I'd never heard of this band BUT ...

[Snapolit1]

Certainly not on par with the bands discussed above, and zero coolness factor, but a few years ago my wife announced she wanted to see Bruno Mars for her birthday. I bought seats in the fist 10 rows of MSG. I had heard of him obviously, and probably knew one song. I was completely blown away by his level of showmanship. Seemed like a young cross of James Brown and Price, with zero edge. Just one of those times you watch someone perform and think how does one person 20 something years old have so much talent.

[MooseDog]

Two words...THE OUTLAWS (and not the Waylon Jennings one)

At the Oakland Coliseum they used to hold Day on the Green concerts every summer. For a die-hard A's fan kid to be able to sit on the same field that the green and gold crew played on was too cool.

It was a weird lineup. Peter Frampton was the headliner, this was now two years after his "Comes Alive" album but I think his star was waning. By the middle of his set half the crowd of about 60,000 was getting a head start on getting out of the parking lot.

Before Frampton came Lynyrd Skynyrd, which was actually the bad I went to see and man, did they deliver. I think that performance is now on YouTube if any of you are fans of the original lineup. They were a band really hitting a peak at that time. The plane crash happened just 3 months later.

The second act was Santana, and while not a huge fan at the time, and had never seen them live, became one after. Just wow.

But the opening act, whom I had never heard before was The Outlaws. OMG, they had about 30 minutes and just blew the doors off the place and I think set the energy for the rest of the day. Finishing, of course, with their epic "Green Grass and High Tides".

Frampton didn't stand a chance. People stayed for "Show Me The Way" then started leaving. By the time he finished the encore with the awful "I'm In You" (apologies to anyone who likes that song) there couldn't have been more than 5000 people left in the stadium.

[2dueces]

If you love Chicago then “Brass Transit” is a must see. Obviously a Chicago tribute band but honestly they are 100% real Chicago. 2 hours of songs you know all the words to. Really special show.

[2dueces]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Certainly not on par with the bands discussed above, and zero coolness factor, but a few years ago my wife announced she wanted to see Bruno Mars for her birthday. I bought seats in the fist 10 rows of MSG. I had heard of him obviously, and probably knew one song. I was completely blown away by his level of showmanship. Seemed like a young cross of James Brown and Price, with zero edge. Just one of those times you watch someone perform and think how does one person 20 something years old have so much talent.

Saw a special on him maybe 60 minutes. Really likable kid who came from a humble background. Ultra talented. I’d pay to see him for sure. Coming from a person stuck in the 70’s that says a lot.

[mcgwirecom]

Its funny that this got posted yesterday. I was going through som old ticket stubs to put on Ebay. I found one from 1975 with the Doobie Brothers as headliner with The Marshall Tucker Band, The Outlaws and a group called Baker Gurvitz Army which had Ginger Baker as drummer.

[quinnsryche]

The Tragically Hip. Opened for Eric Johnson back in 1991/92. Couldn't believe how good they were. Have every CD now and it still makes me sad that Gord Downie has passed. Watch the documentary of their last show. I dare you not to cry. Outside of RUSH, the BEST Canadian band EVER.

[EvilKing00]

i didnt see these guys in concert but a few years back i heard a song that i just loved. was a new song but i brought me back to the grunge/rock 90's lol

song was called "satellite" by a band named Rise Against.

[Snapolit1]

When I was about 14, I went into a record store with about $8 and for the first time bought a few albums on my own choosing. I bumped into a friend of my old brother who handed me ELO's A New World Record which to this day is one of my favorite albums. I think it was $3. I had money for another album and having no clue what to buy grabbed a second album based on its cover. A group called Star Castle. English prog rock. Any one ever heard of them? Pretty unknown in the US. I really enjoyed that album too and played it hundreds of times. Looked them up on Wikipedia and they lasted for years in the UK, never big in US.

[White Borders]

Russian Folk-Rock Band Otava Yo. They formed in 2003. I haven't seen them in person (though they've toured in the US), but came across them on YouTube about a year ago.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbBU06irWT8

[HRBAKER]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

When I was about 14, I went into a record store with about $8 and for the first time bought a few albums on my own choosing. I bumped into a friend of my old brother who handed me ELO's A New World Record which to this day is one of my favorite albums. I think it was $3. I had money for another album and having no clue what to buy grabbed a second album based on its cover. A group called Star Castle. English prog rock. Any one ever heard of them? Pretty unknown in the US. I really enjoyed that album too and played it hundreds of times. Looked them up on Wikipedia and they lasted for years in the UK, never big in US.

I had a couple of Starcastle albums, kind of a poor man's Yes.
Lady of the Lake was their biggest song IIRC.

[riggs336]

Originally Posted by quinnsryche

The Tragically Hip. Opened for Eric Johnson back in 1991/92. Couldn't believe how good they were. Have every CD now and it still makes me sad that Gord Downie has passed. Watch the documentary of their last show. I dare you not to cry. Outside of RUSH, the BEST Canadian band EVER.

Big fan of the Hip. In 1969 a fifteen-year old Eric Johnson would come to my apartment to take guitar lessons from my roommate (Lee Pence, now deceased and never famous). Eric was already in a band called Mariani and getting some local attention.
Here's a clip:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c_QuAMtOScgLiriano

Lee also tutored Carla Olson, later of the Textones with Cathy Valentine.

[1952boyntoncollector]

I used to see Ken and Andrew play a ton in college from the band Sister Hazel..there were a lot of great college bands..some sort of famous some not so much but all great to listen too..

i also saw stephanie germanata or however you spell it who later became lady gaga play a few times but she already had a recording deal so even though i thought she was a great talent, it wasnt like i had this great eye for talent given she already was on her way...

[pawpawdiv9]

sometime back in the early 2000's, i was doing a project @ Panama City Beach during the summer months. Took time and went to a fair or something headling John Michael monthgomery- which i knew & heard of. But one of the pre-shows there was a lady singing a bunch of songs- she was really good. But one of the shows had a live band. Called the Contagious Blues Band....boy oh boy they were GOOD!!! I had to go order their CD then after. The were a new & upcoming band from Nashville i think.

[doug.goodman]

Originally Posted by quinnsryche

The Tragically Hip. Opened for Eric Johnson back in 1991/92. Couldn't believe how good they were. Have every CD now and it still makes me sad that Gord Downie has passed. Watch the documentary of their last show. I dare you not to cry. Outside of RUSH, the BEST Canadian band EVER.

Danko Jones.

Another GREAT Canadian band.

Their "Sleep Is The Enemy" album is a good place to start...

[familytoad]

I discovered the one hit, one album band "David and David" recently and have played their album Boomtown almost daily. I introduced others to them, all with generally positive reviews. 80's gritty lyrics ,tunes of despair with catchy music.
Find them on Spotify and give the whole album a listen...

[riggs336]

Originally Posted by familytoad

I discovered the one hit, one album band "David and David" recently and have played their album Boomtown almost daily. I introduced others to them, all with generally positive reviews. 80's gritty lyrics ,tunes of despair with catchy music.
Find them on Spotify and give the whole album a listen...

Don't hold me to this but I think I remember both of those Davids as contributing to Sheryl Crow's first album, Tuesday Night Music Club. Which would make sense because they were both studio guys as I remember.

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by quinnsryche

The Tragically Hip. Opened for Eric Johnson back in 1991/92. Couldn't believe how good they were. Have every CD now and it still makes me sad that Gord Downie has passed. Watch the documentary of their last show. I dare you not to cry. Outside of RUSH, the BEST Canadian band EVER.

Better than Triumph?

[irv]

Originally Posted by the 'stache

Better than Triumph?

Although Triumph was a great band, their popularity paled, imo, to that of The Tragically Hip.

Different era as well, obviously, but the Hip had a pile of hits compared to Triumphs few.

Other notable CDN bands are April Wine, The Stampeders, The Guess Who, Chilliwack, Blue Rodeo and of course Rush, who are more than likely the biggest band, most popular band to ever come out of Canada.

Great bar bands that I seen that received some international attention were Max Webster, Goddo and Trooper. Many more exist but it seems rather tough for CDN bands to break through sometimes.

This is Max Webster and Rush doing a popular song called Battle Scar. Their High Class in Borrowed shoes was a great album.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMM6Bhwpy0M

[White Borders]

Originally Posted by irv

Although Triumph was a great band, their popularity paled, imo, to that of The Tragically Hip.

Having spent my life in the Midwest, and my teen years in the late '70s - mid '80s listening to what is now Classic Rock, I'm familiar with several Canadian bands (now I'm reminiscing): Rush (The Spirit of Radio, Tom Sawyer), Bachman-Turner Overdrive (Taking Care of Business, You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet), Triumph (Lay It On The Line), April Wine (I Like To Rock), Burton Cummings and The Guess Who (These Eyes, American Woman), (Canadian/American) John Kay and Steppenwolf (Born to Be Wild, Magic Carpet Ride), Loverboy (Working for the Weekend, Turn Me Loose), Neil Young (Cinnamon Girl, Heart of Gold), (and later) Nickelback (Rockstar) and even a decent cover band from Nova Scotia (I think) called The Nudge. But this thread was the first time I'd heard of The Tragically Hip. Just sayin. After I saw the post about them, I did listen to some of their tunes on YouTube (and I like their sound ) and read about the tragic loss of their vocalist to brain cancer