#murray foster

[mx-lauricedeauxnim]

Felt like the world should know the thing I quote more than anything else is "for the fun and the fashion, just for the passion" from the Moxy Früvous song Stuck In The 90's and "Whatever and ever, amen" from Ben Fold's song Battle of Who Could Care Less

Just think it says a lot of who I am

[cr0ss0veronlymusic]

Keith Power feat Damhnait Doyle, Jason Lewis, Murray Foster & Kevin Durand - We All Lift Together

thanks to @swiftasacoursing for pointing towards the tweet with the credit

[creamconecoffee]

Murray Foster from Moxy Fruvous keeps following and unfollowing me on Twitter, so I've noticed.

[spidermcfly]

An Open Letter to Moxy Früvous

Dear Jian, Mike, Murray and Dave,

It's been (sadly) a very long time since Moxy Früvous was a thing, but "River Valley" just came up on my iTunes shuffle and it reminded me just how cool it was to be a Frühead back in the day.

For any of you who don't know who Früvous was (shame on you!), they were a Canadian band from the 90s.  They came up at a time when Canadian independent music was in it's prime; the CRTC-mandated 35% Canadian content on the radio meant bands like Früvous, The Gandharvas, I Mother Earth, Our Lady Peace, Big Sugar, The Headstones, Tea Party, Moist, Crash Test Dummies, The Philosopher Kings and many more were finally getting some airtime and notice.  Not that they didn't already have huge university/college followings, but the radio play helped spread the word.  The Tragically Hip were massive, and the Barenaked Ladies were starting their meteoric rise.  Suddenly, Canadian music was cool to not just Canadians.

To be honest, the early 90s were a pretty dark time for me personally, but the music is one of the happy memories from those years, and Früvous has stayed with me the longest.

I came to the Früvous party early in 1992, thanks to a friend in university who was really into the indie music scene.  He'd heard "Green Eggs and Ham" and told me I had to hear these guys.  I managed to find a copy of their demo at a local record shop, and I was hooked.  From the hilarious antics of "King of Spain" to the haunting "Drinking Song", the infectious melodies and delicious harmonies of those 6 songs told me this was a band I would be listening to for a long time.

In '93, I moved to Toronto for the summer, and while working at Future's Bakery on Bloor, I met a guy who was a bigger Frühead than me, and, because the band was so interactive with their fans, had met them on several occasions (he even managed to be part of the music video for "Stuck in the 90s"!).  I kept hoping to run into them while I was in Toronto, but it never came about.

After that summer, I was excited to find out Früvous was coming to my hometown to play, and my friend from T.O. was coming down to see the show.  We arranged to meet for dinner before the show.  Imagine my surprise when my friend showed up with Murray and Dave!  I'm pretty sure I didn't act nearly as cool as I'd hoped to as I sat across from them at dinner, but they were both very nice and terribly funny.  My brush with Frü-fame! I would not see them again before they broke up, but for several years a friend of mine and I would bring down the house at the local Karaoke night with our rendition of "Green Eggs and Ham".  

It's been a while since I'd listened to either the demo or Bargainville in it's  entirety, and I'm amazed at how relevant many of the lyrics still are.  The political commentary of "Gulf War Song" still resonates after 11 years of near constant conflict post-9/11 and the frenzied partisanship both here in Canada and the U.S.   "And history seems to agree / that I would fight you for me / that us would fight them for we / Is that how it always will be?"  It's unbelievable that the environmental warning cry of "River Valley" is even more important today, considering the current government's dim view of environmental concerns, and the biting social commentary of "Stuck in the 90s" holds true, probably even more now than back then ("White lies / rich guys / hoarding a big prize").

Anyway, I'm sure none of you will ever read this, but I just wanted to say thank you.  Your music was a bright light in a dark time, and I've passed on my love of all things Früvous to my kids (which I almost regret now that my oldest daughter has appropriated my Früvest!).  I am glad you are all enjoying continued success and hope you share your gifts with us all for many years to come!  And you know, a reunion tour would be completely awesome ;)

[maybeedmonton]

Jian Ghomeshi (right, with flowing locks) and Murray Foster of Tall New Buildings (May 3 1987) on the CBC show Switchback with host Dale Martindale.

[dothehappy]

Murray Foster of Great Big Sea, and formally of Moxy Fruvous, SINGS The Happy for SickKids in support of kids' health.

[filmcoop]

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