Former NHL-ers star in music video
TORONTO – Canadian teams may be out of the Stanley Cup playoffs, but that hasn’t kept Ottawa singer-songwriter Kathleen Edwards from creating her own bit of NHL fun.
The acclaimed roots-rocker is hitting the ice with a hockey-themed music video for the song “I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory,” off her current disc, “Asking For Flowers.”
Former NHL-ers Marty McSorley, Paul Coffey and Brad Dalgarno join Edwards and her band for a lopsided game of shinny that also features sportscaster Dave Hodge as well as Blue Rodeo singer Jim Cuddy in a villainous role.
“I’ve always wanted to make a hockey video – my whole life I thought it would be the funniest thing and I’ve never really had a warm reception to the idea,” Edwards says from San Diego, Calif., where she’s on tour.
“It’s about to be summer and my record company was like, ‘We need to make a summer video.’ I don’t want to make a summer video, I want to make a hockey video!”
In the video, Edwards straps on hockey skates for a faceoff against Cuddy but finds herself woefully unprepared – she can barely stand on the ice and Cuddy has stacked his team with an all-star roster of former NHL greats.
Things take a turn for the better when Coffey, an NHL hall of famer, shows her how to skate, and enforcer McSorley shows her how to hip-check.
“There’s also this little side fantasy-type moment where…there’s a kissing scene!” Edwards gushes.
“It was the best day ever, I have to say, just filming this video was so fun.”
Although Edwards’ song, “I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory,” name-drops McSorley, it isn’t even about hockey.
It’s about her friendship with one of her bandmates, with lyrics that pair contrasting images like: “You’re the Great One, I’m Marty McSorley,” referring to superstar player Wayne Gretzky and his on-ice protector.
Snagging the hockey greats for the video was a matter of connecting through managers and friends of friends, says Edwards, noting that Cuddy is a hockey nut and buddies with Coffey.
It took a few weeks of wrangling, but the 45-year-old McSorley jumped on board despite recently having hip surgery, says Edwards.
On the ice, 47-year-old Coffey impressed her with his fitness during the 10-hour shoot at St. Michael’s arena in Toronto.
“I did feel his thigh and it’s still about as rock hard as you can imagine,” she says. “The guy’s got crazy, crazy athletic legs.”
Edwards and her band have been on the road for much of the playoffs, but she says they’ve managed to follow the race for the Stanley Cup pretty closely.
“We actually watch the games right up until the time when we hit the stage,” she says.
“And then we have a guy onstage with a laptop – because he’s got some effects running through it – and he gets the little updates on the scores as the game progresses if the game’s not over. So, we generally know what’s going on.”
Edwards has spent much of the past two months on an extensive U.S. tour, but heads north for a string of dates in British Columbia and Alberta beginning May 25.
Her affection for hockey stretches back to when she was a kid, but she says it’s the community vibe that surrounds the game that draws her in.
“I think I like more the spirit of hockey, which is that it brings people together – everyone meets at the bar after work and has some beers and watches the game,” says Edwards, whose third disc, “Asking For Flowers,” came out last month.
“I just kind of love that camaraderie of hockey, it’s a real community thing for me.”
The video is set for release next week.
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