The Horseshoe Tavern is a long, narrow club located on
Queen Street West, a few doors east of Spadina Avenue in downtown Toronto. On
the wide sidewalk in front of the music venue is a small patio enclosed by a
black iron fence, where the drinkers from inside stand in the winter cold or
the summer heat and smoke their cigarettes.
Inside is the front room, a bright, blond-wood space with a
long bar on the left. The wall on the right is coated with a collage of
newspaper clippings, set lists, and a generous photographic record of the bands
that have graced the famous stage located in the Horseshoe's darker recesses.
Past a pool table and the bathrooms, past a displayed
Triumph motorcycle and up a few steps, is the back room-- the venue itself. The
light of the front room gives way to a low-ceilinged black cavern with another
bar on the left, seating and a sound booth on the right, all leading up to a
smallish dance floor and the stage which has hosted an endless progression of
music royalty.
Country stars like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Charlie
Pride, Loretta Lyn and Stompin' Tom Connors played The Horseshoe in the early
days. Punk and new wave acts like The Police, The Ramones, The Talking Heads,
and The MC-5 visited later. A who's who of Canadian rock, including The
Tragically Hip, The Rheostatics, Bryan Adams, Nickelback, Billy Talent, The
Constantines and Arcade Fire have passed through. Monster acts like The Rolling
Stones have arrived to play secret sets, while a constant stream of acts on
their way to eventual stardom like Niko Case, Franz Ferdinand, The
Decemberists, Death Cab for Cutie, and The Shins have graced the stage.
If you play Canada, eventually you will play the legendary
Horseshoe Tavern.
Bar prices are typically steep for a downtown Toronto bar (a
bottle of Labatt 50 is a five-and-a-quarter hit, plus tip) but to the club's
credit, live music from emerging artists is cheap. Monday night has three
bands, free. Tuesday night has four bands, also free. I try to make it most
Mondays. I don't miss a Tuesday.
Tuesday is new music night at The Horseshoe. Four bands,
usually local or regional acts, show up and play. They don't get any money, but
they get to play in a famous room in front of a good crowd, usually numbering a
hundred or more people. It's a place for bands to gain experience and exposure,
and a place for music fans to see what's being played by the newest of the new.
It doesn't matter who is playing. You show up and see. Tuesday night is a
mish-mash of rock, punk, country, pop, glam, or whatever else. You show up and
take what The Horseshoe gives you.
Every Tuesday night I get home from work, eat, shower up,
and pre-drink a few tall cans. Then I pick out a black t-shirt, grab my
notebook and go. It's not a long walk from my apartment. The first band is
usually on by a quarter after nine, and every week I'm there by nine o'clock
sharp. I go alone. When I'm at a gig I'm taking notes, changing spots so I can
isolate and focus on particular players on stage, or chasing down band members
to ask questions, make contacts, exchange info... you get the idea. I collect
information, and I'll write about them for a website, either my own or someone
else's. I usually write up at least one band a week, sometimes two. Since retiring from actually playing music
(more on that later), I've been trying to get a career in music journalism off
the ground. So while I'm there to enjoy the bands, I'm also working. It's hard
to keep track of friends when you're operating like that.
Another reason I don't bring friends to gigs is that I have
no friends. More or less, anyway. More on that later, too.
