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.
Long Life
Great Big Sea Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This i do believe
I never thought that we'd see the end
Maybe I was just naive
On a cold night
You can see your breath so clear
Always thought that we'd be friends
But friends can disappear
Time is moving slow
Where'd you go
Rain turns into snow
Where'd you go
In a dark house
I tip toe down the stairs
Open the door and turn on the light
I hope i'll see you there
Been a long time
Since i heard you call my name
The sun comes up and i open my eyes
And the snow turns back to rain
Time is moving slow
Where'd you go
Rain turns into snow
Where'd you go
Been long gone
So far away from here
All i can say at the end of the day
Is goodbye to one of the years
Time is moving slow
Where'd you go
Rain turns into snow
Where'd you go
Time is moving slow
Where'd you go
Rain turns into snow
It's a long life but i will not disapair
Open the door and turn on a light
Hope i'll see you there
The song "Long Life" by Great Big Sea is a poignant and reflective song about the passing of time, the ephemerality of life, and the fragility of relationships. The singer expresses his disbelief that time has moved so quickly and that the people he loves have disappeared from his life. He acknowledges his own naivete in thinking that friendships and relationships would last forever. The song evokes a sense of nostalgia and longing for a time that has passed and people who have gone. The singer expresses the hope that he will see his loved ones again, but also accepts that goodbyes must be said and that time marches on.
The lyrics of the song are simple yet powerful, with the repeated refrain "Where'd you go" emphasizing the singer's sense of loss and disconnection. The imagery of rain turning into snow and the passing of time are used to convey the sense of loss and the inevitability of change. The singer's tone is wistful yet accepting, acknowledging the transitory nature of life but still cherishing the memories and the people who were once a part of it.
Line by Line Meaning
It's long life
Life is long, with many ups and downs.
This I do believe
The singer believes that life is long.
I never thought that we'd see the end
The singer didn't think that their friendship would end.
Maybe I was just naive
The singer realizes that they were naive.
On a cold night you can see your breath so clear
Clear skies can make you feel reflective and open for contemplation.
Always thought that we'd be friends
The singer expected the friendship to last forever.
But friends can disappear
It can be tough to keep close friends.
Time is moving slow
The pain of separation can make time feel slow.
Where'd you go
The singer is wondering where their friend has gone.
Rain turns into snow
The change in weather represents the change in friendship.
In a dark house I tip toe down the stairs
The singer is creeping around trying to find their friend.
Open the door and turn on the light
The singer is hoping to see their friend again.
I hope I'll see you there
The singer is really hoping their friend will appear.
Been a long time since I heard you call my name
It has been a long time since they have talked to each other.
The sun comes up and I open my eyes
The world keeps moving and the singer wakes up to a new day.
And the snow turns back to rain
The weather represents the change in the singer's mood regarding the loss of their friend.
Been long gone, so far away from here
The friend has been gone for a long time and is now far away.
All I can say at the end of the day is goodbye to one of the years
The singer is reflecting on the past and acknowledges that they have lost something important.
It's a long life but I will not despair
The singer acknowledges that life is long but they won't give up hope.
Open the door and turn on a light
The singer is still hopeful that their friend will appear.
Hope I'll see you there
The singer is still hopeful that they will be reunited with their friend.
Contributed by Brayden D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.