After several years of gigging in Boston and Cambridge, the band signed to a major label and released its debut album In Loving Memory of... in 1997. The single The Oaf was a major Top Ten hit for the band that year.
Due to Thornley's Canadian nationality, the band's biggest commercial success was actually in Canada rather than the United States. The album's subsequent singles, Blown Wide Open and That Song, were not as successful on the American charts as The Oaf had been, but in Canada they were both Top Ten hits.
In October of 2001, Big Wreck played a special show at Toronto's Roy Thompson Hall accompanied by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Uzume Taiko Ensemble of drummers, with The Tragically Hip's Paul Langlois and Robby Baker also making appearances.
The band's second album The Pleasure and the Greed (released in 2001) was marred by poor marketing and was not as big a hit as their debut album, especially in the United States. The band subsequently broke up a year later in 2002.
Thornley moved back to Toronto, launching the band Thornley. Doherty has gone on to be in the indie band Death of 8, but the other band members never emerged with new projects.
Ian and Brian rekindled their friendship, which lead to a reunion in 2011.
This reunion, however, would not include founding members Dave Henning and Forrest Williams.
Albatross, the band's third album, would be released on March 6, 2012, and would be Big Wreck's best charting album of all time, debuting at #5 on the Canadian albums charts, and would see its title track hit #1 on the Canadian Rock charts, which it would hold for six weeks straight. It would also spawn the singles Wolves and A Million Days, and would receive the CASBY award for "Favourite New Album" in 2012.
2014 would see the release of their fourth album, Ghosts, on the 10th of June. The album would debut at #5 on the Canadian Rock charts, and would go on to debut at #4 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart, making it their highest charting album on that chart to date. Ghosts would come to spawn three singles: the name-sharing Ghosts, Come What May, and Hey Mama.
Big Wreck's fifth studio album, Grace Street, would see its release on February 3, 2017. The album would end up peaking at #5 on the Canadian Albums chart, much like Albatross and Ghosts. However, the lead single One Good Piece of Me would end up outperforming Ghosts (the song), with the track charting high on two separate charts within the first week of airplay. The other two singles that spawned from Grace Street were Digging In and You Don't Even Know.
On June 5, 2019, founding guitarist Brian Doherty would pass away after a battle with cancer. He was 51.
Big Wreck would release their sixth studio album, ...but for the Sun, on August 30, 2019. The band would end up dedicating the album to the late guitarist in memory of him. The album would see Locomotive, Too Far Gone, One More Chance and Alibi be the four singles to spawn, and would also see an in memoriam tour dedicated to Doherty.
...but for the Sun would be the last full-length album recorded with longtime drummer Chuck Keeping, as he would end up leaving the band in 2021 to focus on family life.
In the following years, Big Wreck would hire new drummer Sekou Lumumba (the former drummer for Ian Thornley's side project, Thornley) to replace Chuck Keeping, and would go on to release 3 EPs: 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3.
Pages, Big Wreck's 7th album, was released on November 24, 2023.
Discography:
Studio Albums
In Loving Memory Of... (1997)
The Pleasure And The Greed (2001)
Albatross (2012)
Bag of Tricks (Live, 2013)
Ghosts (2014)
Grace Street (2017)
...but for the Sun (2019)
Pages (2023)
EPs
7.1 (2021)
7.2 (2022)
7.3 (2023)
Members:
Ian Thornley (Vocals, Guitar, 1992 - present)
Chris Caddell (Rhythm Guitar, 2019 - present)
Dave McMillan (Bass Guitar, 2010 - present)
Sekou Lumumba (Drums, 2021 - present)
Past Members:
Brian Doherty (Guitar, 1992 - 2019 (d. June 5, 2019))
Paulo Neta (Guitar, 2010 - 2017)
Dave Henning (Bass Guitar, 1993 - 2002)
Forrest Williams (Drums, 1994 - 2002)
Brad Park (Drums, 2010 - 2012)
Chuck Keeping (Drums, 2012 - 2021)
Albatross
Big Wreck Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Before I wake and start my day
A past so filled with promise
Before I lost, I lost my way
Ah that's okay, and I'm alright
I guess I'll be lost again
For one more night
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
As the past recalls the romance
Before the bets and what you make
I lost my friend in between them
And that was more than I could take
Ah that's okay, and I'm alright
I guess I'll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and that's alright, I'm okay
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
Ah that's okay, and I'm alright
I guess I'll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and that's alright, I'm okay
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
And because I know I'm alright
The lyrics of Big Wreck's song Albatross are poignant and reflective, describing a sense of loss and feeling burdened by the past. The opening lines, "One last cup of starlight / Before I wake and start my day," set the stage for a contemplative mood, evoking a sense of solitude and introspection. The singer remembers a time when the past was filled with promise, but at some point, he lost his way. The metaphor of the albatross returns repeatedly in the song, representing the weight of the past and the burden of regret. Despite this, the singer seems to accept this burden, stating that he'll wear the albatross for one more day.
The second verse recalls a lost friendship, and the singer reveals that this loss was more than he could bear. The lines "Before the bets and what you make / I lost my friend in between them" suggest that the singer has gone through some kind of life-altering experience or gamble that led to the loss of his friend. Despite this hardship, he still seems to have a sense of resilience, repeating the lines "That's okay and I'm alright / I guess I'll be lost again / For one more night." The repetition of these lines emphasizes a sense of acceptance and an acknowledgement that life is full of ups and downs.
Overall, "Albatross" is a song about coming to terms with the burdens of the past and moving forward with acceptance and self-assurance. The use of the albatross metaphor, which was popularized in Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," adds a literary depth to the song's meaning.
Line by Line Meaning
One last cup of starlight
I take in the beauty of the night for the last time before my day begins.
Before I wake and start my day
I am preparing myself mentally to face the challenges of the day.
A past so filled with promise
My past was full of potential and opportunities.
Before I lost, I lost my way
But unfortunately, I ended up losing my path and direction.
Ah that's okay, and I'm alright
Even though I am lost, I am still content with my situation.
I guess I'll be lost again
I am expecting to face more difficulties in the future.
For one more night
I am hoping that this state of mind is temporary.
Ooh and that's alright, I'm okay
I am at peace with myself and my situation.
I'll wear the albatross
I will carry the burden of my past mistakes.
For one more day
I will bear this burden and try to move forward.
As the past recalls the romance
I often remember the good times from my past.
Before the bets and what you make
Before I took risks and suffered losses.
I lost my friend in between them
I ended up losing a companion due to my actions.
And that was more than I could take
It was a difficult experience for me to go through.
And because I know I'm alright
Despite everything, I know that I am going to be okay.
Lyrics Ā© ANTHEM ENTERTAINMENT LP, OLE MEDIA MANAGEMENT LP
Written by: IAN THORNLEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
DAT Davidson
Lyrics...your welcome
One last cup of starlight
Before I wake and start my day
A past so filled with promise
Before I lost, I lost my way
Ah thatās okay, and Iām alright
I guess Iāll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and thatās alright, Iām okay
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
As the past recalls the romance
Before the bets and what you make
I lost my friend in between them
And that was more than I could take
Ah thatās okay, and Iām alright
I guess Iāll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and thatās alright, Iām okay
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
Ah thatās okay, and Iām alright
I guess Iāll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and thatās alright, Iām okay
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
And because I know I'm alright
Lucas Rosalem
One last cup of starlight
Before i wake and start my day
A past so filled with promise
Before i lost, i lost my way
Ah thatās ok, and iām alright
I guess iāll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and thatās alright, iām ok
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
As the past recalls the romance
Before the bets and what you make
I lost my friend inbetween them
And that was more than i could take
Ah thatās ok, and iām alright
I guess iāll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and thatās alright, iām ok
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
Ah thatās ok, and iām alright
I guess iāll be lost again
For one more night
Ooh and thatās alright, iām ok
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
I'll wear the albatross
For one more day
And because i know i'm alright
Brian Cox
I could never understand why Big Wreck didn't make it huge. To the finer point, I will never comprehend why Ian Thornley isn't an enormous star. The guy oozes talent. He has the voice, the songs, the skills, the looks, everything that's required to make it big. He is a phenomenal talent and star, yet most have never heard of him. It's a real shame that the music industry has favored lip-synching, auto-tuned, blah, blah, blah, disco crap, over this great artist and band. Ā Ā
alexbone98
He was offered a gig to play for Stone Temple Pilots after Weiland passed but they wanted him to ditch the guitar. Needless to say he wasn't down.
Thelonious Coltrane
Bes he is not Ed Sheeran
Android TV
I agree but to some degree it is also self inflected...he won't do a couple of things one being split ties with his house band Big Wreck and two leave behind the pieces of himself that he truly loves about making music and his process. He was originally the first choice for the lead singer for Velvet Revolver over Scott Weiland but when he said "can I play guitar?" and they said "no, its straight vocals" he said "thanks but no thanks"...true story and the rest is history, who knows what could have been but then again when is it ever a bad thing to have boundaries and values. He's a Canadian icon, a monster on stage and probably in my humble opinion the only one out there at present that could if the opportunity were to arise fill the void of Chris Cornell in Soundgarden...his range is rediculous!
Sergio Sanchez
Sadly. We are living in the reggaeton generation where most singers don't even sing. Music is not even music and no instruments are played. Those are the "stars" of this era
John Clark
I thought this was Chris Cornell , maybe most everybody else did too !
N. Manuel
Still playing this in 2019. This was my Dadās chemo āHype songā. Weād go to and from appointments singing this in the car. Sometimes, when moments were so brutal and there was nothing left to say? There was this song.
Heās been gone 6 years now, and I feel blessed to have this song whenever I need to feel close to him.
Thank you.
CGCEifel
Sorry about your dad. People's cancer stories always make me choke instantly. I've had my share of it with family and best friends and i hate it so much. Bless you guys.
Cod3Thr33
I felt this. I lost my dad to complications from chemo. Grace and peace to you...
Jess Jackson
I'm so sorry to hear.