| THE SPORTS & MUSIC CONNECTION |  |
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by: Shelly Harris “They like what we do, and we like what they do... And I’m sure some of them [musicians] can play sports, and I’m pretty sure a lot of them are very athletic...But there's a wide variety of guys on the team [Chicago Blackhawks] who play guitar as well, but, even though we can play it, we know we can't play at their level, like they can’t play at our level.” –– Chicago Blackhawks' True Grit winger, Kyle Calder, on the “sports and music connection” ___________________________________ Don’t get me wrong, I still firmly believe in the fascinating, extraordinary affinity and “connection” between athletes and musicians as much now as when I first started this series over a year ago. And, naturally, I was NOT surprised at all to see various Olympic athletes “jamming” up onstage with some of the artists like Bon Jovi at the recent closing ceremonies or to subsequently hear the NBC commentator note the very same line that has been quoted here several times in the past: “All athletes want to be musicians, and all musicians want to be athletes.” Still, I am literally taken aback when the Chicago Blackhawks’ fast-rising star winger, Kyle Calder, tells me matter-of-factly during team practice (conducted without the many team members who just played for their various national teams in the Olympics) that he actually used to sit still long enough to plunk on the piano when he was growing up on the family farm back in Mannville, Alberta, Canada. “When I was in school, I used to play piano,” he elaborates, seriously, “because we had a piano at home and my mom had me take lessons.” Now, I am sure those of you have been following the Blackhawks’ surprising turnaround season this year will no doubt understand why the mental image of Kyle Calder in tandem with the piano seems stunningly incongruous, but let me elaborate for the rest of you... In a sport known for its consummate, pseudo-war like roughness and strategy (balanced out by its polar-opposite elegance and artistic dexterity) Calder is a certifiable, take-no-prisoners scrapper on a level that the ghosts of the legendary teams of the old Chicago Stadium must surely smile down on. At a reported 5’11” and 180 pounds, what Calder lacks in new-age size, or even in old-age might, speed and grace (a’la Hull and Mikita), he makes up for in pure heart, roughness, and nitty-gritty determination, especially in those always crucial battles on the boards. In fact, in this, his first bonafide full season in the NHL (he played partial season with the team in ‘99/’00 and ‘00/’01) all that backbone and steely determination has paid off with high dividends for both the team and for Calder himself since his ultimate promotion to the “top line” aside Blackhawks’ superstars Tony Amonte and Alex Zhamnov. With 17 goals and 29 assists at this writing, Calder may not be the best personification of the grace or refinement of the sport, but he does embody the reward and beauty in possessing something just as valua ble: True Grit. Consequently, though curly-locked Calder (absent the several battle-hewn facial cuts and scrapes he wears this day) comes closer than anyone on the current team to fitting the part of a “rocker” (both in spirit and looks, he’d be a bird of a feather with the likes of AC/DC or Canadian homeboys like April Wine or Coney Hatch), it is hilariously difficult to conjure up thoughts of him seated at the piano stool like a meticulous Harry Connick, Jr. In fact, you’d have to suspect that an intense, rough ‘n’ ready guy like Calder actually chaffed at and dreaded all those Mom-induced piano lessons...and, when you put the thought directly to him, the truth of the matter eventually comes out... “Yeah, my sister was more into it than I was,” he admits. “I kind of hated all those piano lessons; but the piano teacher would come over and I’d play these little songs. But now... I’d really like to learn how to play the drums! That is one of the things I find most fascinating about music, the way they hammer on those drums. I’d like to buy a drum set right now, and have my own and just go at it.” Now, that does like the edgy, spunky on-ice Kyle Calder that Blackhawks’ fans have grown to know and respect, and it is also much less surprising when he adds, “I love to go to concerts, I go all the time. Just recently, I saw U2 and Bob Dylan. I love all kinds of music, rock ‘n’ roll –– AC/DC, Metallica, and stuff like that; it gets me pumped up. I like a wide variety, but, since I grew up on a farm, I like a little bit of country music, too –– quite a bit, actually. Still, Calder, just 23, is unlike many of the other professional athletes in that he has yet to meet any of his favorite musicians, but admits, “I’d like to.” He then adds, “AC/DC – Angus Young – Yeah, I’d really love to meet him.” And Calder is also simply eloquent about his view of the common ground between professional athletes and musicians: “They like what we do, and we like what they do, and they can’t do what we do, and we can’t do what they do, I guess!” He elaborates, “I guess some of them [musicians] can play sports, and I’m pretty sure a lot of them are very athletic... But there’s a wide variety of guys on the team who play guitar as well, but, even though we can play it, we know we can't play at their level, like they can't play at our level.” No doubt, the level of play on the Blackhawks’ team this year, in particular, would be difficult for even other professional athletes to match. Led by stalwarts like Amonte and Sullivan, and propelled further by watershed seasons for Zhamnov, Daze, Housley, Thibault, and Calder himself, the Blackhawks have one of the best records in the NHL and appear to be a shoo-in for the playoffs for the first time in several years. “Things have been awesome this year,” Calder enthuses, while also underplaying his own hard work ethic and growing “heart & guts” reputation. “Things have been going really good, and we can’t complain about where we’re at right now in this standings; everything's working... I’m a feisty one; so I like to get in there and get ugly! And I’m playing with two great players [Amonte and Zhamnov], so every day I come to the rink it is a lot of fun!” Make a trip to a Blackhawks game at the Unite Center this season (schedule at www.chicagoblackhawks.com) and see for yourself what all the fuss and fun is really all about. |
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