Category: Discography

https://thehip.com/products/the-tragically-hip-up-to-here-box-set

Release Date: November 8, 2024

1988 Demos recorded at Winfield Sound
Produced by Chris Wardman

Get Back Again:
“Today, June 20, 2024 as a sneak peek, The Tragically Hip officially release “Get Back Again,” considered by fans as the holy grail of unreleased tracks from the band. The track was recorded prior to signing to their first major record deal with MCA (now Universal Music Canada), produced by Chris Wardman in November 1988, before the Up To Here sessions, now recently remixed and mastered to today’s standards. The band performed “Get Back Again” as part of the Live At Misty Moon set, which has been the only recorded version of the track from the band until now, making this a meaningful release for the band and their fans. A brand-new official music video for “Get Back Again”- directed by Cleveland Henderson, son of Pete Henderson who had previously directed many videos of the band including the award winning “Locked In The Trunk Of A Car” and “Courage (For Hugh MacLennan),” premieres June 20, 2024 at 7:00PM on The Tragically Hip’s YouTube.”
https://totimes.ca/the-tragically-hip-40th-anniversary-deluxe-box-set-up-to-here/

LP 2+3 – Live At The Misty Moon + Previously Unreleased Studio Tracks
Side Two

1. She Didn’t Know (1988 Demo)
2. Blow At High Dough (1988 Demo)
3. Boots Or Hearts (1988 Demo)  
4. Everytime You Go (1988 Demo)
5. Just Another Midnight (1988 Demo)

Production Notes:

On arranging and recording The Tragically Hip demos for what would become Up To Here in October of ’88

A bit about me:
I started my music career in the Toronto based punk/new wave band Blue Peter in 1978. The band gained radio success with the song “Don’t Walk Past” and helped pave the way for indie bands with original music, to play venues in Ontario. I co-produced some of our recordings with Kevin Doyle, although our biggest record “Falling” was produced by Steve Nye who had worked with some of my favourite bands: The Cure, The Pretenders, Roxy Music, Japan. I learned a lot about the process watching him work.

This experience led me to a post band career as a producer, scoring early success with Chalk Circle’s “Mending Wall” in 1987, which earned me a Juno nomination for “Producer of the Year”. I didn’t mind losing that one as I was up against the stellar cast of Daniel Lanois (winner), Bryan Adams, Terry Brown, Bruce Fairbairn and Gino Vannelli.

In 1988 I was working at Capitol records Canada as staff producer, a position that meant they could develop and explore Canadian artists with some control over the studios and budgets. As part of that relationship I was asked to work with The Tragically Hip on their songs, focusing on the drum parts and song arrangements, to see if they were sign-able. On October 17 we started a two-week stint in a rehearsal space at #10, 326 Bayview St. belonging to the band National Velvet. In those days there were lots of amazing and mostly abandoned industrial warehouse spaces in downtown Toronto. I think National Velvet’s singer Maria del Mar was living there and would leave when we arrived. Also pretty sure it was a booze can at night, which was the usual way bands afforded the relatively cheap rent.

I had never met The Hip although I was aware of them based on their 1987 EP, which was released by RCA (BMG Music Canada), which the ban ended their relationship with. (Ironically in 1996 I started working in the A&R department at BMG Music Canada). I liked the song Last American Exit, which reminded me of the Bodeans. On the EP the vocals were drowning in reverb and I thought both drums and vocals should be super dry instead. My style for arrangement was a bit different than the “80’s sound”. I’m not a fan of ride cymbals in rock music, and I also think it’s lazy when songs fade out. Spend a few more minutes and figure out an ending! So I actively try to discourage both. My feeling on ride cymbals is that there’s always something more interesting a drummer could be doing than lazily signally “this is the chorus” by extending an arm to play the ride.

At the rehearsal space I had the band play me all seventeen unrecorded songs that were in contention:
When The Weight Comes Down; New Orleans Is Sinking; Rain, Hearts + Fires; I’ll Believe In You; Blow at High Dough; New Man Tonight; Every time You Go; Get Back Again; Hailstone Hands; Just Another Midnight; American Girlfriend; She Didn’t Know; Boots or Hearts; Nuclear BarBQ; Dumped + Dirty; I can Only Give You Everything (cover); and Gimme A Chance.

I listened for the songs I thought would be best to showcase the band and we chose twelve to work on. I began by offering suggestions for changes, which were accepted favourably. The band was very open to the experience. Those songs were: Blow at High Dough; New Man Tonight; Every Time You Go; Get Back Again; Hailstone Hands; Just Another Midnight; American Girlfriend; She Didn’t Know; Boots or Hearts; Dumped + Dirty; I Can Only Give You Everything (cover); and Gimme A Chance.

Gord Downie wrote out the existing song structures for me and I still have some of them.

Get Back Again notes (tempo 148 +5): Intro once, first inst break in half, bass play inversion of chorus, end on inst break. We shaved 50 seconds off the track length.
Another Midnight: drop b verse, drop break before second chorus, it looks like we dropped a section of verses after the second chorus….
Blow at High Dough (tempo 118): (my notes)
End with intro section reprise
Alternate tones in breakdown
End of A chord
Start ride at beginning of solo
Gtr crash on 1 of chorus buildup

After one of the sessions we went to a sports bar on Yonge Street to watch a hockey game. I was not a fan of the game but I was familiar with the 70s players (Esso hockey cards!) and conversant on the topic of the original six teams. Another evening we went to see the recently released movie “Bird”, about jazz saxophonist Charlie “Bird” Parker, at a theatre on Yonge street. You could hear the subways rattle by underneath. They were fun and easy to hang with.

As we got further into arranging I started lobbying the label to go into a studio and record the songs as a more permanent record of the arrangements. I was pretty good at fast recording, so even though they were “demos” there was always the chance that they could be releasable.

The label agreed to recording the demos and we selected six that were the best to showcase the band for potential signing: Blow at High Dough; Every Time You Go; Get Back Again; Just Another Midnight; She Didn’t Know and Boots or Hearts. The songs were chosen to have immediate radio impact and to provide songs that worked together to showcase a cohesive sound.

I booked five days at Winfield Sound. We recorded the bed tracks on Nov 1 and 2. Additional recording to finish the vocals, guitar overdubs and backing vocals happened on Nov 5 and 6 and the mix was on Nov 8.

Winfield Sound owner Aubrey Winfield: “…what I remember was Jake [Gold] telling me that you are going to have the best band in world coming into your studio. I thought this is just manager talk, but as soon as they hit their first note, we all knew that Jake might be right. Chris Wardman got an amazing performance and Robert Bartolucci and I captured the magic.”

Because we were working in a hurry I brought my own collection of guitars and amps, which I knew would be a sure thing. That included a ’68 Goldtop Les Paul, ’63 SG Jr, ’68 Telecaster, 60s Fender Bassman and Fender Deluxe. We recorded beds for 3 songs on 2 days so there was no time to lose.

I set up 11 tracks for drums, including one labeled “Trash”, which was a compressed mic in a closet, along with room ambience and kick ambience (distanced kick mic), along with bass, two guitars and a guide vocal track, so fifteen tracks overall before overdubs.

Day One (Nov 1/88): We started with “She Didn’t Know”, a track I loved especially because Paul sang on the verses. I thought he was the soul of the band. We overdubbed Robbie’s solo, power chords on the chorus, stereo backing vocals and Paul’s verse vocal. We did three vocal takes and went with the third one, apart from a the last line coming out of the solo.

Every Time You Go: There’s a power double on Robbie’s guitar and a doubled “ugly” guitar, which would’ve been a wah pedal set about half way up through a small amp to cut through. There were stereo backing vocals and we went with the second vocal take.

Blow at High Dough: On this track there was an overdubbed Slide Guitar (Robbie) and a wah guitar. Three vocal tracks were comped to the best performance on one track of the 24 track tape.
When the Hip re-recorded this for the album they sent for this master tape to recreate the vibe.

Day Two (Nov 2/88): Boots or Hearts: Dirty Double of Robbie’s guitar, Slide Dobro, doubled handclaps, second vocal take was the winner.

Just Another Midnight: Paul played his Randall guitar, there’s a Fender re-intro line, Robbie played a Chorus “Tinkle” guitar, Gord doubled the chorus vocal, and there’s both a 6-string and a 12-string acoustic.

Get Back Again: Robbie’s guitar was played through his Mesa Boogie, there are two double tracked acoustics guitars, Paul did a backup vocal and we went with Gord’s second vocal take.

Aftermath: There was an industry show for the Toronto Music Awards at Massey Hall on Nov 11 and then the next night a showcase for Bruce Dickinson (vice-president at MCA Records) at the Horseshoe in Toronto. He loved the demos and the band ended up signing with MCA in the States before Capitol Canada even had a chance to evaluate the demos they had commissioned!

This relationship with Jake Gold led to me doing artist development/production with The Watchmen, Big Wreck and David Gogo.

Chris Wardman