"Days Gone By" from the Let it ROCK! video

by James Tappenden

Video Clip

I second the recommendation of the Let it ROCK! concert video too, but the extra music video with Hawkins singing "Days Gone By", backed by the Band is tasteless beyond belief. The song itself is not bad, but not so interesting - it has been one of Hawkins' standbys for years, and apart from the addition of some of Garth's always welcome accordian touches, big brother Rick and the Band behind Hawkins adds surprisingly little to what little brother Terry and the Hawks have given the song in recent years.

But hey, it is a soppy, sentimental song about wanting to see the old friends just one more time, and it was said to be dedicated to Richard, so I settled in to watch the video, secure in the expectation that my soggy sendimentalism quota for the week was about to be fulfilled. As the video shapes up, old still photos and video clips of Hawkins friends and aquaintances would fill the screen - ah, there's the one of Hawkins and Dylan at Hawkins old Yonge street bar in the seventies, and there is that one of Hawkins looking over the shoulder of the young Robbie. Oh, and the one with Hawkins in China with John Lennon holding the silly signs. Ah yes, intercut some video of Hawkins with Jerry Lee Lewis and Levon backstage at the concert. Oh, and there is the picture with David Clayton Thomas (??? Okay, he did do a stint with the Hawks, but I don't like the pattern that is shaping up here.) A few more shots of the Hawk with Really Famous People and then the low point - a video clip of Hawkins giving his friendliest Rompin' Ronnie handshake to Don Cherry - a name I expect many of you will not recognise, but who is a household word in Canada as a high-profile "personality" and commentator on Hockey Night in Canada.

As you might have guessed by now, there was no video clips, photos, or indeed as far as I can see any acknowledgement of the past times with Richard to whom the song was allegedly dedicated. Nor for that matter in the flurry of famous faces did one see the late Stanley Szelest (who played piano for Hawkins on and off for thirty years) nor deceased Hawks guitarist Roy Buchanen. Lest you suspect that at least there was a pause to include some family among the flurry of the famous, forget it - not a hint of uncle Delmar Hawkins or cousin Dale either. Former Hawks saxman, the late Jerry Penfund, was among those shown, but only because he happened to be in a photograph with Hawkins and the Band minus garth and richard. At least the editors didn't crop him out. And no sign of Richard.

So suffice it to say, instead of the expected roll in good, honest, maudlin sendimentalism, I got immersed in unspeakably tasteless name-dropping. Dammit.

I am really quite surprised at the Hawkins people - didn't they realise what a crass and grubby exercise in famous face flashing this would appear to be to anyone who actually follows the Hawk and his music? Didn't it occur to them that people notice things like that?

-- Jamie