Podunkian Music Club February 23, 2008

Blue Rodeo-Hasn't Hit me yet




Tonight on the Music Club we sample one of the earlier works of one of Canada's longest lasting and perhaps most under appreciated groups, Blue Rodeo.

The Toronto based group has been travelling the nation and releasing recordings for over twenty years now, their most recent recording Small Miracles, the eleventh one of original material in their catalogue, continues to bring new fans into the fold while keeping the long time rodeo riders quite content.

Through the years they've provided some audio portraits of the land that leave a lasting impression, a guided tour of the nation that has showcased and never hidden away their Canadianism.

The biography page of their website is a fascinating read, from the lengthy times that front men Keeler and Cuddy have gone through in Canadian music, to the arrival of a new steel guitar player who was but hours away from being finished in the music business it's a primer of Canadian music.

They've been slotted into any number of slots musically over the years, from country, to country rock to alternative or roots, it all really depends on the ear of the listener and the mood that they may be in when they slide a Blue rodeo CD into the player or click on an iTunes selection.

When they aren't touring or recording together, they can be found on any number of solo projects and tours, managing to keep as busy as you can in the music business, branching off to try new things, but returning every once and while to the safety of a twenty year tradition.

Our tune tonight goes back to one of the most acclaimed recordings, Five days in July, a recording that continued to bring them success and provide the hits for the radio and MuchMusic environment. It was their fifth recording and showcased a tighter and more polished group that was gravitating to the higher stratus of Canadian music.

Hasn't hit me yet and the video that accompanies the tune, provides some of the haunting atmosphere that Blue Rodeo's music can resonate with. The combination of vocals and building rhythms of the music provides the perfect backdrop to some of the bleak scenery that a cold December night in Ontario would bring.

Over the years they've reflected some of the trials and tribulations that all Canadians go through in their lives, twenty years later they're still on the road, still in the studio and still providing a background for us, check out the new material and head for the back catalogue there's some great listening waiting for you.

Artist--Blue Rodeo
Recording--Five Days in July