Devin Cuddy had heard stories from his dad and other musicians who had hopped onto the CP Rail Holiday Train to play for communities across Canada.
But it was only after he signed up to do the same that the country rocker realized they had performed for short legs of the trip — not the full stretch from Quebec to B.C.
In total, Cuddy’s journey would be 21 days, a distance that would see him board at Montreal on Nov. 28 and disembark on Dec. 19 in Port Coquitlam after his 86th show.
It’s something Cuddy shakes his head at now.
Still, “seeing this beautiful train rip through the countryside” has been something of a beautiful experience for him as well, he’ll admit.
At each station, when the stage door lifts up, “you see all the smiling faces and the community is all gathered together, it’s easy to kind of draw on that and forget about how many [gigs] you’ve done in the day or how tired you are,” Cuddy said from Red Deer last week.
For most of his trip, Cuddy has performed with musicians he had never met up until Montreal. Country star Kelly Prescott is right beside him on stage as is their backup band, CP Holiday Train regulars the Odds: bassist Doug Elliott, drummer Pat Steward and guitarist Murray Atkinson (Port Moody native Craig Northey, the lead singer of the Odds, did not join in for this year’s ride).
If they weren’t friends before, they certainly are now. It doesn’t take long when you live on a train for three weeks, Cuddy laughed.
Their schedule has been gruelling but CP Rail has made it manageable, with performances spread out enough.
“There are harder days and lighter days,” Cuddy said.
All along, they’ve stuck to a regular 30-minute set. Cuddy and Prescott have a few Christmas medleys but he also plays two original tunes: Home and This Christmas.
For their B.C. stops, when Cuddy’s father — the Canadian icon Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo fame — climbs aboard, the team will liven things up with his classic songs, too.
Cuddy said giving runs in his blood as he and his father often perform for charitable causes.
Jim Cuddy was the feature act for the 2014 CP Rail Holiday Train, which also ended in PoCo last December.
As in the past 16 years, that trip raised hundreds of thousands in dollars and pounds for the food banks at 150 sites across Canada and the U.S. (in the Tri-Cities, the contributions go to the Share Family and Community food bank).
As for a boost to his CD sales, Devin Cuddy doesn’t see that happening with this maiden voyage.
“I hope it will gain a ton of new fans but I didn’t sign up thinking it would take me a step forward in my career,” he said. “It’s supposed to be fun and for a good cause.”
• The CP Holiday Train rolls behind the Port Moody recreation complex at 4:50 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 19 and at the Port Coquitlam West Coast Express station at 6:15 p.m. The shows begin about 15 minutes after the train stops. The concerts are free but a non-perishable food or cash donation for the Share food bank is requested. Visit cpr.ca.
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RIDE THE RAILS
Drop off a heart-healthy food donation for the Share food bank at any Port Coutialm city facility by Thursday, Dec 17 to enter to win a ride on the CP Holiday Train from Port Moody to Port Coquitlam. The draw will be held on Friday.
Meanwhile, the city will host two public events before the train comes to town: a free skate at the PoCo recreation complex at 4:30 p.m. and a lasagna dinner for $7 until 6:30 p.m., also at the rec centre (register at experienceit.ca, barcode 13648). Visit portcoquitlam.ca/holidaytrain.
In Port Moody, a free skate is from 2:30 to 4 p.m. And in the Wellness Room, there’ll be refreshments, kids’ activities and caroling between 3 and 4:50 p.m. Hear Caitlyn Hamilton, 15, a Dr. Charles Best secondary student who was a finalist in the BC Youth Talent Show, and Amanda Lau, 15, a Heritage Woods secondary student who placed second in the Tri-Cities' Got Talent wtih Tom MacDonald.
Visit portmoody.ca.
