Pierre Lapointe arrives alone on Wilfrid-Pelletier’s stage, in front of the curtain. Mocks Christmas traditions in an ironic monologue on purpose. In his slobbering way: he says it himself, anything goes for “our favorite popular singer”. We expect nothing less from him. “The family has this “je-ne-sais-quoi” / Which is good / Even if it sometimes disgusts us…” Pierrot sings affectionately, smirking. “Every year we come back / They seem to call it the magic of Christmas.” Naughty wink.
Note: Christmas. The album and the show may play hide and seek with the entirely Christian celebration of the birth of the divine brat, the name certainly inclusive Winter songs does not prevent a simple fact: the vast majority of people who fill the large hall of Place des Arts this Thursday evening are not shocked in their values by the very natural reminder of a common culture.
Christmas magic
Culture that includes… Michèle Richard and her adaptation of It is Christmas rock. Present in the room, the queen of showbiz from here, Pierre underlines it, adding for the record that one day, she and he exchanged saliva. And it was filmed. Big. When he sings the Quebec version of Jingle Bell Rockit’s probably not intended, but we would swear the late Johnny Farago.
The winter of strength, wrote Réjean Ducharme: this is a bit the theme of this show, where we denounce the rituals of Christmas while embracing them. Surrounded by giant snowmen, Mélissa Laveaux is the first guest at the holiday party, and sings in Haitian Creole as well as in French. Openness and integration, it seems to mean, also on purpose. All welcome to party of Christmas. Especially when you sing as beautifully as Mélissa. His bilingual duet with Pierre is joyful and not at all suited to the guy with the views of modern Quebec. Pleasure of meeting, that’s all.
Beautiful people
The Molinari Quartet, as well as a brass section, join the festivities. At Clara’sbetween jazz and java, starts the party in earnest: bouncy song, with sax solo sex, it’s very Pierre Lapointe. Enter Patrice Michaud. All happy. Fender in hand, he celebrates a sort of return to the stage. “That’s the effect I have,” proclaims the host. That’s the magic crack. » That tone. Badin with blood sausage. Their duet, on Origami, has something of gospel in the way. Ode to friendship. No kidding. Shared emotion. At the end, the singers hug each other. “I fell a little in love with you during the song,” Pierre admits to Patrice.
Less euphoric songs follow. Sacred Pierre Lapointe, capable of unearthing misfortune under the covers. Broken love story (Six hours of plane time separates us), horror story evoking Christmas pockets (It’s okay, I gave). In the funny-not-funny register, it’s rather successful. “I don’t want to pretend,” he sings.
The beautiful trails around us
We must be our Stone without embarrassment so that The snow trail des Classels responds to Laura Niquay and her own ancestral path (Moteskano): no, it’s not ridiculous, the beauty of the gesture is undeniable. Doesn’t this snow fall on all of us? Lapointe’s piano-voice version turns out to be very tender. This original song from Quebec from the 1960s deserved no less.
Another sad love song (Lost Christmas in Paris, very Aznavour in the genre) can only set the table for an even crazier party. I give it to you in a thousand: we were treated to the indescribable Mitsou and his Bye bye my cowboy. Thus a party holiday season can quickly degenerate. Or become enjoyable, it depends. At some point, anything is possible. Patrice and Pierre pinched themselves: they would have been Mitsou’s backing singers! This is also where the crowd finally broke down.
Finally, it was won. We can think that it will lift earlier during the tour, as we get closer to Christmas. What is sure to happen: the festive, fun and fun show will be presented until the holidays, across Quebec. Two by two several thousand gathered.