Many Cowboys Fringants fans intend to gather Thursday evening across Quebec to pay tribute to Karl Tremblay, “the soul of an entire generation and a people”, who died Wednesday following a ‘prostate cancer.
Around 7 p.m., a gathering is planned on the Plains of Abraham, in Quebec, “to honor the memory of a modern poet, a storyteller of our lives.” It was on these same plains that the group gave a memorable concert last summer, in front of 90,000 festival-goers at the Festival d’été de Québec, while the singer defied the illness by all means to offer an impeccable show.
At the same time, in the metropolis, Montrealers plan to gather at Jeanne-Mance Park to celebrate the life of Karl Tremblay.
The organizers of the two events, which originated on social networks, hope that the vigils will take place in a “festive and friendly” atmosphere to which “only the Cowboys have always been able to invite us”.
In this sense, they invite participants to bring with them “your musical instruments, your joy of living and your desire to celebrate one of our greats”.
“Join us for a moment of contemplation where the stars will illuminate our path and where each melody will recall the precious moments we shared thanks to Karl and the Cowboys Fringants. The stars spin, but they never really go out,” we can read in the description of the event which was created on Facebook on the occasion.
These events will be just two of the many tributes that we can expect to salute the life and career of the singer of one of the most influential musical groups in Quebec history.
At 8 a.m. Thursday morning, many music radio stations plan to play in unison On my shouldersong from the album The Antipodes.
A few hours later, at 11 a.m., Prime Minister François Legault must meet the press to react in person to the singer’s death. Wednesday evening, on the social network X, Mr. Legault wrote that “all of Quebec is mourning” the death of Karl Tremblay.
The flags will be flown at half-mast in several places as a sign of respect, notably in Quebec, Montreal and Repentigny, hometown of the Cowboys Fringants.
After a several-year battle with prostate cancer, Karl Tremblay died Wednesday at the age of 47.