DESCRIPTION:
Sung by / Chanté Par Jacques Labrecque

SONG NOTES FROM ALAN MILLS:

This canoe-paddling song is one of a hundred Canadian versions of "Les trois canards" (The Three Ducks), in which a princely hunter shoots down a young lady's pet duck with his silver gun. Why this seemingly inconsequential story should have appealed so dearly to Canada's early French settlers, and to the generations that followed, makes one wonder, but it is safe to say that no other song of the "old world" has had a greater number of versions and uses in Canada, or a greater variety of tunes, for that matter. While its story has remained relatively intact, it has been sung in all imaginable forms - from work-songs for varied occupations, to love-songs - with a wide assortment of appropriate refrains.

The version given here is one of the most popular of the many canoe-paddling tunes used by woodsmen and "voyageurs".

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Venue sans doute au Canada au cours du 17ième siècle, la chansons se "Trois canards" s'est ramifeé en plus d'une centaine de versions, bien différentes les unes des autres.

Pour faire une bonne chansons d'aviron, une chansons se devait de pouvoir durer longtemps, de se répéter et de se rallonger au besoin. Celle-ci s'y prêtaità merveille et elle fut bien servie.

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Volume VII

Songs and Ballads of the Lumber Camps
Chansons de "Voyageurs"

The lumber camps of eastern Canada— from the Atlantic provinces to Ontario— have provided one of the richest sources of folk songs, for it is in these camps, during the long winter months, that woodsmen entertained each other (and learned from each other) many of the traditional ballads and folk songs of their ancestors, and created their own songs and ballads, either to amuse themselves and help them in their work, or to record some of their experiences— both tragic and humorous— in the woods. The tunes of their songs were frequently borrowed from older folk songs, and in many instances— especially among French-speaking woodsmen— the stories of traditional folk songs were adapted to various "workable" tunes, to which were added simple refrains to suit their new uses.

Examples of all these forms are included in this album.

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Canadian Folk Songs: A Centennial Collections
Chansons folklorique du Canada

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You can check out my own music by subscribing to this channel

My website: http://www.bri-anneswan.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/swannybee
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/swannybee
Bandcamp: http://bri-anneswan.bandcamp.com

I purchased this 9 LP collection (my favourite vinyl find of all time) and was about to start digitizing the songs to put them online, but the lovely Stephen Lower already did it!! (Thank you)
http://members.shaw.ca/slower/cfs/

My intention is to upload the whole collection to YouTube, with both the English and French notes.

Alan Mills: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Mills_%28music%29
Jacques Labrecque: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Labrecque
French Canadian Music: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French-Canadian_music
Musique folklorique canadienne-française: http://quebecoisdesouche.info/index.php?musique-folklorique-canadienne-franaaise
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V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'appelle
V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'attend

Derrière chez nous y'a un étang
Trois beaux canards s'en vont baignant

V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'appelle
V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'attend

Le fils du Roi s'en va chassant
Avec son grand fusil d'argent

V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'appelle
V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'attend

Visa le noir, tua le blanc
- Ô fils du Roi, tu es méchant !

V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'appelle
V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'attend

D'avoir tué mon canard blanc
Par-dessous l'aile il perd son sang

V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'appelle
V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'attend

Toutes ses plumes s'en vont au vent
Trois dames s'en vont les ramassant

V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'appelle
V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'attend

C'est pour en faire un lit de camp
Pour y coucher tous les passants

V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'appelle
V'là l'bon vent, v'là l'joli vent
V'là l'bon vent ma mie m'attend