Canada Reads #4: On a Cold Road

So if I said I wasn't a hockey fan (see my thoughts on The Game) then I should also admit that I am not a huge rock'n'roll fan.  However, I do love music and love love love performing (in my own little head I'm a Broadway star) which is probably why I enjoyed On A Cold Road as much as I did. 

I was a little surprised--after all, this is the wayward story of The Rheostatics as they traipse around Canada with The Tragically Hip.  As a fan of CBC Radio, I had definitely heard/of The Rheostatics but to assume that I would therefore enjoy a story of their cross-country travels?  I wasn't so sure. 

But I loved it!  It was an easy read (not nearly as dense as The Tiger) and was a great insight into what day-to-day life is like for most musicians/artists.  For me, the little stories that happen behind the scenes, the things the audience is never meant to know or notice, those are the stories I love.  And I also appreciate Bidini's willingness to share his book space.  After a story or two about The Rheostatics, he turns to the voice of "the chorus" -- a whole group of singers/musicians/music industry people who share his/her own story about a topic--their first gig, worst buses they toured on, little towns they will always remember playing in, and so on.  All of these great windows into the nitty, gritty parts of being a Canadian musician.   All compellingly written in a way that even if you have no idea  who they are talking about (like me), you can somehow relate to the story, the moment, the experience.  Where I felt like The Game never really let me get that close to hockey and the real life of an athlete, On a Cold Road managed to let me get close to the musicians and allowed me to experience all the emotions of being on the road. 

But, in all fairness, I am a performer.  I try to find my way on some kind of stage at least once a year.  I love the backstages, the comradery and the amazing transformation from regular people to actors that comes the second you enter the wings of the theatre.  Nothing is quite like creating art, creating yourself and creating community through music.  So, in that sense, I get Bidini's story.  It compels me because it allowed me to enter into the backstage of a world I will never know (ie. rock'n'roll).  It also reminds me of the moments that I hold so dear--moments no photo, no words, no blog could ever capture.  Moments that are pure art, pure relationship, pure community. 

Wanna know what it's like?  Let On A Cold Road tell you.