Humpday is the perfect day to go out for a walk with the camera you always have on you. The title shot is one from a wedswalk this summer in Johnston Canyon in Alberta, Canada. That's as simple as it needs to be for the Wednesday Walk challenge championed by our friend @tattoodjay and the Make me Smile Collaboration challenge lead by @elizacheng.

The temperature has come up but the sun has gone away and the sky wants to do nothing but piss. So, instead of showing pics of a dreary dog park or quiet downtown core, I am throwing it back to August past and a trip to The Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

Alright Maybe One

Here is the last outdoor shot I have to give you an idea what you are not missing. Dropped the little one off at school and found a couple familiar cars from the local driving school. Being clients, I stopped to snap a couple social media pics of the cool branded cars of Stratford Future Driving School Now back to Calgary in the summer.

Downtown Calgary

It was a hazy day in western Canada when we visited the downtown core and Studio Bell. As the home of the National Music center, even the building is a spectacle. Modern architecture wrapped right around a historic [King Eddy Hotel] (https://kingeddy.ca/) that opened its doors in 1905. I didn't look too much into why they needed a bridge to the building across the street but it kinda looks like it is putting its arm around the old guy.

Right. Back to the Music

I could, and might, spend a few posts telling you all about the Canadian music you thought was American, or have never heard of at all and you are missing out. Randy Bachman of BTO (Bachman Turner Overdrive) are certainly all hosers.

Let it Ride? You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet? Cmon man! Nah I don't blame you if you are not a huge fan.


One thing for sure, this one had an almost unhealthy obsession with amassing guitars. If the title of the exhibit is true and Every Guitar Tells a Story then these walls are lined with plenty of history. Many are just silly but I would love to have my pick of a couple to take home and play.

Sorry Not Sorry

Now I am not entirely sure how the world sees Nickelback. I remember hearing them before all of the formulaic margarine albums and enjoying the lost heaviness and strong vocals. When I stopped caring, it seems everyone else up here started hating on them. Rick Astley style ironic ridicule.

Present opinions aside, they are a huge international band who won national SOCAN International Achievement Awards for years for global success. If you want 'em you can have 'em and I bet you didn't even know they were Canadian.
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The Band

One we are actually proud of is Robbie Robertson who you might know from The Band. Even I thought they were an American band and was surprised to find Levon Helm was the only yank. Definitely one of the good ones.

Other Notable Hosers

Feist? Almost current pop star. Alanis Morissete. Drake, Bryan Adams, and Celine Dion are obvious ones. Sarah McLachlan had her hey day a while ago but her voice is enough to make a headbanger stop hanging the horns. There are quite a few great ones and I haven't even mentioned my favourites yet!

RUSH!

I discovered Rush way back in grade 8 and can say they have been one of my favourite bands the whole time. Those weird Canadians are pretty recognizable and distinctly famous in part for being north of the border. What's neat about this kit is that it was the one used by drummer Neil Peart for the equally Canadian theme song for Hockey Night in Canada.

It doesn't get much more canuck than that.

So Much More



The old organs were neat to see. Such craftsmanship when they were built to last and play music forever.

The early synthesizers used by the pioneers are mind blowing. Almost looks as complicated as those switchboards for early telephone when they switched and connected manually. Same thing here for the varied sounds but you could get this whole setup on a thumb drive for your computer these days.



I especially enjoyed the huge symphonic movie soundtrack and mood music section. Incredible fine engineering and I bet each of these had a unique sound. Makes me wonder how many movies with sweeping music came from these relics.

Architecture

After spending a couple hours exploring, learning, and even playing instruments in some of the exhibits, it was time to walk on out. I took a sec to gape upwards as the intricacy of the architecture was over the top. I didn't even remember to wipe the lens on my camera phone before taking this shot looking straight up in the main lobby.


The sun goes down on this throwback #wednesdaywalk with some more neat architecture and a sculpture that reminded me of a drinky bird. You know the one. As the humans take shelter in the shade on this 36 Celsius summer day, drinky is bobbing up and down eternally.

Thanks for visiting the Canadian Music Hall of Fame!

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