It’s quiet in Saint-Adrien. A peaceful village, winter. But the closer you get to the church transformed into a studio which calls itself “the chalet in Pilou”, the more you hear noises through the cracks. Connections of amplifiers, a guitar which one completes to grant. And then wham! Riff rock in the carpet! The guitar intro, the characteristic little pattern on the keyboard, and then that voice she has. Strong, very strong. “I’m not giving up, I’m not waiting to die! Marjo, in close-up, looks ready to bite the camera. And snatch a piece of flesh from all those who watch Tuesday, International Women’s Rights Day, the program that Télé-Québec has placed at the heart of its special programming: Marjo — In love.
Marjo, them… and him
One hour with her in a beautiful setting, that’s the simple idea. With the participation of other women, with her and around her, rallied for the occasion. Women of words and music, performers, musicians: Salomé Leclerc, Lou-Adriane Cassidy, Stéphanie Boulay, Guylaine Tanguay, Fabiola Nyrva Aladin, Marie Ève Morency. There are also a handful of men: the chalet’s Pilou, a few veteran musicians. And… the one who wrote the music for I don’t let go in the words of Marjo: a certain Jean Millaire. The accomplice of the great Marjo years, the decade 1985-1995, when everyone had in their basic collection the albums The one who goes, As long as there are children, Gypsy, all created by her with the riff guy who never said three words in an interview. The Jean Millaire from whom Marjo has been separated since their painful breakup at the beginning of this century: 22 years is a long time.
It’s not really a reunion. Rather a truce, the time of two duets. Elsewhere and Soft. Tenderness and tension. One take per song, that’s it. “Thank you for your beautiful guitar, Jean”, she said to him by way of goodbye. He will return for the finale, a big guitar solo. But it’s still Marjo’s show. A singer with other singers who love and admire her. Deeply. “It is impossible not to think of her when I think back to my beginnings, to those defining moments when female musical role models were important,” says Salomé Leclerc. Accurate memory. “I was a teenager, I had just bought my first electric guitar, and one of the songs I wanted to learn was In love. »
Marjo the Liberator
For Stéphanie Boulay, there has always been a Marjo. “My mother’s name is Marjolaine, basically… Obviously, I grew up with her songs. One of the first songs I sang on stage was As long as there are children. My love for Marjo is truly visceral. She has no shortage of anecdotes to show it. “A few years ago, I learned that Marjo was doing a tour, but there were no more tickets anywhere. I finally found ONE ticket, and I went alone to see her in Quebec. I got myself a hotel room and worse. It was really amazing, vibes. There were women who were completely transported. I remember a girl who really wanted to get up and dance, but her boyfriend said to her: “no, no, sit down, it bothers me”… And around her, the world said: “get up! ” There really was a feeling of female emancipation in this show-the. »
One would think to hear Marjo herself, at the Théâtre du Forum in 1995, addressing her crowd too seated for her taste: “Are you moving a little? » had titled The duty. While wild cats, she had put on a layer of it: “Are you whistling, toé?” “Intractable Marjo! It is her that we find, even without an audience, not half intense in all the performances of the show. Convince, move, share, seduce, that’s all she does. Yesterday like today. Just provide her with the opportunity, and she will lift you up. How to explain all these years off the circuit? Was it really considered unmanageable in the profession? Explanation of Stéphanie Boulay: “Marjo is underestimated because she does not represent an intellectual elite, but rather the real world. AND because she has always been beautiful. And that we saw her as a sex symbol first, even if her music has always been more important than her look. »
Admiration and respect
What place does Marjo hold in your heart, your ears, your story? It depends who you’re talking to.
“I never listened to Marjo growing up,” admits Lou-Adriane Cassidy. “I even rather grew up in contempt for this sort of ‘variety’ kind of music. As an adult, however, I measured the impact of these songs in the lives of so many people, and I understood their unifying force. I discovered and loved Marjo late in life, I find her extremely inspiring, so strong and rebellious. It’s a different report, less nostalgic than many, but I developed a lot of admiration and respect for what she represented and what she still represents. »
Celebrating a Renée Claude or a Renée Martel goes without saying. For rockers, recognition is a lifetime struggle. A Pat Benatar, for example, has been repressed for years at the entrance to the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame: she is still approached, it could be the good time. Perhaps the time has come for a Marjo too. An evidence, according to Salomé Leclerc: once you cross his path, you understand. Appreciation, respect. Key words. “I just have even more admiration and respect for the woman, the singer and the person she is. »