This Canadian Hard Rock Supergroup Came Together for a Movie (And They Should Have Kept Going)

What do you get when you combine members of Rush, Thornley, Three Days Grace, Die Mannequin, and The Tea Party for a supergroup created specifically for a movie about Trailer Park Boys? Well, you get probably the most Canadian thing ever. This supergroup was more Canadian than moose (meese?) and maple syrup. And they really rocked. The supergroup in question was called The Big Dirty Band.

The group was made up of Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson of Rush, plus Ian Thornley (Thornley, Big Wreck), Adam Gontier (Three Days Grace), Jeff Burrows (The Tea Party), and Care Failure (Die Mannequin). The group only lasted for one year back in 2006, and they were about as amazing a hard rock supergroup as one could imagine. There was so much talent packed into this band.

So, what happened? Why did they only last a year? Why did they form this supergroup? It all comes down to one very Canadian movie.

The Brief Timeline of The Big Dirty Band

The Big Dirty Band was formed in 2006 specifically to support the Trailer Park Boys movie, based on the Canadian comedy television series of the same name. The band didn’t just produce the soundtrack, though. In fact, they only contributed one single song (more or less) to the entire soundtrack. Rather, the members of The Big Dirty Band were also part of the film itself. Alex Lifeson is tasked with putting together a song with bespectacled character Bubbles via their new band, Bubbles & The Sh*t Rockers.

The sole song to make it to the film’s soundtrack from The Big Dirty Band is a cover of “I Fought The Law” by Sonny Curtis and The Crickets. They even released a music video for it, which you can view above. However, technically, “Liquor & Wh*res” by Bubbles & The Sh*t Rockers could be considered a Big Dirty Band production, or at least a collaboration.

The rest of the soundtrack is nothing to sneeze at, either. You’ve got Rush songs, some tunes from Rough Trade and Alexisonfire. It’s a pretty solid piece of work.

The Big Dirty Band only performed one live show after forming, which took place at the movie’s premiere party at the Mod Club Theatre in Toronto. And after that, The Big Dirty Band was no more.

It makes sense why the group didn’t continue. They came together for a culturally significant comedy film, and each member had other projects to go back to. I do wish they had at least put out a novelty album together. Sadly, though, all we have is “I Fought The Law”.

Photo by Carlos Osorio/Toronto Star via Getty Images