So I got to hang out with Ed Robertson of Barenaked Ladies - everything you might have read about them being very nice and down-to-earth is true. Really great guys.
My company produces corporate events and meetings, and we do a huge conference for Staples, the office supply store. Along with the store manager conference, there is a trade show, where office supply products makers can show new wares, meet the store managers and basically do trade show things.
BNL were hired to be the headline event closing the show. Their crew showed up and set up their gear - the guitar roadies were incredibly nice, really wanting to hang out and talk guitars and stuff (they offered to let me play a few, and yes, I did). Right when the band showed up, a power amp on the mixing board blew and it was going to take 30 - 45 minutes to fix. Ed turned to me and said “well, I’m not interested in being in a room and staring at chairs; I hear there is a trade show for this conference - can I take a look?” I said “sure!” and got him in to see all the booths being set up.
Here’s where it gets cool - as we were walking in, I explained that there was a James Bond theme to the show at the client’s request. Then, as we walked around, he looked at a few products and we talked about comic books and books and games - stuff he was into. That night, they did their show, and while I have not been a big fan, they were excellent live - great sound, tight harmonies, excellent performances. But they peppered the whole show with references to Staples and my conversation with Ed! They played the James Bond theme and riffed on Staples over that, then Ed did one of his famous raps about the various products he saw at the trade show, and then they told funny made-up stories about their favorite Staples store in Toronto.
It was pretty funny to have this casual conversation with this man, only to see him use that, in a very funny and effective way - in his band’s show that night.
AudreyK - not so random; lots of corporations will hold annual sales meetings, usergroup conferences or other large meetings and then celebrate that year’s performance of the company with a headliner talent. It’s a way of thanking the employees. BNL are one of the bigger groups on this circuit; so is Sheryl Crow and Jimmy Buffet. Great money for them.
raizok I know you’re kidding, but just to re-iterate, they (BNL) seem like very nice guys, not the least bit into that whole rock star thing*. Ed talked about his three children. In terms of going through the trade show, he was being a true pro - he knew he would do some sort of rap and wanted input on what to rap about - since he didn’t want me to “feed” him stuff, he didn’t tell me about his motives and just engaged me in conversation so he could get his own ideas. Perfectly understandable.
*fwiw, there was one woman on our backstage crew who is, to quote a buddy on our team “leave-your-wife beautiful” - I mean, truly supermodel stunning. She was really a big fan of the band and tried to hang out close to their dressing rooms to try to engage them in conversation. They were all very polite, but treated her no different from anyone else.
Ok, I’m quite jealous of you WordMan. I’ve been a big fan of BNL since the early 90s (I was listening to Gordon on the way to work this morning in fact). It’s nice to hear that their reputation as all-around nice guys is well deserved.
Didn’t know that. I’m amused/impressed that corporations have enough sense of cool in them to pull that off.
Heh. You can imagine how (relatively) dull their Behind the Music episode was. It was enterntaining, but free of the sex and illicit drugs scandals that are typical of the rest.
It’s reassuring to know they’re about as nice and cool as they seem.
They often don’t - my company often has to steer them towards the right artists. Having said that, a lot of boomers are in power in corporate positions now and a lot of them love music. Of the more recent acts, Sheryl Crow and BNL are popular because they are new AND they are accessible to folks who group up on '70’s singer/songwriter rock and pop like Fleetwood Mac, the Eagles, etc…
But we often get request for scary-old artists who are so past their prime it is not funny.
By the same token we got Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes to play a gig a month ago - great great live show.
Canadian checking in - totally overplayed band due to CanCon - If I had a million dollars - well I just have to say — I’d find a way to get these guys off the airwaves.
I was a huge BNL fan about a decade ago, and I got to meet the band a couple times. Ed and Jim are both really friendly, and the other guys are great too, if a bit shier. Once I bumped into Ed at a comic book store in Chicago before a show (yes, it was near North Clark and Belmont, by the way), and he remembered me from talking to me before. His fan memory is legendary. I swear, those guys helped me live through high school.