Ralph Mellanby and Ben Harper

November 5, 2007

Atticus Finch writes –

Who would have thought that Harold Ballard would have been an aid for the rise of a Canadian icon. This was one of the things I learned tonight during the interview with Ralph Mellanby. Now I’m a huge hockey fan and Don Cherry and Coaches Corner have been personal favourites since I was very young. I have to admit though that I didn’t know anything about Ralph Mellanby, let alone that he was to thank for the years and years of entertainment, education and controversy that is Don Cherry. I liked what he had to say about hockey markets. He believes that Ontario should have 3 teams. I’ve always thought there were too many teams in too many unhockey cities. But I digress. Mr. Mellanby helped change hockey as we view it in this country and I can’t wait to read his new book “Walking With Legends: The Real Stories of Hockey Night in Canada.” So thanks to The Hour for a great block of hockey talk and thanks to Mr. Mellanby for shaping the way we all experience our national sport.

The interview with Ben Harper was as always very interesting. His music is thought provoking and heart felt. Good/fun quote from Ben.. “hard mornings are non negotiable”. He talked a lot about his Grandfather and his influence in his music and his life. George asked him about fatherhood and Ben’s answers were rather refreshing. He makes sure he’s there for his kids big moments even when he’s on tour. You have to respect a man and artist like that. They played a clip of a video of Ben that is posted on Strombo.com Go watch it.

The cold opener was classic. There really are some hockey rivalries that run that deep and to the fans of those teams the religion of hockey can be heartbreaking. Paul and the ketchup packet where hilarious! Cold openers are good but what ever happened to the Closer. And where did the List disappear to? Disinformation was about car wrecks. I think I’ll take George’s advice and start riding a bike!