May 9, 2026 Rock and Roll Machine

“Rock-and-roll machine, fastest thing I’ve ever seen…” The song by Triumph wailed, and my body moved. I was in a musical trance, a hopeful dance. My entire being belonged to the music and it captured my soul. 

It was a Friday night in Calgary, and one of my all-time favourite rock bands was on the stage at the Saddledome. I will forever know it as the Olympic Saddledome. I think it has a bank’s name on it now. Like so many things in Calgary, the name has changed, but the place remains the same. 

The music remained the same.

It was two hours of music that captured me and took me on a spellbound historic ride from the days when I was a young man.

A young man singing songs of hope, songs of love and songs of Triumph.

For those of you who know, you know. Triumph was a Canadian rock trio that took the world by storm in the late seventies and early eighties. They stole the stage in 1982 at the US Festival with their high-energy rock-and-roll music. 

In 1986, I saw them at the Saddledome when I was just a sixteen-year-old kid. The dome was fresh and new, and the band was young and strong. 

Then, only a short time later, Triumph disbanded, and we never knew if we would see them together again. I was lucky enough to see Rik Emmett, the lead guitarist and one of the lead singers, play at the U of C in the early nineties. After that, the band faded into the history books.

But the music never faded from my heart.

So many songs, so much talent and yet they went their separate ways. The chance of ever seeing the rock and roll machine that was Triumph seemed an unlikely chance.

It would take a hockey game to reignite the passion for their songs among the next generation. CBC used one of their iconic tunes – Lay It On The Line as the theme for the playoffs in 2025 and a revival of sorts began. Rik Emmett, Gil Moore and Mike Levine decided to regroup along with three young members of the band Toque and they took to the road.

What a road it has been.

When I saw they were on tour I had to get tickets and go to see them live once more. 

I was not disappointed.

From the frantic strains of Spellbound to the melodic harmonies of Magic Power, we were taken down a road of musical glory. The entire show I couldn’t sit down, I couldn’t stop moving. 

April Wine kicked off the evening with a blast from the past, they rocked the Dome and warmed everyone up. 

But in the end we were there to experience Triumph. So many great songs, they couldn’t play them all. 

I left at the end of the show, satiated and thrilled to have been able to attend what may well be one of the last concerts in the Saddledome. In 1985, I was at the first concert in the Saddledome – Van Halen. Now, fourty years later, across the road sits a shiny new building that lacks the character and the feeling of the iconic building. The BMO Centre will surely exceed expectations when it comes to an arena and it will be able to host a lot of great shows. 

But I feel a little sadness at the end of this era. 

But that sadness is tempered with the joy of having seen such a fantastic show. 

Rock Roll Machine, it was definitely the fastest thing I’ve ever seen!