The group met while in high school at Kingston Collegiate Vocational Institute (KCVI) and all attended Queen's University in Kingston. They started as a cover band playing Rolling Stones and Doors covers, and were first represented by a local Kingston agent named Bernie Dobson.
They were first signed in 1987 after Bruce Dickinson, the then VP of A&R at MCA Records saw them perform live at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, Ontario. Later that year they released their debut EP The Tragically Hip, though they were largely unrecognized until 1989's Up To Here. Up To Here established them as one of the best and most influential bands in Canada. In 1992, they created the Another Roadside Attraction festival, which tours Canada to promote smaller, unknown emerging bands.
The band is immensely popular in Canada. Although they have never achieved great success in the United States, they have never specifically sought it and have enjoyed their warm Canadian reception. When touring in Canada they typically play to sold-out arenas; when touring in the United States they play smaller venues and clubs. Performances abroad are usually attended by Canadian expatriates. In Europe, The Hip perhaps have their greatest following in the Netherlands.
The band permits recordings of their performances, so an active trading community thrives. The tone and content of much of their music is a paean to the Canadian experience and touches on such themes as small-town life, geography, and hockey.
The Tragically Hip received a star on the Canadian Walk of Fame in 2002, and they were inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the 2005 Juno Awards. They have performed at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, and played a three-song set at the worldwide broadcast Live 8 benefit concert on July 2nd, 2005 to help make poverty history for the poor African nations.
On April 7th, 2009, the band's twelfth album We Are The Same was being released in North America, and it immediately rose to Number 1 on the Canadian charts. The album features twelve diverse new recordings produced by Bob Rock who had produced 2007's World Container and is perhaps best known for his work with Metallica, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Bryan Adams, The Offspring, Michael Bublé and Simple Plan. This album features songs that range from "levity and light to melancholy and anger" according to the band's website. Recorded primarily at The Bathouse Studio, band's recording studio located in a historical coach house west of their hometown, Kingston, Ontario, and its first single was "Love Is A First", which features the ironical addictive hook, 'love is a curse'.
Despite some side solo projects in the past couple of years, the band has completed a new studio album at The Bathouse Studio and in Toronto with Gavin Brown, who is perhaps best known for his work producing Metric, Three Days Grace, Barenaked Ladies and Billy Talent. The album is entitled Now For Plan A and it was released on October 2nd, 2012. This album's first singles were "At Transformation" and "Streets Ahead" and they are available on iTunes and through the band's website.
Man Machine Poem is the fourteenth studio album which is scheduled to be released June 17th, 2016. The album takes its name from a track on their Gold-selling 2012 release, Now For Plan A, and it was recorded at The Hip’s home studio The Bathouse, produced by Kevin Drew, founding member and producer of Broken Social Scene, Andy Kim (singer, songwriter and Arts & Crafts label co-founder) and Dave Hamelin, songwriter and producer from The Stills and Eight and a Half. Album pre-orders are currently available on either CD or Vinyl through the band's "Gift Shop" on their official website: www.TheHip.com or digitally through iTunes. “In A World Possessed By The Human Mind” and “Tired As Fuck" were its first singles, and both were made immediately available for digital download with the album's pre-order.
Early on May 24, 2016, The Tragically Hip announced via a post on their official website and through e-mail subscribers that its lead singer and primary lyricist, Gord Downie, is suffering from aggressive terminal brain cancer, and that the band will do one final national Canadian tour "For Gord". Concert dates for this final tour were available on-line through Ticketmaster, but sold out in minutes. There was a national outcry from devoted fans who claimed that scalpers had scooped up most of the tour's tickets using "bots". Petitions were filed to successfully encourage Canada's national television network, the CBC, to produce and air Live the final August 20, 2016 concert. Broadcast live from the band's hometown, at Kingston's Rogers K-Rock Centre, a national audience viewed The Tragically Hip's final tour show, The concert opened with "50 Mission Cap" and ended almost two hours later, after a third encore, with "Ahead By A Century". All proceeds from the tour were donated to The Gord Downie Fund, at the Sunnybrook Foundation for Brain Cancer Research. Donations can be sent to: http://sunnybrook.ca/foundation.
For the latest band details, please visit their official website: www.TheHip.com.
The Wherewithal
The Tragically Hip Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He'd get interrupted long before
I always loved that guy
And he's not on TV anymore
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
To get out before
You've got to coax him slow
That's the only way that he'll confess
Tell him that the truth
Will help him live with less
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
And that's a breathy body of work
Set your sights inward for a leaner look
And that's a breathy body of work
Set your sights inward for a leaner look
Richard died real slow
He won't get interrupted anymore
I always loved that guy
And he's not on TV anymore
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
The lyrics of The Tragically Hip's song The Wherewithal seem to be about a man named Richard, who speaks slowly and may have been struggling with some sort of issue, perhaps a mental or emotional one. The singer expresses his admiration for Richard, but also notes that he was never able to achieve the level of success that he deserved, perhaps because of this issue.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "To get out before he had the wherewithal," indicating that Richard may have been trapped in his situation and unable to move on until it was too late. The singer urges people to "coax him slow," to help him see the truth and to live with less. The song seems to be a lament for Richard, who has now passed away and who the singer clearly had a deep respect and affection for.
The final lines of the song, "Set your sights inward for a leaner look," suggest that the singer is urging listeners to take a closer look at their own lives and their own struggles, in order to avoid ending up like Richard.
Line by Line Meaning
Richard talks too slow
Richard speaks slowly and may not be able to finish his sentences before someone interrupts him.
He'd get interrupted long before
Richard’s slow way of talking leads to him getting interrupted constantly.
I always loved that guy
The singer of the song has an affinity towards Richard and perhaps wishes him well.
And he's not on TV anymore
Richard is no longer on TV, and the reason for that is unexplained.
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
Richard should have exited his situation before he had the ability to do so. It is unclear exactly what situation is being referred to.
You've got to coax him slow
When trying to get Richard to speak, one must do so very slowly and patiently.
That's the only way that he'll confess
To elicit a confession or statement from Richard, one must take their time and be gentle.
Tell him that the truth
Will help him live with less
The truth would be beneficial for Richard and lead to a simpler life.
And that's a breathy body of work
Set your sights inward for a leaner look
And that's a breathy body of work
Set your sights inward for a leaner look
It is unclear what this repeated verse means.
Richard died real slow
Richard passed away after a long and drawn-out process.
He won't get interrupted anymore
Richard can finally speak without being interrupted.
I always loved that guy
The song repeats this line, implying again that the artist had a fondness for Richard.
And he's not on TV anymore
This line is repeated, perhaps to highlight the fact that Richard is gone and will not be back on television.
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
To get out before
He had the wherewithal
The song repeats its earlier lines, suggesting that Richard should have left his situation before he had the opportunity. The context of this situation is unclear.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Gordon Downie, Gordon Sinclair, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Robert Baker
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind