Artist: Red Fisher, Album: War Wagon, Song: Tom BMX

"His name is Tom and he rides his BMX bike."  Red Fisher were a 3 piece punk band from Winnipeg.  They started playing in the late eighties and by the early nineties, they were really hitting their stride as a band.  If you grew up anywhere west of Thunder Bay you likely know this band well.  I found out about them from a friend who grew up in Saskatchewan and remembered seeing them live a number of times.  Although regional perhaps, the band's purpose was born from the skateboarding culture that was drifting up the coast into Canada from California.  And with that, came the lifestyle which included Punk music and a general distaste for anything or anybody that tried to control their independence.  Now I was never a skater.  Fell on my ass too much.  But I did have friends that were into it and I always kept a close ear to what they were listening to.  In the end, it was that lifestyle and music that went mainstream and suddenly, everyone was enjoying it.  My guess is, Red Fisher rode that wave in the nineties after bands like Green Day and Offspring broke.  They were playing venues with 500-1000 screaming kids across the prairies.  They also toured the US with bands like Screaching Weasel, SNFU and the Goo Goo Dolls.  Although courted by major labels, they remained strictly DIY until 1994 when they broke up.  The indie label, G7 Welcoming Committee Records, has re-released their final album, War Wagon, which is also available for download on Itunes.  You can read more about the band at http://www.g7welcomingcommittee.com/bands/redfisher.php.  Interesting fact about Red Fisher is that their drummer Jason Tait went on to become a founding member of the band, the Weakerthans.  You can hear the song, Tom BMX, on You Tube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ge9mfqP3wHU).  As always, you can hear this song as well as others that I blog about each day on Live 365 (http://www.live365.com/stations/raisedoncndnradio).  Thanks for reading and enjoy!