Todd Snider had a huge impact on Cody Canada’s life, and may have even played a critical role in getting Cross Canadian Ragweed back together. Tributes have been pouring in ever since the world lost country/folk singer-songwriter Todd Snider this past weekend. After allegedly being attacked and arrested in Salt Lake City, he was later admitted to the hospital for an undiagnosed case of walking pneumonia. His family and friends took to social media to ask for prayers, and then the next day, they shared that the 59-year-old had passed on: “Aimless, Inc. Headquarters is heartbroken to share that our Founder, our Folk Hero, our Poet of the World, our Vice President of the Abrupt Change Dept., the Storyteller, our beloved Todd Daniel Snider has departed this world… We love you Todd, sail on old friend, we’ll see you again out there on the road somewhere down the line. You will always be a force of nature.” Such a sad and tragic situation. Snider helped countless musicians and artists in their career, and Cody Canada of Cross Canadian Ragweed credits a lot of his life to the help he got from Todd Snider. Canada recently shared some of his thoughts and feelings during a live performance, and then later told RPR that it was Snider’s music that first acted as compass for his life as a creator of music: “I had no direction when I was 17 years old. One night while lying in bed after my wisdom teeth got pulled, Conan was on, and there was Todd dancing like a chicken. I saw something that night for the first time, and I will never forget it. Shortly after that Mike McClure handed me ‘Songs For The Daily Planet’ and said, ‘Here, check this out, he’s a good writer.’  It was euphoric. It gave me purpose. It made me realize I wasn’t the only person feelin’ the way I was feelin.” Suddenly, Cody Canada had direction… and it was all thanks to the special talent and way of doing things that Todd Snider had. Interestingly enough, Canada slowly but surely became friends with Snider. He and the rest of Cross Canadian Ragweed always championed Snider’s work, and they eventually crossed paths enough to become colleagues. That led to a couple of times where Cody and Todd sharing the stage, and one moment where Cross Canadian Ragweed really felt like they could be themselves: “The first time I truly felt like we (Cross Canadian Ragweed) could be ourselves in Nashville was when he came to see us at the Exit/In. He came in through the back door and was kind of mystified watching us do our ritual prayer circle before the show. He actually mentioned that one time on a record he did, he found humor in everything. He came on stage that night and sang ‘Late Last Night’ with us and I felt like king of the world. On another show at Larry Joe Taylor’s event in Stephenville, Texas, he said he would come out with us and do a song, but he wanted it to be the first song. I said that that was fine, just please don’t throw my harmonica out into the crowd. So, during the song he went to the front of the stage, looked me right in the eye, and tossed my harmonica out into the crowd. It was an awesome rock and roll moment.” Classic Todd Snider. Canada even recalls the help that he got from Snider on his song “Shut Up and Sing.” Cody remembers being wishy-wash about the song and its message. Snider was there to keep him on the right track, and apparently told him, “If you aren’t pissing people off, you’re not doing your job, brother.” And one of the biggest ways that Todd Snider affected Canada’s life, at least in recent years, was encouraging him and his band to put their differences aside and reunite. Cross Canadian Ragweed broke up around 2010, and didn’t get back together until 2024. Cody Canada says that while he was grappling with the idea of a potential reunion, it was Todd Snider who gave him the final push he needed to call the band and get the “Boys from Oklahoma” back together: “A few years ago, Ragweed was heavily on my mind, and I knew I needed to do some soul searching about how it all ended, and if we could ever do it again. Went to see Todd at Cheatham Street one night, unannounced, and admitted I needed some of his inspiration. He said, ‘You deserve a victory lap, and your kids deserve to see you do it.’ He always gave me advice when I needed it. The last communication I had with him was back in April after the Ragweed reunion shows. He sent me an email that said, ‘Those boys have to be super proud of their dad.'” And boy, was Cross Canadian Ragweed’s reunion a great idea. Just like the rest of Canada’s life, Todd Snider played an important part in the story. That’s why Cody is struggling so mightily with the sudden loss. But at the same time, the way Snider lived his life and impacted others has inspired Canada to pour himself into songwriting once more: “He was such an important part of the beginnings of my journey. Todd was a person who molded me. He gave me confidence before I even knew him and I felt overwhelming joy to know he was on the planet at the same time, and that I got to be friends with him. I have struggled for a lot of years not wanting to disappoint anyone with my songwriting. I can admit that now. This happening has reignited the songwriter in me. This tremendous sadness that he is gone is a wake-up call for me to get off my a** and not be afraid to write. I hope that he knew how many people took pages from his book. He made us all feel like we could do it.” Just another example of the late, great singer-songwriter pushing others to be the best version of themselves. RIP Todd Snider. The post Cody Canada Says The Late Todd Snider Played Critical Role In Cross Canadian Ragweed Getting Back Together first appeared on Whiskey Riff.