“That night in Toronto, with its checkerboard floors”…anyone that knows the history of the Tragically Hip or has knowledge of the Toronto live music scene knew immediately what Gord was referencing when he belted this lyric in their hit song, “Bob Caygeon”.
The legendary Horseshoe lounge in downtown Toronto may very well be the most storied dive bar in Canadian history. Discreetly nestled on Queen Street, this unassuming lounge is probably passed by thousands of locals and tourists daily, blindly oblivious to the importance and history of this national treasure. At first glance of this small, gritty, watering hole, one would have a tough time trying to wrap your head around the legendary acts that have adorned the stage in front of that checkerboard floor. The bar is where the Tragically Hip was first discovered, and is ultimately the place where Gord and Laurie Downie would be married. If this bar could talk, it wouldn’t be the type to name drop, so I’ll do it for it – The Hip, The Stones, Foo Fighters, Waylon Jennings, Ramones, Linkin Park, Willie Nelson are but a few of hundreds of legendary acts that have played to a max capacity of under five hundred.
During a recent trip to Toronto for an art show, when I was informed that I was scheduled for a radio interview in the heart of downtown, I immediately mapped out the distance between the iHeart Radio studios and the Horseshoe for a pre-interview beer. It’s tough to put into words what I felt when I entered this place. Perhaps I’ll borrow a quote from Dave McPherson who wrote The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern: A Complete History…”It’s a blue-collar bar. But you can feel the ghosts and spirits who live there, the weight of history, of all the people who once played on that stage”.
