the lives of Indigenous People.
For Goldman, while there’s plenty of Hip songs he connects to, Ahead By a Century is the one that tugs on his heart strings.
“I hear it and I think of my older brother,” he said. “I think about our relationship. You can interpret it any way, but that song definitely was one that stuck with me.”
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