[1] High school friends Jim Cuddy and Greg Keelor began playing music professionally together after completing university.

The name "Blue Rodeo" had already been chosen for the new group when they met former David Wilcox drummer Cleave Anderson and asked him to join.

[2] On February 7, 1985, Blue Rodeo played their first show together at The Rivoli in Toronto;[3] one week later, they performed at Handsome Ned's "Honky Tonk Heart.

They entered the studio in 1986 with Rush producer Terry Brown and recorded several songs that would comprise Blue Rodeo's debut album, Outskirts.

Glenn Milchem performs his own solo music under the pseudonym "the swallows" and had co-founded, with his twin brother John, the rock duo Starvin Hungry.

[7] Blue Rodeo members have collaborated extensively with other notable Canadian artists, including Sarah McLachlan, The Tragically Hip, Burton Cummings, Great Big Sea, Jann Arden, The Sadies, Skydiggers, Cuff the Duke, Crash Vegas, Cowboy Junkies, Sarah Harmer, Jill Barber, and Kathleen Edwards.

[13] Blue Rodeo was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the 41st Juno Awards on April 1, 2012,[14] joining other Canadian music icons including Rush, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, The Band, Oscar Peterson, Bruce Cockburn, Daniel Lanois, Joni Mitchell, Anne Murray and Tom Cochrane.

[17] Canadian guitarist Colin Cripps joined Blue Rodeo as a full member in 2013 due to Greg Keelor's inability to play electric guitar live anymore because of hearing issues.

[27] On October 19, 2010, Blue Rodeo played the music viral show BalconyTV[28] for a rare acoustic performance on a small Balcony overlooking Dame Street, Dublin.

Blue Rodeo performed at their induction to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame during the Juno Awards of 2012 at Scotiabank Place in the community of Kanata in Ottawa, Ontario on Sunday, April 1, 2012.

As the performance ended, the audience rose for a spirited standing ovation recognizing Blue Rodeo as "one of Canada's true musical treasures.