Rainy Days and Songdays – Canada Eh Day

And for the day that’s in it a welcome return for the occasional series and a dedication with Rainy Days and Songdays – Canada Eh Day.

A trip to see a Beatles/Sixties tribute band on the docked boat venue The Ferry in Glasgow brought me into contact with Canada Ken, as I’ll call him.

I’d wrongly identified him as an American as I earwigged on his conversation about Washington with another in the queue on the dock.

And related to him as I do all citizens I meet from that great city of my own perigrinations there.

Only for him to put me right on that and confirm his proud Torontonian roots and that he had come over to Scotland for six months 30 years and fell in love and stayed.

And that he had been having some bants with the Washingtonian in the queue and that DC was in fact a great city but greatly changed from when a Canadian led the last invasion of the Potomac back in 1814.

Canadian chanteurs and chanteuses

When one Rear-Admiral George Cockburn led the army from up north down to burn Washington in a reprisal for American incursions in their territory in upper Canada.

Of course, the best thing to do when you see a Canadian and an American in the bants is to leave them too it, much like you would a Scotsman and Englishman, Irishman and Englishman, or anybody really and an Englishman.

Now today belongs to Canadians as the anniversary of the creation of the Canadian Federation in 1867 so the Americans will just have to wait for Thursday, July 4, for their jamboree.

And so to mark Canada Day, and our own family’s links with the world’s second biggest country through a grandfather who fought for the Canadian Army, an uncle and brother who went out there to live and a Torontonian sister-in-law and goddaughter…

And because of all the great singers they’ve given us, I give you five of the best Canadian chanteurs and chanteuses for Rainy Days and Songdays – Canada Eh Day.

Joni’s japes

Joni Mitchell: And not just because I share with her the distinction (probably with thousands others too) of being thrown out of the Hebridean Bar in Edinburgh.

Joni is, of course the nightingale of Sixties pop and muse to millions with timeless standards such as Both Sides Now, The Circle Game and Big Yellow Taxi.

With a unique style and wordcraft… I mean: ‘They took all the trees and put them in a tree museum and they charged all the people a dollar and a half just to see them.’

Cohen the chanteur

Leonard Cohen: While Joni was underscoring hippydom and self-reflection French-Canadian Leonard was the chanteur of shenanigans, writing and singing some of the most intimate and saucy songs of ours or any age.

And sending scores of pop tourists flooding to the Chelsea Hotel in New York to see if they could channel what went on there in the celebs’ hang-out. And if they yelled Allelujah after it all.

Alanis’s jagged little thrill

Alanis Morissette: Now what is it about Canadians that they capture a genre with Alanis, the Queen of Angst.

Putting aside that ‘raaaaain on your wedding day’ isn’t strictly ironic, more just bad luck, we still love that her lyrics talk about subjects we’d never put in a song.

Like taking a long hard look at my ass/And then played golf for a while. And you can find out the next lines for yourself!

E’er the Twain

Shaniah Twain: OK, so there is a rich seam of Canadian male singers from Neil Young through Bryan Adams to Justin Bieber and Drake but man, I feel like a Canadian woman says it better.

This Canadian trouper is touring right now and looking as spectacular at 50 as she has ever done. And that and her message and party-whooping songs does impress me much.

Raising the Celine

Celine Dion: And obviously saving the Queen of Las Vegas until last.

With the tres magnifique warbler promising fans that she will hit the Strip again when she her Stiffness ailment allows.

And, of course, we won’t have to Think Twice.

So meet you on the road to Canada and remember that you can fly to North America with pre-clearance from Ireland.

With Aer Lingus flying to Toronto with a sample fare for next month coming in at €901.14.