Another Roadside Attraction (festival)

Last updated

Another Roadside Attraction was a travelling music-and-arts summer festival in Canada in the 1990s. [1] Headlined by The Tragically Hip with a different lineup of supporting bands for each of the three tours, the festival travelled across Canada for between eight and ten dates in each of 1993, 1995 and 1997. [2] [3] Each show usually lasted roughly eight hours.

The name was taken from the Tom Robbins novel Another Roadside Attraction . The Hip were originally thinking of calling it Heksenketel, which is Dutch for "witches' cauldron"; although that name was not used for the concert festival, it was later used as the title of a concert video recorded on the 1993 tour. [4]

The first Another Roadside Attraction in 1993 included Midnight Oil, Crash Vegas, Hothouse Flowers and Daniel Lanois. [5] These five acts also collaborated on a one-off charity single, "Land", in 1993 to protest forest clearcutting in British Columbia. [6] Following the Ottawa performance at Lansdowne Stadium, the promoters faced charges under the city's bylaw for the sound exceeding the maximum permitted decibel level for public events. [7] The festival's two dates in Toronto also included performances by artists who were not part of the full national tour, including Headstones, Vilain Pingouin, Thomas Trio and the Red Albino, 13 Engines, Andrew Cash, Richard Séguin and The Pursuit of Happiness. [8]

The second tour in 1995 featured Blues Traveler, Matthew Sweet, Eric's Trip, Rheostatics, Spirit of the West, Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers and The Inbreds, [9] while the third and final tour in 1997 featured Sheryl Crow, Wilco, Los Lobos, Change of Heart, Ron Sexsmith, Ashley MacIsaac, The Mutton Birds and Van Allen Belt. [1] The 1997 tour included dates in Darien Lake, New York and Highgate, Vermont, the only times the festival was ever staged outside Canada. [10] Los Lobos' participation in the 1997 tour, in turn, led to Steve Berlin producing the Tragically Hip's next two albums Phantom Power and Music @ Work . [11]

The festival was not mounted in 1999, as the band had only just completed touring behind Phantom Power a couple of months earlier, and were not prepared to organize another festival so soon afterward. [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Tragically Hip</span> Canadian rock band

The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, were a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker, bassist Gord Sinclair, and drummer Johnny Fay. They released 13 studio albums, one live album, one EP, and over 50 singles over a 33-year career. Nine of their albums have reached No. 1 on the Canadian charts. They have received numerous Canadian music awards, including 17 Juno Awards. Between 1996 and 2016, the Tragically Hip were the best-selling Canadian band in Canada and the fourth best-selling Canadian artist overall in Canada.

<i>Fully Completely</i> 1992 studio album by The Tragically Hip

Fully Completely is the third studio album by Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. The album was released in October 1992 and produced by Chris Tsangarides. The album produced six singles: "Locked in the Trunk of a Car", "Fifty Mission Cap", "Courage ", "At the Hundredth Meridian", "Looking for a Place to Happen", and "Fully Completely".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dos Equis Pavilion</span> Amphitheatre located in Dallas, Texas

The Dos Equis Pavilion is an outdoor amphitheatre located in Fair Park, Dallas, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spirit of the West</span> Canadian rock band

Spirit of the West were a Canadian folk rock band from North Vancouver, active from 1983 to 2016. They were popular on the Canadian folk music scene in the 1980s before evolving a blend of hard rock, Britpop, and Celtic folk influences which made them one of Canada's most successful alternative rock acts in the 1990s.

Horizons of Rock Developing Everywhere or H.O.R.D.E. Festival was a touring summer rock music festival originated by the musical group Blues Traveler in 1992. In addition to travelling headliners, the festival gave exposure to bands, charities, and organizations from the local area of the concert.

13 Engines was a Canadian alternative rock band active in the 1980s and 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rheostatics</span> Canadian indie rock band

Rheostatics are a Canadian indie rock band. They were formed in 1978, and actively performed from 1980 until disbanding in 2007. After a number of reunion performances at special events, Rheostatics reformed in late 2016, introducing new songs and performing semi-regularly.

Change of Heart was a Canadian alternative rock band, active from 1982 to 1997. They had one Top 40 hit, "There You Go" in 1992, as well as several hits on Canada's modern rock charts, including "Trigger" and "Little Kingdoms".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Inbreds</span> Canadian alternative rock band

The Inbreds were a Canadian alternative rock band formed in 1992. Originally from Kingston, Ontario, the band relocated to Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1996 and remained based there until breaking up in 1998. The band was a duo, consisting of vocalist/bassist Mike O'Neill and drummer Dave Ullrich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edgefest</span> Defunct Canadian rock festival

Edgefest was an annual outdoor rock festival in Canada. It was founded by staff members of Toronto radio station CFNY-FM. From 1987 to 2015, the festival was held every year in the summer. The festival was most frequently held on Canada Day at Molson Park in Barrie, Ontario or a venue in Toronto. The festival featured predominantly Canadian rock bands. During its 29-year operation, the festival featured more than 300 performers. As of 2015, it was the longest running rock festival in Canada.

The Barstool Prophets were a rock band formed in Cornwall, Ontario, in 1989 and active throughout the 1990s. The members were bassist Glenn Forrester, singer/songwriter Graham Greer, guitarist Al Morier, and drummer Bobby Tamas. In 1995, The Georgia Straight called them "one of the best guitar-rock bands to emerge in Canada since The Tragically Hip."

<i>Heksenketel</i> 1993 video by The Tragically Hip

Heksenketel is a documentary film released on VHS by Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. It features concert footage and other clips of the band and crew as they travel across Canada from coast to coast during their 1993 tour, Another Roadside Attraction.

"Bobcaygeon" is a song by Canadian rock band the Tragically Hip. It was released in February 1999 as a single from their sixth album, Phantom Power, and has come to be recognized as one of the band's most enduring and beloved signature songs.

Edenfest was 3-day concert that took place July 12–14, 1996 at Mosport Park, in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ahead by a Century</span> 1996 single by the Tragically Hip

"Ahead by a Century" is a song by Canadian rock band the Tragically Hip. It was released as the lead single from the band's fifth studio album, Trouble at the Henhouse. The song reached number one on Canada's singles chart, and is the band's most successful single in their native Canada. It was one of the 10 most-played songs in Canada in 1996. The song was nominated for "Best Single" at the 1997 Juno Awards. The song was certified platinum in Canada in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nautical Disaster</span> 1995 single by The Tragically Hip

"Nautical Disaster" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. It was released in February 1995 as the third single from the band's 1994 album, Day for Night. The song peaked at number 26 on the Canadian RPM Singles chart. The song was performed by the band on their 1995 appearance on Saturday Night Live, along with their previous single "Grace, Too".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Man Machine Poem Tour</span> 2016 concert tour by the Tragically Hip

The Man Machine Poem Tour was a concert tour by the Tragically Hip in support of their thirteenth full-length studio album Man Machine Poem. The tour consisted of 15 shows, the first held on July 22, 2016, in Victoria, British Columbia, and the last held on August 20, 2016, at Rogers K-Rock Centre in Kingston, Ontario.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrissy Steele</span> Musical artist

Chrissy Steele is the stage name of Christina Southern, a Canadian vocalist currently living on Vancouver Island. She is most noted for garnering a Juno Award nomination for Most Promising Female Vocalist and Hard Rock Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 1992.

Van Allen Belt was a Canadian alternative rock group from Kingston, Ontario, active in the 1990s. An experimental rock band whose sound included forays into electroacoustic music, they were best known for appearing on the Another Roadside Attraction festival bill in 1997.

References

  1. 1 2 "Forget h.o.r.d.e., Lilith Fair and Lollapalooza, Another Roadside Attraction is the best touring festival on the continent". Edmonton Journal , July 18, 1999.
  2. ↑ Steve McLean, "The Tragically Hip", The Canadian Encyclopedia (2012), accessed 2015-11-26.
  3. ↑ Rafer Guzman, "The Tragically Hip and Friends, A True Roadside Attraction", The Buffalo News , July 27, 1997.
  4. ↑ Darryl Sterden, "This week's new music: Tragically Hip's revisit 'Fully Completely,' Beyonce goes 'Platinum,' Em still Shady and more", Toronto Sun , November 29, 2014.
  5. ↑ "The Hippest show around; Great music at bargain prices the attraction at Roadside". Edmonton Journal , August 3, 1993.
  6. ↑ Joseph Blake, "Other news on the Save-the-Clayoquot front". Victoria Times-Colonist , November 2, 1993.
  7. ↑ "Charges follow rock concert at Lansdowne". Ottawa Citizen , August 10, 1993.
  8. ↑ "Now this is really Hip Another Roadside Attraction is speeding this way". Hamilton Spectator , July 22, 1993.
  9. ↑ "The long and winding roadside". Edmonton Journal , July 14, 1995.
  10. ↑ "Crow, Hip give fans something to talk about". The Buffalo News , July 31, 1997.
  11. ↑ "Producer Steve Berlin eulogizes the Tragically Hip". Maclean's , August 1, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Power of the hip: With 12 years and eight albums under their thirty- something belts, Tragically Hip is firmly ensconced as Canada's top rock band. But don't call them rock stars". Ottawa Citizen , February 6, 1999.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.