Since my name is in the title of this thread, I suppose I should weigh in on the topic.
I started collecting Hip shows on cassette tape back in November of 1996. Thanks to Trevor AStrope, my addiction was born. My collection really started to snowball with the Phantom Power tour, and from 1998 through to 2002 solid, I was burning and trading roughly 10-20 shows every single week. And I loved every minute of it. It was exhausting, time consuming, and didn't make a heck of a lot of sense to people, but I knew that spreading the music was my "duty" as a Hip fan, of sorts. I had the resources, I had the shows, and I had the website. So why not? I didn't do it for the recognition or because I had links on the Hip's website or because the band themselves got a show from me that they were missing in their collection. I did it because I was making countless Hip fans all around the world, happy. The feeling of getting my first ever live Tragically Hip concert on tape (11/10/94 Boston) is, to this day, still fresh in my heart, and I knew that by trading these shows or doing B&P's, I could make someone else feel the same way. THAT is why I did it. Nowadays, I see that most of the shows can be downloaded, so that feeling of going to the mailbox and finsing a new Hip tape or CD is non-existent for most folks, and that's cool. Technology is progress, I suppose, and why not make it as easy as possible to spread the music? This technology, coupled with the fact that I met the woman of my dreams, took away from my desire to continue full-throttle, the spreading of the music. I haven't updated my website since I met her, and now we have a beautiful baby girl. This is now my life, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Trading boots, and ONLY trading boots, was my life for a good part of five years. Everyone must move on, and I am no different. I am no less a Hip fan than I was 10 years ago. I am digging the new album, and will try to see as many shows as I can this year, time and family permitting.
My collection went to another Hip fan that we all know, and may I say, the biggest and most dedicated Hip fan of them all. It took me awhile to get my entire collection out to him, and he was so patient with me, that I can't thank him enough for that. I still have a few shows left in my collection, some favorites, and I will probably go nuts in 2004 trying to get every new show again. But I'll never get to the same point that I was, trading and burning every hour of every day. Life hit me like a freight train, and I'm still hanging on for the ride....
Thanks for reading...
Rory
Halifax
http://www.killerwhaletank.com/rory