Tragically Hip – Road Apples

Road Apples is the second (or third, depending on whether you count the first eponymous release) full-length album from the Tragically Hip. It was the first of six consecutive releases to reach number one in Canada. It ranked 26th in Bob Mersereau's 2007 book, The Top 100 Canadian Albums.

When we moved to Fort Frances in early 1990, it was no longer possible to buy vinyl albums, so we purchased a Pioneer CD player with a 6-disc changer. Among the first CDs we purchased were Concrete Blonde's Bloodletting and Road Apples by the Tragically Hip.

The first time we saw the Hip live was when Peter and Lisa Horst, a couple of hockey parents we didn't know particularly well, invited us along to see them play in a corn field near Stratford. The last time we saw them live was also with Peter and Lisa, at Budweiser Gardens in London, on August 8th, 2016.

Although the Hip is largely a Canada-only phenomenon, this album has received fairly decent reviews from the international critics:

• AllMusic rates it 4 stars out of 5
• Pop Matters rates it an 8 out of 10

Five singles were released from the album, including "Little Bones," which reached #11 in Canada.

Click on a heading below to toggle more information.

Track Listing

1. "Little Bones" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 4:44
2. "Twist My Arm" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 3:54
3. "Cordelia" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 4:10
4. "The Luxury" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 3:38
5. "Born in the Water" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 3:24
6. "Long Time Running" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 4:23
7. "Bring It All Back" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 4:39
8. "Three Pistols" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 3:48
9. "Fight" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 5:58
10. "On the Verge" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 3:54
11. "Fiddler's Green" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 4:25
12. "The Last of the Unplucked Gems" (Bobby Baker, Gordon Downie, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois, Gord Sinclair) – 2:03

Personnel

• Tragically Hip – Fully Completely (album)
• Tragically Hip – Phantom Power (album)
• Tragically Hip – Day for Night (album)
• Tragically Hip – Up to Here (album)
• Tragically Hip – Bobcaygeon (song)
• Tragically Hip – Wheat Kings (song)
• Tragically Hip – Fifty Mission Cap (song)
• Tragically Hip – Ahead by a Century (song)