While it has been confirmed that the band has officially retired, former members Alan Doyle and Séan McCann have continued performing in their own solo careers typically including music from Great Big Sea in their setlists.
The band played its first official concert on March 11, 1993, opening for The Irish Descendants at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John's, Newfoundland. The founding band members included Alan Doyle (vocals, guitar, bouzouki, mandolin), Séan McCann (vocals, bodhrán, guitar, tin whistle), Darrell Power (vocals, bass, guitar, bones), and Bob Hallett (vocals, fiddle, accordion, mandolin, concertina, bouzouki, whistles, bagpipes).
Power, McCann and Hallett had already been playing together in another band. In the winter of 1989, the band, a six-piece with guitar, bass, fiddle, accordion and mandolin played its first show at the Memorial University's winter carnival talent show under the name "Newfoundland Republican Army" or NRA, and won first prize. The band's only other appearance as NRA was later that winter at the university "Grad House". The band then dropped the fiddler, accordion player and the name.
The band found its new name as original bassist Jeff Scott rented an apartment on Rankin Street, St. John's, where the members first met and discussed the formation of the band. As a four-piece, the band first appeared as "Rankin Street" at a little pub in downtown St. John's called "The Rose and Thistle", playing for $100 and beer. They played through Sean McCann's stereo system, as renting a PA would have cost more than the night's earnings. Susan Hickey (guitar and vocals) left the band months later to attend school in Halifax and was replaced by Darrell Power. The band gained much popularity playing such local pubs as Bridget's and Greensleeves. In 1991 Jeff Scott was replaced by Jackie St. Croix on bass. The band released one recording on cassette titled "Rankin Street".
In 1997, the band reached the top ten of the Canadian RPM pop chart with "When I'm Up (I Can't Get Down)", a cover of a song by the British folk group Oysterband. They performed at the 1999 Stardust Picnic festival at Historic Fort York, Toronto.
The band won the Entertainer of the Year award at the East Coast Music Awards for every year between 1996 and 2000. In 2001, they decided not to submit their name for nomination in order to allow other bands to compete. They have also been nominated for several Juno Awards, including Group of the Year in 1998, 2005, 2009, and 2011.
Darrell Power retired from Great Big Sea in 2003 to spend more time with his family and friends. Supporting members of the band include Canadian freelance drummer Kris MacFarlane (2002) (drums, accordion, guitar, backing vocals) and Murray Foster (2003, formerly of the band Moxy Früvous) (bass, backing vocals).
In late 2005, the band released its long-awaited "traditional" album, The Hard and the Easy, on which they recorded their favourite Newfoundland party songs. The title of the album comes from a line of the song "Tickle Cove Pond", one of two songs on the album about a horse falling through ice.
On June 13, 2007, the band announced they would return to the studio with producer Hawksley Workman. On March 14, 2008, the band announced that the title of the new album would be Fortune's Favour, borrowing a phrase from one of the songs on the album, "England". The album was officially released on June 24, 2008 across all of North America.
On February 23, 2010, band member Séan McCann released his debut solo album Lullabies for Bloodshot Eyes to pleasing critical success.
On July 13, 2010, Great Big Sea released their new album Safe Upon the Shore in North America. Alan's "From the Road" blog on the band's website, originally confirmed its production in an April posting, speaking also of the album's subsequent release in July. "Nothing But A Song" was the first single off the bands' ninth studio recording, with a subsequent tour kicking off at the end of the summer 2010.
Great Big Sea announced a 'greatest hits' album titled "XX" in October 2012, accompanied by a 20th anniversary tour with 32 dates in 28 cities across the US and Canada which kicked off on March 5, 2013 in Los Angeles and finished in St. John's on April 23, 2013.
In 2013, McCann announced that he would be leaving the band at the end of the XX tour, much to the dismay of his bandmates. Struggling to maintain his new sobriety, he told his bandmates in January of 2013 that XX would be his last tour with the band, but the rest of the band and its management refused to announce this publicly. Finally, in November 2013 with XX almost over, McCann announced his departure himself in a tweet, feeling that the fans needed to know. While largely vilified by Great Big Sea fans with little said by the band or management to counter this view, McCann claims he was devastated by how Great Big Sea ended and wishes it could have gone differently.
Following McCann's departure, the remaining band members spent a year or so trying to find an amicable way that they could continue without him. Eventually coming to the realization that they didn’t want to go on like that, and happily retiring the band.
End Of The World
Great Big Sea Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That's great, it starts with an earthquake
Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes
Lenny Bruce is not afraid
Eye of a hurricane, listen to yourself churn
World serves its own needs, dummy serve your own needs
Feed it off an aux speak, grunt, no, strength
Wire in a fire, representing seven games
A government for hire and a combat site
Left of west and coming in a hurry
With the furies breathing down your neck
Team by team reporters baffled, trumped, tethered, cropped
Look at that low playing! Fine, then
Uh oh, overflow, population, common food
But it'll do
Save yourself, serve yourself
World serves its own needs, listen to your heart bleed
Dummy with the rapture and the revered and the right
Right
You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright light
Feeling pretty psyched
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
Six o'clock, TV hour
Don't get caught in foreign towers
Slash and burn, return
Listen to yourself churn
Locking in, uniforming, book burning, blood letting
Every motive escalate
Automotive incinerate
Light a candle, light a votive
Step down, step down
Watch your heel crush, crushed, uh-oh
This means no fear cavalier
Renegade steer clear!
A tournament, tournament, a tournament of lies
Offer me solutions, offer me alternatives and I decline
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
The other night I dreamt of knives
Continental drift divide
Mountains sit in a line, Leonard Bernstein
Leonid Brezhnev, Lenny Bruce and Lester Bangs
Birthday party, cheesecake, jelly bean, boom!
You symbiotic, patriotic, slam book neck, right?
Right!
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
"End of the World" by Great Big Sea is a cover of the famous song by R.E.M that was released in 1987. The song talks about several pressing issues at that time like the role of media, politics, and environmental concerns that could lead to the end of the world. The opening lines, "It's the end of the world as we know it, I feel fine," indicate a feeling of acceptance or apathy towards the events leading to the end. The song then goes on to list several scenarios leading up to the end of the world, such as a government for hire, population overflow, uniformity, and book burning.
The song talks about the chaotic state of the world and the frustration that people feel towards the system. The line, "World serves its own needs, dummy serve your own needs," encourages individualism and self-reliance in times of turmoil. The mention of Lenny Bruce, a comedian who was persecuted for his irreverent humor, represents the struggle of free speech and a fair society. The chorus, "It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine," is a reminder that we have the power to cope with the end of the world and the ability to rebuild and start anew.
Line by Line Meaning
It's the end of the world as know, I feel fine
Despite the world coming to an end, the singer is alright with it
That's great, it starts with an earthquake
The singer is upbeat despite impending doom
Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes
All kinds of things are affected by the world ending
Lenny Bruce is not afraid
Fear is not a concern for Lenny Bruce
Eye of a hurricane, listen to yourself churn
In the midst of chaos, the artist advises to be introspective
World serves its own needs, dummy serve your own needs
The world will do what it does; focus on your own survival
Feed it off an aux speak, grunt, no, strength
Don't let the world's drama distract you
Ladder start to clatter with fear, fight down height
Fear can cause panic, so one must resist it
Wire in a fire, representing seven games
Fire and electricity symbolize rampant destruction
A government for hire and a combat site
Corrupt leaders and violence contribute to the world's end
Left of west and coming in a hurry
The end is coming from an unexpected direction
With the furies breathing down your neck
The artists imagines the catastrophic end is near
Team by team reporters baffled, trumped, tethered, cropped
The media is struggling to make sense of events
Look at that low playing! Fine, then
Obscure details are not important in the face of the world's end
Uh oh, overflow, population, common food. But it'll do
Resources are limited, but survival is still possible
Save yourself, serve yourself
It's a time for individual action, not reliance on others
World serves its own needs, listen to your heart bleed
Again, the world does its own thing, so focus on your own emotions
Dummy with the rapture and the revered and the right
Beliefs in the end times are irrelevant to survival
Right. You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright light. Feeling pretty psyched
The singer feels energetic despite the dire circumstances
Six o'clock, TV hour. Don't get caught in foreign towers
The artist warns against getting trapped somewhere unfamiliar
Slash and burn, return. Listen to yourself churn
The world is in chaos, but it's important to maintain self-awareness
Locking in, uniforming, book burning, blood letting. Every motive escalate
Societal structures are breaking down quickly and violently
Automotive incinerate. Light a candle, light a votive
Cars are going up in flames, so it's time to light a candle for hope
Step down, step down. Watch your heel crush, crushed, uh-oh
Be careful where you step to avoid danger
This means no fear cavalier. Renegade steer clear!
Fearlessness and independence are key to survival
A tournament, tournament, a tournament of lies
The singers comments on society as a whole during the end times
Offer me solutions, offer me alternatives and I decline
The singer has given up hope of finding a solution to the end of the world
The other night I dreamt of knives. Continental drift divide
Even in dreams, chaos and destruction are represented
Mountains sit in a line, Leonard Bernstein. Leonid Brezhnev, Lenny Bruce and Lester Bangs
Various people and things are juxtaposed, highlighting the absurdity of the end
Birthday party, cheesecake, jelly bean, boom!
Even though it's the end of the world, the little pleasures still exist
You symbiotic, patriotic, slam book neck, right? Right!
The singer is mocking those who believe in nationalism in the face of destruction
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: John Michael Stipe, Michael E. Mills, Peter Lawrence Buck, William Thomas Berry
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@tamaragrenon4496
LYRICS (Good luck!)
It's the end of the world as know, I feel fine
That's great, it starts with an earthquake
Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes
Lenny Bruce is not afraid
Eye of a hurricane, listen to yourself churn
World serves its own needs, dummy serve your own needs
Feed it off an aux speak, grunt, no, strength
Ladder start to clatter with fear, fight down height
Wire in a fire, representing seven games
A government for hire and a combat site
Left of west and coming in a hurry
With the furies breathing down your neck
Team by team reporters baffled, trumped, tethered, cropped
Look at that low playing! Fine, then
Uh oh, overflow, population, common food
But it'll do
Save yourself, serve yourself
World serves its own needs, listen to your heart bleed
Dummy with the rapture and the revered and the right
Right
You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright light
Feeling pretty psyched
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
Six o'clock, TV hour
Don't get caught in foreign towers
Slash and burn, return
Listen to yourself churn
Locking in, uniforming, book burning, blood letting
Every motive escalate
Automotive incinerate
Light a candle, light a votive
Step down, step down
Watch your heel crush, crushed, uh-oh
This means no fear cavalier
Renegade steer clear!
A tournament, tournament, a tournament of lies
Offer me solutions, offer me alternatives and I decline
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
The other night I dreamt of knives
Continental drift divide
Mountains sit in a line, Leonard Bernstein
Leonid Brezhnev, Lenny Bruce and Lester Bangs
Birthday party, cheesecake, jelly bean, boom!
You symbiotic, patriotic, slam book neck, right?
Right!
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine
@jasonamato2153
REM: Lets put out an extremely up-beat tempo packed with lyrics that no one can one up.
GBS: Hold my beer
@iankthompson
I first heard Great Big Sea's version, before I heard REM's... REM's sounds so slow when you learn this song this way. lol.
@danaroy8596
REM's version is good.....GBS outdid them.....hands down.
@sandraklicek4627
@@iankthompsonsame saw them in Niagara Falls also they so killed it. They definitely did it better
@LuzardoLyranseed
💚🪽
@efreetheawesome
I feel like this is the ONLY instance where asking "Who's watching in 2020" isn't obnoxious.
@jarednielsen
I thought I was alone on YouTube who thought that stupid comment was.......stupid.
@mattmadolah
Just shared on FB mystified on how it hasn't made its rounds yet!
@pixiething
Agreed
@woofmeow5752
Hi it’s two months in the future and everything got worse