In honor of Blue Rodeo’s U.S. jaunt happening next week, I’ve decided to celebrate with Blue Rodeo Week. Here’s where we’ve been so far:
Day One: T is for The Days in Between
Day Two: What am I doing here?
Day Three: Five from Greg Keelor
Yesterday we took an abbreviated snapshot of the Greg Keelor side captured in five tracks. Today, we’ll do the same for Jim Cuddy. A couple of years back, I took my friend Mark to see his first Blue Rodeo show at the Magic Bag in Detroit, and he was instantly captivated by the band’s sound. “He’s got an AMAZING voice,” said Mark, talking about Cuddy’s smooth tenor voice, which sounds like a voice that surely has sold millions of records.
And actually, it has: in Canada.
File the songs and vocals of Jim Cuddy into my large and ever-growing category of underappreciated artists that are so good, and yet so overlooked – in this case, everywhere else but Canada.
Blue Rodeo – Try
I dare you to make a single disc compilation of Cuddy’s best Blue Rodeo material – it can’t be done! Cuddy is good for at least one song per album that feels like an instant classic, and often there are several. Just when you might think that he has run out of material, Cuddy will prove you wrong with a new solo or Blue Rodeo gem. The signature song in the early years was “Try,” without any question. These days, “Five Days in May” is an endearing love story that seems to reveal new elements everytime that you hear it.
Blue Rodeo – 5 Days in May (live at the Festival of the Islands)
Cuddy also has two excellent solo releases to date that kick up the country vibes full throttle. All in Time, his first solo effort was released nearly 10 years ago, and Cuddy toured a decent amount of tour dates in between BR shows to support the release. 2006 saw the release of his long awaited followup The Light That Guides You Home, featuring a guest appearance by longtime BR compadre Kathleen Edwards, who contributes vocals to Cuddy’s “cautionary tale,” “Married Again.”
When Jim made a video for “Married Again,” Edwards was right there to play along:
Jim Cuddy w/ Kathleen Edwards “Married Again”
Cuddy returned the favor earlier this year, appearing in the video for Edwards’ “I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory,” a video in which he is the rival captain of the opposing hockey team. The track can be found on Edwards’ excellent 2008 release Asking For Flowers….but you’ve already got that one, right? RIGHT?
Kathleen Edwards – “I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory”
Cuddy is well known as one of the Canadian good guys, and pops up from time to time to guest on projects outside of his normal work with Blue Rodeo and solo.
Here’s one:
Oh Susanna and Jim Cuddy – “You Were On My Mind”
Cool covers like this:
Jim Cuddy – “Still Crazy After All of These Years”
And speaking of covers, here is one of Jim’s most recent collaborations that I am aware of, a version of Fleetwood Mac’s “Songbird” by Melanie Doane, featuring a guest vocal from Cuddy:
Melanie Doane w/ Jim Cuddy – “Songbird”
So yeah, I am a bit of a Cuddy fan, and as you might gather from the above, there is plenty of Cuddy-related music out there for your listening pleasure, but today, we’re here to talk about Blue Rodeo!
Here are five Blue Rodeo essentials from Jim Cuddy:
And every plan we made
I just let them fade
And pile up on the floor beside the bed
Now you’re gone away
But your memory stays
I sit here thinking of the things I never said
“House of Dreams” from Diamond Mine (1989) (purchase)
Monday morning waking up
Still too numb to speak
Another night staring at the wall
Last night’s conversation
Knocked me off my feet
I guess today I fall
“Already Gone” from Lost Together (1992) (purchase)
download
Called you up from across the ocean
in my dreams I hear your voice
you said I can’t spend my whole life waiting
it’s time you made your choice
“Sky” from Nowhere to Here (1995) (purchase)
download (an early pre-Nowhere to Here live version recorded for the CBC in 1993 from the In Stereovision DVD) (purchase)
Wouldn’t it be just like me
To come undone
Get mad and lose my head
Leave with the bitter taste
Of poison on my tongue
From the things I said
Things I said
“Dragging On” from Tremolo (1997) (purchase)
I watch you lying on the bed
Curtains blowing ‘round your head
I see the pictures of the two of us in time
A world we left so far behind
“Find A Way To Say Goodbye” from Palace of Gold (2002) (purchase)
And since you ended up getting six Keelor cuts in the last post, here’s another Cuddy tune for ya, from The Days in Between (speaking of that, see my previous post.)
This one’s bursting with fruit flavor….er, lots of energy.
Alright I want you to know
I went down hard and I came back slow
But I’m on my feet again
And I’m begging you to let me in
I’m begging you to let me in
“Begging You To Let Me In” from The Days in Between (2000) (purchase)
Here’s a cool video of Cuddy performing during Blue Rodeo’s busking performance at Yonge and Dundas streets in Toronto on Sep. 24th, 2007. Performing “C’mon” – from the latest Blue Rodeo album Small Miracles.
Blue Rodeo – C’mon (live in Toronto)
Blue Rodeo – Trust Yourself (live on Letterman ’91, U.S. television debut)
Blue Rodeo – After The Rain (live U.S. television ’91)
Relevant Links:
Jim Cuddy official site
Blue Rodeo official website
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