"Grace, Too" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. It was released in September 1994 as the lead single from their fourth studio album, Day for Night. The song peaked at number 11 on the RPM Canadian Singles chart.
Live performances On March 25, 1995, The Tragically Hip performed the song on Saturday Night Live after being introduced by Dan Aykroyd. Aykroyd, who is a fan of the band, had personally lobbied SNL showrunner Lorne Michaels to book them as a musical guest. On the show, Gord Downie notably flubbed the start of the song—rather than the normal opening lyric, "He said I'm fabulously rich", Downie sang it as "He said I'm tragically hip". The band later attributed the error to their pre-show use of marijuana. Subsequently during live performances, Downie frequently sang the opening line as "He said I'm tragically hip", often to applause from the crowd.
The band also opened their Woodstock 1999 performance with this song.
Covers In 2011, the song was covered by Selina Martin for the first Have Not Been the Same charity compilation."'Have Not Been the Same' Book Spawns Covers Comp Featuring Kevin Drew, the Hidden Cameras, Great Lake Swimmers, Bry Webb". Exclaim!, November 14, 2011.
Singer-songwriter Justin Rutledge covered the song for his 2014 album Daredevil, an album consisting entirely of Tragically Hip covers."Justin Rutledge Ropes In Brendan Canning, Jenn Grant, Andy Maize for Tragically Hip Covers Album" . Exclaim!, January 30, 2014.
Following Downie's death in October 2017, country singer Dallas Smith performed the song during his concert at Kingston's K-Rock Centre on October 19."Dallas Smith Sings Tribute to Gord Downie at the K-Rock Centre". Kingston Herald, October 20, 2017.
On October 11, 2018, six days before the one-year anniversary of Downie's death, Johnny Fay and Rob Baker joined Choir! Choir! Choir! at Yonge-Dundas Square (now Sankofa Square) for a live performance of the song."Watch the Tragically Hip join Choir! Choir! Choir! for a touching rendition of Grace, Too". Q, October 17, 2018.
The song was covered by Twin Flames on their 2020 album Omen.Alan Cross, "Twin Flames honour Gord Downie with inspired Grace Too cover". A Journal of Musical Things, July 24, 2020.
On September 5, 2024, it was one of three songs, alongside "Ahead by a Century" and "Bobcaygeon", performed by Choir! Choir! Choir! in a public singalong following the premiere of the documentary series The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival.David Friend, "Tragically Hip fans belt out band’s classics en masse as TIFF gets underway". Toronto Star, September 5, 2024.
Legacy In 2026, CBC Music published a ranking of the top ten Tragically Hip songs to mark the tenth anniversary of the band's historic final performance, ranking "Grace, Too" at #6.Ashley Catania, Natalie Harmsen, Sudha Sampath, Jesse Kinos-Goodin, Holly Gordon, Kelsey Adams, Melody Lau and Nathan Gill, "The Tragically Hip's 10 best songs, ranked". CBC Music, August 6, 2026.
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (1994)PeakpositionCanadian RPM Singles Chart11
Chart (2016)PeakpositionCanadian Billboard Digital Songs19
Year-end charts Chart (1994)PositionCanada Top Singles (RPM)67
References
External links