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Encyclopedia entry: 54.40
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JEFF BATEMAN
Canadian Encyclopedia
01-01-2002
54.40
Author: JEFF BATEMAN
Rock group 54.40 was formed in Tsawassen, BC in 1979 by former high school classmates Neil Osborne (vocals, guitar) and Brad Merritt (bass). The group took its name from the slogan"54.40 or Fight!," coined in 1848 by US president James Polk for a Manifest Destiny movement that believed the Canada-US border should be moved north to the 54th parallel, 40th minute (ie, the present-day border of Canada and Alaska).
With drummer Ian Franey, 54.40 debuted as a trio at Vancouver punk-rock club the Smilin' Buddha Cabaret on 31 December 1980. A 6-song recording was released early in 1982 by the artists' ...