In Quebec

from 1960 to 1964

If you ask Nana's oldest admirers when her long love affair with Quebecers began, they will answer you: at the end of 1964 with "Quatre soleils". It is true that the successes followed one another then. This may be surprising, but before that at least three of her songs benefited from radio broadcast thanks to certain disc jockeys. In order to have a better picture of all this, let's review the context of the time before discovering these titles.

POLITICAL, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL CONTEXT

The years 1960-1964 coincided with the beginning of the Quiet Revolution, when French Canadians started to identify themselves more as Quebecers. After the election of the Liberal Party led by Jean Lesage, a large number of transformations in areas such as social, religious, political and economical aspects followed. By nationalizing electricity and reforming education, this government has made us proud and confident. These great achievements in addition to the language and culture of Quebecers prove that they form a distinct people.

At that time, the Quebec record market was booming. The pool of French speakers exceeded five million and there were several singers. Some, like Pauline Julien or Aglaé, already represented us in our motherland. But most of them were just starting out. Among those who had a long career, let us mention Michèle Richard, Ginette Reno, Michel Louvain and Fernand Gignac. Covering foreign hits and French songs was common. Fortunately, there were some chansonniers like Félix Leclerc, Gilles Vigneault and Jean-Pierre Ferland who, with their words and their melodies, founded the Quebec Chanson that we know today.

Félix Leclerc, Gilles Vigneault and Jean-Pierre Ferland.

TA PEDIA TOU PIREA

Like everywhere in the world, Quebecers are influenced by American music. Especially since they are part of the same continent. They also love folklore from here and elsewhere. It was probably in this vein that we heard Nana for the first time on the radio. Following the international success of the film "Never on Sunday" by Jules Dassin in 1960, Sirtaki became fashionable around the world. Moreover, its main theme earned its composer Manos Hadjidakis an Oscar and has been covered by the greatest performers. Composed for the lead star of the movie, Melina Mercouri, Nana still recorded it in the original language.

Considering the popularity of this new musical style, it is understandable why some radio stations had her Greek records and played the big hit in particular. Note that in the large metropolis of Canada and the United States, there are important Hellenic Communities. And from Nana’s beginning, their specialized shops imported her records from Greece, all under Fidelity label. It should be added that at that time Nana’s version in Greek, "Ta pedia tou Pirea", was released on 45 rpm in several countries.

LE PETIT TRAMWAY

Since French Song offered a greater selection, a radio chart was dedicated to it. Nana, who made her debut in France in 1961, took years to achieve the popularity expected by her record company. However, that did not prevent her from appearing on this list with Georges Guétary, Dalida, Édith Piaf and Charles Aznavour, who were loved by Quebecers. The title in the spotlight: "Le petit tramway" (The little tramway) from Chilpancingo (Mexico) charmed listeners of radio stations in Quebec City (CHRC) and in Hull (CKCH). This song, from her first French EP, was available through importation only. A few years later, the Germans had their version called "In der Rue Madeleine".

WILDWOOD FLOWER

On the English-speaking side, fans of the time were treated to a first success: "Wildwood Flower", a country song formerly popularized by The Carter Family. For her pleasure, Nana recorded it during her first stay in New York City with Shelby Singleton's orchestra. Since then, it was released as a single and in November 1962 it appeared in the American and Canadian Charts. As it was published by Quality Records, a company established in Toronto, the 45 rpm was also distributed in Quebec. Note that this radio broadcast followed the release of her first album "The Girl from Greece sings". In this Quincy Jones production, she covered great American standards. The following year, Nana recorded a French version of this selling cut: "Avant toi".

OTHER TITLES

Certainly, during these early years, other songs by Nana benefited from some airplay on Quebec radio. It remains to discover which ones. But since her French records were only available through import, few stations had them. This probably delayed the development of her success here. Note that among the titles from this period, three were occasionally played on the radio following their release on a 33 rpm record in 1966: "Roses blanches de Corfou", "C'est joli la mer" and "Un homme est venu". It makes us wonder if these had not already caught the attention of disc jockeys since they have been selected by her distributor London Records.

TOO BRIEF PERIODS

These first periods of radio broadcasting, too brief, took place. At that time, we knew nothing about Nana. We had never seen her on television and she had not been here yet. Very few knew her voice and even fewer her face. As for her name, we had to know how to pronounce it well. Those who had spent some time in Europe had the chance to know her a little. France being the country where she was seen most often on television and Germany, where she sold the most records. If it happened that we got one of her albums from abroad, we were delighted. Thanks to the cover, we discovered a distinguished woman, smiling and wearing glasses nicely. We were also treated to a concert worthy of her talent and repertoire.

WHERE TO FIND?

Knowing that during these early years we sometimes heard Nana on the radio, we may wonder how we could access her repertoire. At that time, there was no Internet and downloading did not exist. So we had to get her records. But where? This was not easy since her French productions were not yet pressed here. The best reference remained Archambault Musique, located at the corner of Sainte-Catherine and Berri streets in Montreal. This store specialized in French music. It imported her EPs and had the most beautiful collection of sheet music, even songs, never published here. Passers-by nostalgically remember their superb window display decorated with the latest record covers.

SOMETHING WAS PREPARING

By reading this article, many will surely have a better idea of the period preceding Nana's real debut in Quebec. Need we recall that between 1960 and 1964, she made a career almost exclusively in Europe? This is why the only press articles about her came from French magazines. But something was coming since the songs played on the radio were not necessarily her first big hits. And as the choice of broadcast often depends on the disc jockeys, we can believe that other titles have been selected.