Calling all Canadians
 

Who is the Best Canadian Band and why?

My vote is for I Mother Earth because Jag is an amazing guitarist and I think that they were very relevant when they were around especially when Edwin was at the helm. I think they are good song writers and performers. But mostly I think that they just meshed well together and were very innovative in their approach. Even though they didn't receive that much commercial success I think that they are up there with the best Canada has ever offered to the rock world.

I'm not Canadian , but I do like Tea Party. Manly because you the "Jim Morrisonesque" vibe.

Alexisonfire would be for the new generation and Tragically Hip for all time.

I love I mother earth's scenery and fish album I admit!

I agree, seen them live a few times and they were great.

I love the Hip.
WG

you have to go back further to find the best band - BTO, Neil Young (yes he's canadian), tragically hip, RUSH, The Guess Who, Bryan Adams, there is a shitload more

dayglo abortions!

i will go for tea party and nickelback

I think Rush was.. One of the best drummers ever, well of course no one beats John Bonham but...

well, The Hip in their day rocked and their stuff still stands the test of time. More recently, I'd have to say K-Os.

Ouch. You have no idea how much that says about you.


I can't think of that many good rock bands from canada. The who comes to mind.

Neil Young of course.
Matthew good's old shit.
Sloan.

Prizm? Haha.

Trooper!

Best of all times would be the Hip for me

Best of All time is hard.. RUSH & HIP are huge.

Great canadian bands Ive always liked IME also (but with edwin.. post edwin was trash) Edwin solo was good too. Our Lady Peace, Hhead, Moist, David Usher solo was great too, Sloan, some of Matt Goods stuff was good ;p. But while great bands.. 'All Time' you gotta look at the other 2. Just been around way too long...

Agreed. I used to hang out in Dallas Green's basement before the whole alexisonfire/city and colour days. My friend nick (Dal's cousin) was the drummer.. their band at that time was called Helicon Blue. Crazy talented songwriter..

Nickelback is pretty good

nickleback. My tastes change from time to time.

I agree! Even though their music has got weak in their later stuff.

But I mother earth was great when Edwin was with them....Dig! what a great album.

I'd have to give a vote for Kim Mitchell & max webster too.

Nickelback was great on their first & second album, but the Canadian radio played the shit out of them.

But what is your call? Also...even though Neil Young is Canadian can you really consider him one anymore. I don't mean to offend bc I really like Neil and all the work he has done both solo and as part of groups like CSNY and Buffalo Springfield, but he fly's American Flags behind him at concerts these days and his main focus is on the US so is he really a Canadian. The others are of course decent choices.

Ann Murray

rita mcneil

Nickelback? I thought everyone here hated them. lol

Best of all time? -- I'm torn, it's like a 14-way tie for me...

April Wine
Rush
Prism
Streetheart
The guess who
BTO
Goddo
Chilliwack
the Hip
Max Webster
Triumph
Trooper
Neal Young
Harlequin

I'm hesitant to put any one of them alone in first place, they all have too many great tunes it's just too hard to choose. They all win.


Out of the newer Canadian acts (last 10 years or so) I'd say Our Lady Peace has had a few moments of noteworthiness. Gotta love what Tom Cochrane has done lately and over the past 25 years.

The Headstones -- I worked security at the big outdoor festivals for 10 years, always liked seeing them play.

Haven't really heard much in the way of the really new acts that I could say catches my attention.

CD,

those groups bring back some memories :)

April Wine and Bto rocked.... Man april wine had some good tunes :)

Hell yeah! How did I forget them?

neil young, old hip, sloan, the arcade fire, tea party.

YES!:1orglaugh

Nickelback is easily one of the worst bands of all time

simple plan HANDS DOWN

Skydiggers
Blue Rodeo

Gordon Lightfoot

So what about the WORST group of all time?

mine HAS to be Celine (sorry girls that love her....) but the chick was doing ONLY french music at first.. TRASHED the english market & 6months later has an eng. album/single out & then trashes the awards & then LOVES the awards as soon as she wins...

The Hip hands down. I also dig 54-40.

I would have thought that the Barenaked Ladies would have been an appropriate favorite for most people here! :1orglaugh

Voivod! :drinkup

Did anyone mention Alanis Morissette?

What a silly question... All you Canucks know it's the Hip!!

Stomping Tom comes in a close second ;)

DH

Yeah was going to say hip, barenakid ladies on the lighter side; bunch of good bands out of vancouver as of late.

They are terrific live. Very entertaining group.

Blue rodeo -- incredible.

Then there's the one hit wonders like The Kings (Beat goes on/switching to glide),
Sniff n' the tears (driver's seat), Klaatu, 8 Seconds.


No one's mentioned the metal hair band Krokus, anyone remember Winnipeg's own Kickaxe?


More -- Aldo Nova,
Colin James
Crash test dummies
Big Sugar
Billy Squire
Bryan Adams (someone had to say it)
FM (Nash the slash)
Frozen Ghost
Honeymoon suite
Ian Thomas
Jeff Healey
Jerry Doucette
Joni Mitchell
Lighthouse (sunny daaays)
Loverboy
Pat Travers
The Pumps
Queen City Kids
The Band (Robbie Robertson)
Saga
Santers
STEPPENWOLF
The Stampeders
The Pursuit of Happiness
The Box
Toronto
Rough Trade


Take your pick.

Best of all time right?

Nickelback? You can't be serious.
The Hip? Hard to argue that one.
Trooper? Ouch.
Dayglo Abortions? Ha ha, I'm shocked anyone here would ever have heard of them.
Voivod? Probably the best French death metal ever...

In the end, I'll have to go with Rush.
They were just awesome way back in the day.
:pimp

This wasn't a thread to name EVERY Canadian band ever LOL!
There's a very good reason no one mentioned most of those...

Rough Trade???? Well, they may have actually been better than Trooper
:)

Hands down THE HIP !!!

Fly Banger out of BC Island.. Those guys opened up for sepultura and rocked my ass.

what about that band nicleback???

Still more...

Doug and the slugs
Headpins
David Wilcox
Allanah Miles
The Northern Pikes
Econoline Crush
Five man electrical band
Kim Mitchel
Grapes of Wrath
I Mother Earth
Men without hats
Sloan


...and the fucking Irish Rovers. :D

Not a trooper fan then. No accounting for taste, rough trade couldn't shine their shoes.


And I'm not even close to the full list of "every" canadian group/artist, not by a longshot. Those are just the ones I could think of who have tunes out that I count among my favorites.

My earlier post did say I couldn't choose just one favorite :D ... go look, it's there.

Anyone holding a gun to your head to read my blatherings? :winkwink:

I'm a Trooper fan. I saw them live in 1977 opening up for Styx in Montreal.

Your list brought back lots of memories. I have seen most of those bands live. Maybe the wierdest one most don't realize from your list is how big Saga was in their time. They filled up the Montreal Forum in the early 80's.

I just don't agree with everyone saying Tragically Hip. Of course they are amazing, but their music just doesn't have the timeless staying power for me as say Neil Young, Rush... I used to listen to their early records over and over but it has been years since I wanted to put them on my playlist.

new school: the birthday massacre
old school: Voivod

I've seen Trooper live maybe half a dozen times. They did a comeback tour in bars across Canada one year back in the mid-80's that was incredible.

For me it's Goddo, which I find are one seriously underrated group. So many great albums and tunes from there I wouldn't know where to start, and their stage presence every time I've seen them (and I've seen them more than a dozen times over the past 25 years) has always been second to none.

The Hip -- I worked their "roadside attraction" tour stop in Winnipeg one year, did security in the VIP/media area stage-right... the Hip are gods, plain and simple. I imagine they will always be highly-mentioned in any thread like this. Their performance at the Junos last year (in Winnipeg) was killer. I love all that highway girl/locked in the trunk of a car shit they do, it's great.

But you're right, several of my earlier-than-the-hip favorites like Rush or April Wine, Triumph, Guess Who, BTO, etc would be placed higher on my list.

For sure April Wine would be ahead for me too.

I saw The Hip in Syracuse NY at a bar in the mid 90's that had a couple of hundred people in it and they had just played a couple of nights earlier at the Corel Centre in Ottawa to like 18,000. Wierd that they never caught on more in the US even though they toured there a lot...

My most underrated group is The Skydiggers. I wish they would have become a major act as there stuff is awesome and I just saw them last month for probably the 10th time in 6 cities.

Not sure why, but I always get a visual of a "hoser" from Ontario wearing a flanel lumberjack jacket and Kodiak construction boots when I think of the average Hip fan. :winkwink: :upsidedow

Rush and April Wine are my favourites out of all mentioned.

i was about to post this if anyone else hadn't. hes awesome live.