Hundreds of fans flock to Lakeside to say goodbye to Tragically Hip
By Nelson Daily Staff
The Tragically Hip, Man Machine Poem Tour made a stop in Nelson as venues, including one at the Lakeside Ball Diamonds, pumped out the live concert Saturday from Kingston, Ont.
The tour was the final act for the iconic Canadian rock band after it was announced that lead singer Gord Downie has terminal brain cancer.
Unfortunately, daylight made it difficult to view the screen at Lakeside.
However, that did not disappoint the hundreds of fans sitting on the grass to listen to Hip front-man Downie belt out the lyrics fans have grown accustom to — including Nautical Disaster, New Orleans Is Sinking and Bobcaygeon before ending with Ahead by a Century.
“That doesn’t matter . . . it’s still a community event bringing people together,” one fan said en route to his own special piece of grass.
The concert, the final show of the tour by Rob Baker, Paul Langlois, Johnny Fay, Gord Sinclair and Downie, that kicked off in Victoria on July 22, before making a trek east across the Prairies to Ontario and not surprisingly, ending in the band’s hometown.
The concert was viewed by Hip fans across Canada, which included Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, thanks to the telecast via CBC.
