You know that Blue Rodeo has reached iconic Canadiana status when you take a glance at their merch table. Sure, there’s the usual t-shirts, ballcaps, hoodies, posters and albums but there’s also hockey jerseys emblazoned with the band’s name. It doesn’t get more Canadian than that. I’d bet good money that Ron MacLean probably has one of these in his closet.
Another indication of their being a Canadian institution is the fact that for the past several years they’ve been playing their annual summertime shows at the Amphitheatre, with this year’s show being played in promotion of their latest album, In Our Nature.
Along for the ride this year were openers The Deep Dark Woods, who played a good set of folk/country rock that brought to mind The Band, The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers at various points. A somewhat muddy mix did them no favours but they’re still a talented bunch of players and their musicianship shone through regardless.
“Nice to hear you singing so early in the night … you must be drunk,” said Greg Keelor to the crowd after Blue Rodeo opened up their set with “Head Over Heels” and “What Am I Doing Here.”
Yes, this was a crowd that was ready to sing along and when given the chance to take the lead later on in the evening for “Hasn’t Hit Me Yet,” they took it. It’s always great to hear a huge room of people singing along together and Blue Rodeo definitely gave the people plenty of chances to sing along to songs from throughout their catalogue. While songs like “Try,” “Five Days In May,” and set closer “Lost Together” (featuring an appearance from The Deep Dark Woods) were the biggest crowd pleasers, newer tracks like “New Morning Sun” and the classic country sounding “Tell Me Again” stood out as well. There’s a reason these guys are seen by many as a Canadian institution.