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We caught up with Baker down the line from his Kingston home…

Q. There was recent news about a Hip book coming in April 2018 but you are talking about writing your own memoirs?

A. There’s no authorized biography. I’ve never met (author Michael Barclay). Anyone can write whatever they want to write. That’s fine with me. It’s just not our story as we would tell it.

Q. So what is your book?

A. I have no interest in a chronological history of the band or talking about who influenced us and what our influence on others might be. It’s irrelevant. I don’t really care about any of that. But I do have a lot of really great memories. A lot of funny stories. And I’m full of s—. I learned it from my old man (the late Judge P.E.D. Baker). He was a good storyteller. Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.

Q. Is a project with Hugh Dillon an actual possibility?

A. I don’t know. We talk back and forth. He’s always got irons in the fire, you know trying to develop a TV show or a movie or something. He’s an old Kingston guy. He was our pot dealer in high school. Well, he was one of them!

Q. What did you think of Long Time Running, the documentary about The Hip’s last tour across Canada in 2016 that premiered at TIFF and was just broadcast on CTV earlier this week?

A. We were very pleased. I think they’re phenomenal filmmakers. Lovely people. I was worried the movie could be maudlin or whatever. But I was thrilled with the results.

Q. What did you think of Gord’s decision to focus on Indigenous activism in his 2016 solo album, Secret Path, which resulted in a TV documentary, graphic novel, a fund, and some select solo dates?