Bar Chez Son Père

I discovered this bar on the first group outing I went on.  I had no idea where I was going.  I just tagged along with a friend who knew some other people that must have known the cool places to go.  The french or the french canadian (I'm not sure if it's québécois or not) call it a "boite aux chansons"  which I guess could translate to night club/bar that artists/musicians play at.  No matter when you go, this place is crowded, but never a dull moment.  Half the time you don't even care that you are getting squished or there is no place to sit down. 

I think the appeal is that it plays traditional Québec folk music. I know that might not sound like a whole lot of fun, but these artists make them a lot more contemporary and upbeat with chances for the audience to sing along as well.  Quebec french is still hard enough for me to understand, so I had NO idea what these singers were saying, but that didn't matter.  The music was so infectious that you couldn't help but dance anyways or at least clap along.

Sadly,  as of New Years Eve 2007 into 2008, the bar has been closed.  It rested on top of another store.  The store below, Crocs... the company who made those shoes that most people, including me, hate, bought out the building and closed down the bar.  

I wasn't going to post an entry regarding this place, only because I knew it had just recently closed, but i had to at least mention it.  I hope it will resurface someplace else in the city, but I doubt it.  Even if they did, it won't be the same.  The upstairs had such history and character to it that it would be impossible to recreate.

below is a video I found on Youtube of one of the singers that used to frequent and sing at the bar a lot.  In it you can get a feel for what the place looked like.  (the size of it, how it looks over from the second story onto the streets of Québec)  You can also get a feel for the type of music that used to play there as well as see the audience participation.  I'd translate what the singer is singing, but honestly, I have no idea.  haha.