NOTABLY CANADIAN 🇨🇦 🎶 🇨🇦

Surprises, confessions and many music choices from the My Pop Choir Directors

Huge thanks to our MPC choir directors who responded enthusiastically to our request for their favourite Canadian music.

Happy listening! (And feel free to share widely.)

Doug Price

1) Barenaked Ladies - one of my fav Canadian bands of ALL TIME.  Give me "One Week" ANY DAY OF THE WEEK.

2) Great Big Sea - Does it get more Canadian???  And Alan Doyle is going to be back in Charlottetown this summer in “Tell Tale Harbour”!! 

3) Céline Dion - I mean, come on.

4) Justin Bieber - people can judge me, but I'm a HUGE fan of Justin's music.  AND... he was born in my hometown of London, Ontario.

5) Nickelback-- YUP, people can judge, but I LOVE Nickelback's music.  I think it's a perfect combination of cheesy and awesome.

6) Alicia Toner - crushing it in the East Coast music scene! (And one of my best friends!)

7) Ben Kunder - another friend of mine, with some awesome music.

8) Britta Johnson - she writes musical theatre, but she's really making a name for herself and her music is beautiful.

9) Michael Bublé - classic 

10) David Hein and Irene Sankoff - the composers of “Come From Away,” Canada's most successful musical!

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Iain Stewart

1) Joni Mitchell - best of all time; no one can argue with me.

2) Sam Robert’s Band - I have seen them in concert three or four times, I think.

3) Born Ruffians - such a great vibe.

4) Jeremy Dutcher - blends opera with spoken word and other genres. Amazing and emotional.

5) Nelly Furtado - was really into her early music that was more melodic (less man eater).

6) Mother, Mother - another genre-bending band. Their early stuff was wild and exciting.

7) Alanis Morissette - “Jagged Little Pill” combines satisfying lyrics with satisfying melodies. Satisfying!

8) Leonard Cohen - what a poet.

9) Said The Whale - went to jazz school at Capilano University with some of these guys. Bring jazz sensibilities to their pop music. 

10) Bedouin Soundclash - was obsessed as a younger person with their cool sound. A running theme seems to be mixing genres. I like a little bit of experimentation in the sound.

11) Begonia - one of the best voices around.

Honourable mention

Tanya Tagaq

Andy Shauf

Bahamas

Aysanabee

Rufus Wainwright

Bare Naked Ladies

Feist

Arrogant Worms

Metric

Lunar Bloom

Lydia Persaud

The O’Pears

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Mary Lynne Calvert

1) Gordon Lightfoot – I saw Gordon Lightfoot more than any other artist, including his last concert (a bit sad) at Massey Hall. Part of me growing up.

2) Anne Murray – listened to the 8-track of “Anne Murray’s Greatest Hits” over and over.

3) Stompin’ Tom – saw him several times.

4) Great Big Sea – saw them several times.

5) Blue Rodeo

6) Lighthouse – I love anything with horns.

7) Joni Mitchell – “Big Yellow Taxi” is overplayed. Listen to “Help” or “Free Man in Paris.”

8) Tom Cochrane – just saw him in Oshawa. Love him and always have, even when he was with Red Rider.

9) Bryan Adams – not just for “Summer of ’69.” I remember when “Cuts Like a Knife” came out.

10) Guess Who – But I really liked Burton Cummings even more after he went solo.  Saw him at the CNE.

1) Michael Bublé – I love crooners.

12) April Wine – they played every fair going, and were everywhere all the time. But I never saw them!

13) Tragically Hip – very interesting sound and Gord Downie’s voice is unique.

14) Rankin family - their voices can bring my heart to dissolve

15) Chilliwack

16) David Wilcox – I met my husband during one of his concerts.

17) Rush – I have such admiration for the musical genius of these guys.

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Kent Andrews

1) Joni Mitchell - "A Case of You," "Both Sides Now" are sure to wreck me in the best way possible.

2) Leonard Cohen - Canadian icon, and what a gift "Hallelujah" has been - even to MPC.

3) Gordon Lightfoot - too many incredible contributions to mention.

4) Céline Dion - how can you not love Céline?? A true singer's singer.

5) Shawn Mendes - such a great songwriter!

6) Glass Tiger - the soundtrack of my ’80s childhood.

7) Destroyer - all about the vibes.

8) KD Lang - the best version of "Hallelujah" ever in my opinion.

9) The Weather Station - a more recent obsession - love their new album and seeing them in the spring.

10) Arcade Fire - so many favs; "We Don't Deserve Love" is at the top of the list.

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Jenn Kee

In no particular order, these are some of my favourite Canadian bands/artists.

The Trews

Amanda Marshall

The Guess Who

April Wine

The Tragically Hip

Serena Ryder

Alanis Morissette

The Band

Joni Mitchell

Neil Young

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