Washington’s local ABC affiliate News7 had a TV promo blast for Toronto earlier this week. Seeing some of it brought back wonderful memories of when my Rush pal Derek Bacharach and I went there in June, 2000 for a Rush pilgrimage. We used Bruce Holtgren’s "A Rush Fan's Guide to Toronto" and went to a number of sites.
Below is a reprint of my article from June, 2000. I also include an email Bruce sent to me in 2011.
It was certainly a hoot for me to re-visit our trip. This took place, of course, before smart phones made such experiences much easier. When Derek and I were trying to find Fisherville Junior High School, where Geddy and Alex went, we had quite the time of it. We used a public phone, dialed the operator, got the address, flagged down a passer by, looked at his map, found the address, walked down a couple of streets, and finally found it.
Anyway, hope you enjoy. I'll let folks in Toronto provide any updates as far as places closed down. I do know Sam's Record Store ended their long run and one can visit Neil Peart Memorial at Lakeside Park and Lee Lifeson Art Park in Willowdale. Alex no longer co-owns The Orbit Room.
YYZ: The Rush Pilgrimage
June 2000
Greetings, Rush fans. My friend Derek and I have just completed the trip of a lifetime, a Rush pilgrimage to Toronto. This article, more a diary than a guide, chronicles our four days there. I hope it can help you in some way if you decide to go to Toronto to see the Rush sites.
These writings piggyback on A Rush Fan’s Guide to Toronto. Bruce Holtgren, whose email address is now just a one lane bridge on the information superhighway, wrote this outstanding guide in 1995.
Toronto: June 22-25, 2000
Take off, to the Great White North
Take off, it's a beauty way to go...
Day One, Thursday. YYZ, Massey Hall, Maple Leaf Gardens, Rush Mural.
Twenty years ago, Neil wrote, "It is always a happy day when YYZ appears on our luggage tags." Although it was our first time in Toronto, Derek and I were also very happy upon our arrival at Lester B. Pearson International Airport. After claiming our baggage (the tag was, of course, a keeper), we took the Pacific Northwestern bus to our hotel in midtown Toronto. Cost one way was $10.75 (All prices are Canadian).
The ride through downtown, an excellent orientation, carried us to the Delta Chelsea Hotel (on Gerrard St between Bay and Younge). From there, we walked east past Younge St to our hotel.
Our digs for the next three nights was the Neil Wycik College Hotel located at 96 Gerrard St East (Between Church and Jarvis). My Frommer's guide indicated they took the "minimalist approach" and we found this to be true. It's a college dorm with thin walls and nothing in the rooms except a bed, and if you're lucky a chair. Having said that, I had a jingle in my pocket when I checked out - about $35 per night.
The Neil Wycik certainly isn't for everyone, but in addition to the rock bottom rates, the proximity to things Rush is excellent. Check-in time (around 4:30) was still two hours away, so we walked down to Massey Hall and then back up to Maple Leaf Gardens.
Massey Hall, the venerable brick building where Rush recorded ATWAS in 1976 and The Tragically Hip played the weekend we were there, is located at Shuter between Victoria and Bond. (Did you know it seats only 2,800?).
Maple Leaf Gardens, the place where hockey and rock concerts were once king, is at 60 Carlton Ave (corner of Carlton and Church). We moseyed into the gift shop and found a well-worn book about the acts that had played there through the years. We looked up our favorite band in the index and then read about how one fan was blown away by Xanadu.
That afternoon we also visited Sam the Man's Record Store on Younge St. This boulevard is Toronto's main drag and contains an endless string of stores selling anything and everything. We searched all over for the Chronicles poster mentioned in ARFGTT, but it was an effort in vain.
I did spot a picture of Randy Bachman. One of Sam's long time employees overheard me talking to Derek about it. This guy wore thick dirty glasses and ended his first three sentences to us in the classic Canadian "eh?"
He also helped us look for a picture of Geddy, but we never found it or anything else on the walls about our three heroes from Willowdale. Still, it was fun talking with this guy. We found him and just about every Canadian we met to be just like the tourbook said - friendly and helpful.
The highlight of our first day in Toronto turned out to be a surprise. Derek spotted it when he went up on the roof of our hotel for a look at the cityscape. It's a mural of the cover of TFE painted on the back of a building located at the corner of Church and Dundas. Very cool and a must take picture.
On Thursday night, Derek and I walked over to Chinatown for what turned out to be a great Chinese meal at Lee Garden (331 Spadina). If I told you with dined there with Rush's long-time man of lights, Howard "Herns" Ungerleider, would you believe me?
Well, that isn't far from the truth. Eagle-eyed Derek spied him at a table when we walked in. Derek mustered up the courage to approach him and Herns turned out to be very much the gentleman Brian Harrigan describes in RUSH (Omnibus Press).
After our scrumptious meal and conversation with Herns, we walked over to Alex's Bar on College St (580A). The Orbit Room was a little smaller than I envisioned. Derek and I chatted up the beertender, a busy but friendly chap who let us in on the Alex skinny.
Big Al does visit his place regularly and will, on occasion, get up on the small stage and play. On one particular night not too long ago, Geddy, with some Cleveland Indians baseball players in toe, and Alex both jammed together. A picture on the wall near the stage freezes one of those moments.
Day Two, Friday. SRO/Anthem, Parliament Building (Moving Pictures Cover), Danforth & Pape, Walk of Fame, CN Tower, Blue Jays game at SkyDome.
After a quick bite of grub downstairs at the hotel's small cafeteria (a great alternative is a fresh food place down by where the mural is at Church and Gould), Derek and I set out for three Rush spots that were can't misses for us.
The first was Rush's long time record company Anthem (Remember when it was Moon?). SRO, their tour management company, is there also. Derek really had a desire to visit this spot. Through the years, he spent many a dime calling them for record and tour info.
After our tour of SRO/Anthem, we walked over to a place that many a Rush fan knows only as the building on the cover of Moving Pictures. Torontonians know it as the Parliament Building at Queen's Park. It was a gorgeous day and we took several photos. Some guy overheard us talking with the lone guard about the MP cover and said his friend can be seen on the album cover as the man on top of the van.
Our next destination was a certain famous crossroads north of Toronto. We hopped on the metro for the 20 minute ride. Toronto's subway system was highly touted in my guide book and we gave it two thumbs up.
At the Pape stop, we climbed the stairs, exited station left, and walked on Danforth heading south. The first light is the intersection of Danforth and Pape. There's nothing of particular interest there, just the three banks and a coffee shop. But this was one of those places we both agreed we had to see and, of course, photograph.
Taking a picture turned out to be none too easy because there was beaucoup de circulacion. As a reward for our efforts, we walked down Pape and dined at a Greek restaurant. This is Greektown so you won't have any problem finding a good restaurant.
On Friday afternoon we took the metro downtown. Our first stop was the Walk of Fame. It wasn't listed in my guide so we ended up asking for directions. Get off at the St. Andrews exit and take King St eastward to Simcoe. Look to your left and you will see a "space-aged" building that is known as the Roy Thompson (Theatre) Hall. Take a left on Simcoe and on the south side of the theatre hall is the Walk of Fame.
Rush is immortalized there along with some new members who were inducted the night we were there. William Shatner was one and I thought that was appropriate for Rush. Both Rush and Captain Kirk used sci-fi to help launch their careers.
Our next stop was that tall tower down by the water. Let me see, ah, the name of it is on the tip of my tongue. Don't tell me. Oh yea, the CN Tower! (Is it possible Rush asked Hugh Syme to put in a tall structure on the cover of AFTK to resemble what the CN Tower might look like? Was the CN Tower in the planning stages at that time? Just a thought.)
I jest, of course, but did you know that CN stands for Canadian National? I would imagine Canadians are mighty proud of this landmark. For 22 Canuck bucks, you can take a ride up to the Lookout and then the Skypod.
After a burger meal at one of those crowded-on-game-night, downtown bars on Front Street, Derek and I took in the Blue Jays game versus the Red Sox. Typically, what an American baseball fan can expect from a Blue Jays game is a somewhat laid back crowd. I'm certain Canadians go hog-wild over their hockey, but baseball takes a back seat. Sure, they went wild in '92 and '93 when they won the World Series, but since then, Toronto has not been in contention very often.
This all seemed to change in this one game. The Blue Jays, who had not been in first place in the AL East this late in the season since 1993, were hot and had climbed to within a half a game of the first place Yankees. The Red Sox were also just one half game back.
The pre-game festivities were a lively celebration of the contributions Latin American players have made and are making to baseball. The Blue Jays starting lineup itself is a tribute to countries like the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. It features at least five Latin American players and their fans were out in full force waving their colorful flags proudly high in hand.
The Blue Jays won Friday night 5-4 to take over first place. They won on Saturday and on Sunday hit three homers off the brilliant Pedro Martinez. The sweep of Boston was headline news. (As I write this, the Blue Jays have won 8 of 10 and have built a 2 game lead over the Yankees. Geddy must be a very happy camper!).
Day Three, Saturday. Lakeside Park, Willowdale, Fisherville Junior High School, La Bruschetta restaurant.
Lakeside Park, willows in the breeze
Lakeside Park, so many memories.
Laughing rides, midway lights
Shining stars on summer nights.
(On ATWAS, Geddy introduces this song by saying, "This is a song that Neil wrote the lyrics for about a place not too far from where he was born (St. Catharines). Not too far from here as a matter of fact, it's called Lakeside Park.")
Lakeside Park was also a must see for Derek and I and well worth the hour drive from Toronto. We talked with a local, a young chap who said he had been living there for the past 15 years.
There's no doubt the magic has long since faded from this once idyllic place. Having said that, it was quiet when we visited and we found it to be a pleasant experience. (As you exit the parking lot on the way out closest to Lake Ontario, look for Gary Street!).
After our two hour stay at Lakeside Park, Derek and I drove to Willowdale (north of Toronto). There's no doubt that this is not the smaller community Geddy and Alex grew up in. But still, we did find some quiet streets and drove over the "river Don." It's rather small, seemed like a creek to me and we barely caught a brief glimpse of some actual water.
The one place in Willowdale that Derek and I were determined to find was Geddy's and Alex's junior high school (Fisherville Junior High School). We drove around for a while and decided it was probably located on some backstreet. We stopped at a McDonalds and dialed up the operator who gave us the street address.
That was great progress, but we did not have a local map. We asked a man in a car if he knew where this street was. Lo and behold, he whipped out a handy-dandy map and gave us directions.
Derek and I were now psyched. And to top off our magic mood, Red Barchetta, courtesy of 97.7, came crackling through the airwaves. We both had goosebumbs (By the way, 102.1 FM does not play classic rock as far as I know. To me 97.7 has the spirit of radio now).
After Red Barchetta ended, we arrived at Fisherville Junior High School. We took some pictures and afterwards wondered which particular house Geddy and Alex had lived in. I recalled the pictures they made available on the TFE tourbook and these older and smaller brick ramblers looked like they fit the bill.
With one night left in Toronto, a final good meal was the task at hand. Herns had recommended La Brushcetta (1317 St Claire) in Little Italy and so we took him up on his advice. When we arrived, the streets were filled with a wild celebration. Horns honked, people danced and shouted, whistles pierced the air, and green, white and red flags whirled in constant motion. Italy, we learned quickly, had just won the Euro 2000 semifinals.
La Brushcetta offered fresh pasta, a small, but down-to-earth dining area and the hospitality of long time owner of Benito Piantoni. We figured Rush dined here at least once, but could not find their names on Benito's "Wall of Fame."
Last Day, Sunday. Merci et au revoir.
It rained on Sunday morning. I was a little tired from the fitful sleeps of the past three nights and was ready to fly home. But as the bus sped along to the airport under a leaden sky, I was filled with a sense of fulfillment. I can't compare this experience to a religious one, but this was a pilgrimage. Rush has meant a lot to me through my years.
They were (it ain’t over yet. As I write this, the big rumor is Rush will enter the studios in October) so loyal to their fans, recording and touring every 18 months or so and defining success on their own terms. And although all they ever owe us is a good, on-stage performance, they have voiced strong and meaningful opinions on critical issues like human rights and saving the environment. Through their music and their actions, Rush has helped me reject narrow attitudes and make my worldview more spacious.
So thank you Derek for inviting me and sharing this wonderful experience. Thank you Geddy, Alex and Neil for these past 25 years. And thank you Toronto. Like Bob and Doug McKenzie once said, you are a beauty way to go.
Email I received from Bruce Holtgren in 2011.
Jay,
Thanks for tracking me down on Facebook. You have no idea how close I came to deciding to saying no to you ... until I looked at your blog, and then the "Rush is a Band" blog, and then saw your message, and then I just cracked up.
That guide I tossed together, way back in '93 or '94, for the now long-defunct and much-beloved National Midnight Star (R.I.P.), will simply live forever, it seems. I have heard from seemingly dozens of people who actually, really used it.
But in the early days of the Internet, I guess it's all people had. Indeed, the NMS was my own first real exposure to the Internet, and I learned so much from it about netiquette, meeting up with people in real life about a common interest, getting info about things like concerts where it had previously been virtually impossible to track down, and on and on.
So, as a newspaper copy editor by trade, I took it upon my solemn duty when I made my second trip to T.O. as a Rush fan to take notes and report back.
I have never lost my passion for Rush, of course. Unlike those who have seen them 50 times or whatever, I'm holding at a mere dozen. I just can't justify spending three digits to sit hundreds of feet away to hear most of the same music I've heard before -- especially when I know the promoters are getting almost all the money.
But I just LOVED that documentary, one of the best of any kind I've seen in years, and I was thrilled to see via you that in won a Juno. (But I'm hardly surprised. How many Junos must Rush be responsible for, in one way or another, by now?)
From time to time I am in Greater D.C., and especially Greater Greater D.C., so we should get together if you should so wish. I'm definitely up for baseball as well as a concert.
Thanks again for getting in touch.
Cheers,
Bruce
Hey Jay,
Just saw this pop into my self-googling feed, and just had to say hey, again. Suffice it to say that I'm amused, again.
I don't have much of a web presence anymore in my own name, and I'm sorta tickled that something I threw together nearly half a lifetime ago still has legs. I'd dearly love to get up to TO again and do another version of that Rushian's Guide, which desperately needs updating.
Up until a couple of months ago, I was active on Reddit, which I had to quit cuz it was a major time suck and a coupla other issues. One of my favorite subreddits is r/rush, which I highly recommend to all fans. I got great response to this post earlier this year: https://www.reddit.com/r/rush/comments/1d2a4qq/a_bunch_of_freaks_casually_hanging_out_in_a_very/ ... (For all I know, you may have been one of the commenters on that post.)
And you probably already know that much, if not most, of the old National Midnight Star has been archived online by some heroic person(s): https://tnms.pelstudio.com/index.html
Now I'm off to check out your other bloggings. You just may inspire me to put up some more blatherings on my own blog, but I'm a little intimidated by how much people like you have churned out over the years.
Great seeing this today; hope all is well with you.
I'm not looking back, but I want to look around me now
See more of the people and the places that surround me now
Time stand still ...
Cheers,
Bruce
Posted by: Bruce Holtgren | July 19, 2024 at 08:56 PM
Bruce,
So great to hear back from you. Wish we could meet up for coffee or a beer and a meal.
I see google results for reddit but never take the plunge. My on line time is Facebook. Also look daily at Rush Is A Band. Ed Stenger has done a tremendous job through the years, but now some of his posts don’t get any comments, and most get 1 or 2.
Ed was kind enough to mention my blog post on my YYZ trip. My blog hits shot up. Let’s call it the Holtgren effect!!
What is the name of your blog? Would love to see it.
Great quote from Time Stand Still. Neil was always ahead of his time. This world we live in requires us to do things to slow down. I was walking the other day and saw a Great Blue Heron. Got close to it. Neil loved birds if I recall correctly. Gosh we still miss him so very much.
If you are ever in the Alexandria/DC region, let’s do try and get together.
My email is [email protected]. Take care.
Posted by: Jaybird's Jottings | July 20, 2024 at 05:52 AM