A hip, thirtysomething classmate Canadienne handed me a copy of some band’s album who is making it big in Quebec and French-speaking Europe. I thanked her and leaned back in my chair, waiting for just another class to begin at the University of Burgundy in Dijon, France.
It was July, 38 degrees Celsius and I had just come back from a weekend hiking trip to Interlaken, Switzerland. I had gone to France hoping not only to improve my French accent, but to become personally engaged in another part of the world. I wanted to experience life in Europe rather than just be there.
Les Cowboys Fringants is a French-Canadian band from Repentigny, Quebec, whose favorite song themes include politics, love, personal loss and tributes to personal heroes. Known throughout Quebec for adding rock and country flavors to traditional Canadian folk music, a movement known as neo-trad, the quintet is on the forefront of a new wave of musicians inserting politics into music – the first since politics and music departed after the failed Quebecois separatist movement in the 1980s.
The band’s latest album, “La Grande-Messe,” was released in 2004 and features a broad range of songs hitting the band’s usual style of conveying bitterness through cheery melodies and tying social democracy to personal feelings.
“Lettre A Levesque” takes the form of a personal message to Parti Québecois founder Rene Levesque, who became the leader and symbol of Quebec independence during the 1960s and died in 1987. The song’s nostalgic tone longs for a return of the soul the movement once had, while criticizing the current separatists’ political causes and instead supporting environmental and humanitarian causes. Singer Karl Tremblay’s salute, “A la prochaine fois” (Until the next time) makes reference to Levesque’s concession speech following the failure of his 1980 sovereignty referendum.
The Cowboys’ song “Plus Rien” (meaning Nothing Left) recalls the final few moments of the last remaining person on earth – the result of humanity’s self-destruction from global warming. The music and Tremblay’s voice build in intensity as he recounts ancestors’ efforts to warn those in power.
Les Cowboys’ Quebec heritage sometimes lends a peculiar, almost duck-like nasality to the metropolitan French that English-speaking students might be used to hearing. Many of the songs are littered with English loan words that have made their way into the French-Canadian lexicon. Other English words signify a deeper meaning, where using the French equivalent does not highlight the cultural-linguistic statement the songwriter is trying to make.
Even for the non-French speaking, Les Cowboys’ music can be appreciated and some Web sites offer full translations for many of their songs. Some of my friends have begun to pick up on the cadence of lyrics and melody, expressing frustration at liking the music but not understanding the words. References to specific people and places, especially in the political context, can be a major problem, but there is a ton of easily-accessible information (in English) on the Internet about Quebec sovereigntism and the key players and issues involved.
Students learning French might benefit from learning the shortcuts we would make in English, but have difficulty first understanding and then replicating in a different language.
While the language barrier might foil Les Cowboys Fringants’ entrance into the United States any time soon (and lacking the obvious talent credentials possessed by the likes of Britney Spears and All-American Rejects), the few still reading this column might find in these Lively Cowboys an interesting departure from mainstream “American” music.
Tim Hoffine is the opinion editor of The Lantern and studies journalism, international studies and French. E-mail him for comments and samples of Les Cowboys Fringants at [email protected].
