Cycling Celebrity
Blue Rodeo’s Jim Cuddy on bikes and strengthening bonds in the music community
Ask Jim Cuddy to pick just one place to cycle for the rest of his life and the answer comes easily: Tuscany. The region in central Italy is the songwriter’s go-to destination for its scenery, its bike culture and the warm welcome locals give you in every town. As a touring artist for the past four decades (mostly with Blue Rodeo), Cuddy has seen the world as a musician does. But he has also ridden in Cape Town, South Africa, Mallorca, Spain and in the Andes mountains surrounding Bogota, Colombia.
Cuddy’s livelihood as a touring musician halted when covid-19 hit North America in March 2020. He participated in some virtual shows, but with no gigs, he had extra time at home to write, reflect and ride.
What the songwriter loves most about cycling, besides limbering up his legs is the social aspect. “The pandemic has intensified any activity you were able to do,” says the 13-time Juno winner. “For many of my musician friends and I, that meant cycling. We met weekly in a parking lot north of Toronto, and rode 60 to 75 km. The music community is filled with camaraderie, usually around gigs, but these meetings offer only brief exchanges. This pandemic gave everyone a chance to spend several hours together and just talk. You could ride up beside someone and start a deeper and more meaningful conversation. That time was valuable for us as an artist community to strengthen our bond.”
Cuddy divides his time these days between Toronto and his farm roughly 100 km northwest of the city near Shelburne, Ont. In Toronto, Cuddy and his wife, actor Rena Polley, enjoy riding the network of trails that meander along the Humber and Don River Valleys. At his farm, the pair often ride their Scott Addict Gravel bikes, allowing them access to a variety of terrain. Whether he is riding in an urban setting or in the hills of Mulmur Township, he chooses his ride accordingly. “Every bike has a specific job and it does its job well, just like each member of a band,” he says.
Cuddy’s iconic group, Blue Rodeo, has a record in the works. A release is planned for January 2022. Before his songwriting partner and founding band member Greg Keelor called to say he wanted to make another record, Cuddy didn’t think it was going to happen. The musician had started writing songs – often after a long ride – for a planned Jim Cuddy Band record. So expect two new records from Cuddy in 2022.
The Blue Rodeo record was made in an unusual way, but one the artist feels succeeded. The band members were never i n a studio together. Keelor recorded with Tim Vesey (of Rheostatics) at Ji mmy Bowskills’ studio east of the city. Cuddy worked with Blue Rodeo’s guitarist Colin Cripps. Then, each band member was brought in individually to add his parts.
“I’m really fascinated by this,” Cuddy says. “Part of it is due to technology. It is so easy to use now and part of it is just that Blue Rodeo has such deeply worn grooves and we know what we want and how to get it from each person. Ultimately, when all of Blue Rodeo put their stamp on it, it just sounds like us.”