GORD DOWNIE TODAY SERIES

5 banner would be spotlighted in the rafters. When The Tragically Hip played Maple Leaf Gardens or the Air Canada Centre and got to Fifty Mission Cap on the setlist, Bill BarilkoвЂ™s No.

вЂ“ 50 Mission Cap (Album, Fully Completely, 1993) Toronto Defenseman Bill Barilko, who passed away in a plane crash at age 24 in 1951. Of course, youвЂ™d work it in to look like a fifty mission cap so as to appear that you had more experience than you really did.вЂќ The song is a gem.Дownie explained to Steve NewtonВ in 1992 that he liked a different angle to the story: вЂњIn World War II when you were a new pilot, youвЂ™d be given a new hat. The story of Bill Barilko is a strange one.В (from вЂThe 11-year mystery of LeafsвЂ™ вЂBashinвЂ™ Bill BarilkoвЂ™,вЂ™ Toronto Star, ) That it inspired Downie to write a song that combined the mystery of BarilkoвЂ™s disappearance with a cap given to elite bomber pilots of the allied air forces during World War II is even stranger. The industry too often created pop stars and flashes-in-the-pan in the hopes of cashing in on the latest fad and obscuring real music. Downie remarked that the inspiration for these lyrics came from his critical assessment of the music industry.

The songвЂ™s chorus refers to fireworks exploding in the distance, emulating heaven, and replacing stars. You held my hand and we walked home the long way You said you didnвЂ™t give a fuck about hockey We all squeezed the stick and we all pulled the trigger If thereвЂ™s a goal that everyone remembers Related:В Top 10 Montreal Canadiens Goal Celebrations He won the Stanley Cup twice, first with his famous flying Cup-winning goal in 1970. Considered one of the greatest hockey players of all time, Orr was a defensemanВ for Harry SindenвЂ™s Bruins (of course). The song is also about growing up and about the first flush of love that can displace even the great Bobby Orr.

GORD DOWNIE TODAY SERIES

Paul Henderson and Bobby Clarke of Team Canada celebrate HendersonвЂ™s series-winning goal in Game 8 of the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and the Soviet Union at the Luzhniki Ice Palace (Photo by Denis Brodeur/NHLI via Getty Images) It was the defining moment for a generation. The вЂ™72 summit series was a great moment for Canada andВ Paul HendersonвЂ™s series-winning goal is the most famousВ goalВ in Canadian hockey history. The song references theВ 1972 Summit Series, hockey legendВ Bobby Orr. The 1972 Summitt SeriesДЇireworks is the third single from the HipвЂ™s sixth studio album, Phantom Power. Hockey, as a central part of Canadian identity, found its way into many of their songs. Downie famously wore his Boston jersey in the music video for Courage (for Hugh MacLennan). This was no doubt influenced by hisВ godfather Harry Sinden, former coach of the Boston Bruins. To me, the power of his lyrics and of the meaning of the songs justify retracing some of these steps. I came to those pieces only after I started writing this one. This week, Bob McKenzie released an excerpt of his 2014 book, Hockey Confidential, in which he traced the history of the Tragically Hip and hockey. Justin Cuthbert did something similar last year. I am not the first to try and connect Gord, hockey, and music. IвЂ™m not sure if you need to be Canadian to understand Downie and the Hip. I cried like a baby as I watched Downie kiss his bandmates and crew in appreciation and slowly mouth the words вЂњI love youвЂќ directly into a camera during one of the HipвЂ™s signature jams. I let my kids stay up late to watch the first set.

Gord downie today