What is Hip?: The Life and Times of The Tragically Hip
About this ebook
On August 20th, 2016 11.7 million Canadians stood transfixed, watching the final concert of The Tragically Hip, and the rest of the world asked, “Who is this band?” New York Times Bestselling pop journalist Marc Shapiro answers that question in the first American book about this Canadian rock band that largely shunned the spotlight but has become the standard bearer of a resurgent sense of Canadian pride and patriotism.
What is Hip? The Life And Times Of The Tragically Hip delves deep beneath the surface of this rock and roll story to discover how a band that spent more than three decades in the rock and roll trenches selling millions of albums and opening for the likes of The Rolling Stones, The Who and Led Zeppelin’s Page & Plant, remained almost unknown outside their home country, even as they rose to the level of rock royalty in Canada.
What Is Hip: The Life And Times Of The Tragically Hip reveals:
• The behind the scenes story of how the band took over The Horseshoe Tavern and made it their own
• How a high up political personality was instrumental in landing the band their manager
• The day-to-day, often unforgiving, spirit-grinding days of life on the road in Canada
• The ins and outs of opening for three of the biggest groups in the history of rock and roll
The Tragically Hip are not cartoon rockers. They are real men who live by their creativity and their principles. Through extensive research and a couple of well-placed sources, author Marc Shapiro has put together a complete look at The Tragically Hip’s rise: from their humble Kingston, Ontario roots, to endless tours, to their internal struggles to keep their music fresh, to the fanatic loyalty they fostered in millions of Canadian fans. These fans shed more than a few tears when it was announced that singer Gord Downie had been diagnosed with brain cancer, and that The Hip were about to embark on what might be their final tour.
Marc Shapiro is the author of more than 75 books. His most recent releases include Trump This! The Life And Times Of Donald Trump and Hey Joe: The Unauthorized Biography Of A Rock Classic. When he is not working, which is rare, he can usually be found mowing the lawn, taking out the trash and walking the dog.
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About the author
New York Times bestselling author Marc Shapiro has written more than 60 nonfiction celebrity biographies, more than two-dozen comic books, numerous short stories and poetry, and three short form screenplays. He is also a veteran freelance entertainment journalist.
His young adult book JK Rowling: The Wizard Behind Harry Potter was on The New York Times bestseller list for four straight weeks. His fact-based book Total Titanic was also on The Los Angeles Times bestseller list for four weeks. Justin Bieber: The Fever was on the nationwide Canadian bestseller list for several weeks.
Shapiro has written books on such personalities as Shonda Rhimes, George Harrison, Carlos Santana, Annette Funicello, Lorde, Lindsay Johan, E.L. James, Jamie Dornan, Dakota Johnson, Adele and countless others. He also co-authored the autobiography of mixed martial arts fighter Tito Ortiz, This Is Gonna Hurt: The Life of a Mixed Martial Arts Champion.
He is currently working on a biography of Mary Tyler Moore as well as updating his biographies of Gillian Anderson and Lucy Lawless for Riverdale Avenue Books.
