Globetrotting - Montreal, Canada
by Shel Desormeaux

Montreal makes me think of bagels and Mordecai Richler. The author’s vivid memories of his Montreal neighborhood were what intrigued me the most about his stories. I could picture a wintry St. Urbain street, boys chasing pucks with sticks, the chilly, snowy wind yanking at the corners of the makeshift nets. Gray, shambling buildings lining this street and the next and the next.  The sky clear and blue tucks itself into the horizon, dotted with tiny buildings. I read it, and in my mind’s eye, I saw it, but I’d never been there.

Wanna hear something else really, really bad?  I still haven’t been there.

Oh, there is no way any of you could conjure an accurate set of dimensions of my shame.  It’s Montreal.  Everyone has been to Montreal.  They had big sandwiches and the shops were unbelievable.  But I’ve never gone north of Font Colounge or east of Gatineau, ma Jolie.

So hopefully finding out so much about this city will give me the kick in the ass I need to finally get there.

The History of Montreal

In 1535, explorer Jacques Cartier visited the site of what became Montreal. An Iroquois village, Hochelaga, held the land in front of what is now Mount Royal. The first European settlers to the area didn’t arrive until 1642, nearly 40 years after Samuel de Champlain’s expedition. The city’s first houses, in an area called Ville Marie, were built near the river, the French economy’s primary force. The tiny port grew large and international, contributing to the rapid and complex development of the city.

In 1759–60, English armies defeated the French, and Quebec found itself under English rule. The British parliament passed the Quebec Act of 1774, which firmly combined both English and French civil law, and allowed for the establishment of local government which recognized both English and French heritage.  But as more English speaking settlers arrived in the city, more French citizens returned to France. The English conquest and the subsequent influence of that culture fueled mutual resentment that lingers, to different extents throughout the province, to this day.

Those famous folk who were born and raised in Montreal have carried the city along with them in their heart, regardless of where they’ve found themselves. The caustic Mordecai Richler, of course, whom I’ve loved since my childhood, along with the likes of Leonard Cohen, Melissa auf der Maur, Oscar Peterson, William Shatner, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and Rufus Wainwright, to name a few.  Some of these luminaries took to New York or Hollywood to launch their careers, but many started in the streets and bars of the city in which they were born.

The Theatre Outremont (1240, avenue Bernard, Outremont) is worth a special mention. Built in 1929, it has played host to both legendary Quebec musicians, as well as artists from all over the world. Originally a movie theatre, it now books a steady stream of musicians, plays, comedy events and film screenings. The doors to the theatre closed in the late 1980s, due simply to a lack of interest. The building was acquired by the city of Outremont and was completely and carefully redone and reopened in 2000.

Fans of indie music can’t leave the city without visiting one or all of a few of the city’s venues known all over North America.  Spectrum (318, rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest) is one of Montreal’s more diverse venues. Its architecture makes it a popular place for recording television programs and hosting galas and festivals. Café Campus (57, rue Prince-Arthur Est) has three floors and is now in a prime location, accessible from Main and St-Denis Street. The Café left Queen Mary Boulevard in Cote des Neiges a few years ago, amidst a furor in that neighborhood to have it shut down. With Retro Tuesdays, Francophone Sundays, and Wednesday nights dedicated to the blues, it’s tough to beat. On Friday and Saturday nights, the Café features popular musical performers that attract huge groups of people.

Metropolis (59, rue Sainte-Catherine Est) was turned into a disco in 1987, and was called ‘Le Francais’, but thankfully eight years ago was transformed into the hulking hip hotspot it is today. Bookings are solid, action and excitement are guaranteed. Club Soda (1225 St Laurent, www.clubsoda.ca) spent over 15 years in Park Avenue, and then moved over to St Laurent with barely an interruption. The club has a reputation for boosting up and comers, and continues to do so.

You can’t delve into Montreal’s music scene without touching on the hold that jazz and blues have on this city. The House of Jazz (2060 Aylmer, and do visit www.houseofjazz.ca, one of the nicest, smoothest websites I’ve seen in ages) could be the place to go for a sweet, swinging evening.  Established in 1968, and originally called George’s (for its owner, George Durst) and then for years Biddles Jazz and Ribs, it owes its success to its warm atmosphere and the impressive list of musicians who’ve gone there to jam, or just jaw. The restaurant’s chicken and ribs combo is legendary.

Most cities host an annual festival or two, with a few wee ones thrown in there for good measure. Montreal, on the other hand, proudly showcases several, and does it large, carrying on the city’s heartfelt tradition of preservation and celebration. It’s impossible to list them all here, but you can http://www.montreal.com/tourism/fests.html for what must be an absolute list of festivals, listed by month.

The Montreal World Film Festival is one of the world’s largest, runs late August to early September, and runs films from over 70 countries every year. Le Festival St. Ambroise Fringe de Montreal, a large, hectic and thoroughly enjoyable mishmash of, well, fringe folk runs for roughly a week and a half in the middle of June. Next summer, the organizers will be celebrating their fifteenth anniversary. Montreal International Jazz Festival, prestigious and internationally renowned, runs in the middle of the summer; 2004 marked their 25^th year. And, of course, the Just for Laughs Comedy Festival has a rep for being the biggest comedy festival in the world.

So now, I feel an odd and anticipating fondness for a city I’ve never visited.  I know what I’d want to see (everything), and listen to (jazz, baby), and eat (mmm… chicken and ribs…) while there.  St. Urbain street is even clearer when I close my eyes (I’m pretty sure I shouldn’t be viewing it to the ‘Just for Laughs’ theme song, though. That’s a little bizarre). I have a whole bloody trip planned. I will go, I have to, and I’m excited about it. But I feel like an even bigger idiot for not having gone sooner.

http://www.montreal.com/



How to Be There in Montreal


What to Listen to:

- Oscar Peterson Trio – Night Train (1962)

- Kate and Anna McGarrigle – Kate and Anna McGarrigle (1975)

- Leonard Cohen – The Essential Leonard Cohen (2002)

- Rufus Wainwright – Poses (2002)

- Auf Der Maur – Auf Der Maur (2004)


What to Read:

- Louis Dudek – The Transparent Sea (1956)

- Mordecai Richler – The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1959)

- Clark Blaise – Montreal Stories (2003)


What to Do:

- Le Festival St. Ambroise Fringe de Montreal – www.montrealfringe.ca

- Just for Laughs – www.hahaha.com

- Montreal World Film Festival – www.ffm-montreal.org/en_index.html

- Montreal Jazz Festival – www.montrealjazzfest.com

- Montreal Celtic Festival – www.montrealcelticfestival.com



Also of interest…

Montreal Film and TV Commission - http://www.montrealfilm.com/anglais/

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