Kate and Anna McGarrigle
Encyclopedia
Kate and Anna (born December 4, 1944) McGarrigle, were a pair of Canadian
singer-songwriter
s from Quebec
, who performed as a duo until Kate McGarrigle's death on January 18, 2010.
and Kate McGarrigle
were born in Montreal
of mixed English and French-Canadian background, but lived their childhood in the Laurentian Mountains village of Saint-Sauveur-des-Monts, Québec, northwest of Montreal
, where they learned piano from village nuns. In the 1960s, in Montreal, while Kate was studying engineering at McGill University and Anna art at the École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal
, they began performing in public and then began writing their own songs. From 1963-1967 they teamed up Jack Nissenson
and Peter Weldon to form the folk group Mountain City Four
. Kate and Anna McGarrigle continued to write, and recorded and performed music into the twenty first century with assorted accompanying musicians including: Gerry Conway
, Pat Donaldson
, Ken Pearson, Michel Pépin, Chaim Tannenbaum, and Joel Zifkin
.
Their songs have been covered by a variety of artists including Maria Muldaur
, Nana Mouskouri
, Linda Ronstadt
, Emmylou Harris
, Billy Bragg
, Chloé Sainte-Marie
, Judy Collins
, Anne Sofie von Otter, and others. The covers of their songs by well known artists led to the McGarrigles getting their first recording contract in 1974. They created ten albums from 1975 through 2008.
Although associated with Quebec
's anglophone community, the McGarrigles also recorded and performed many songs in French
. Two of their albums, Entre la jeunesse et la sagesse (also known as French Record) and La vache qui pleure, are entirely in French, but many of their other records include one or two French songs as well. Most of their French songs were co-written by Philippe Tatartcheff
, with occasional input from Kate McGarrigle's son, Canadian-American solo artist Rufus Wainwright
. Rufus and his sister Martha Wainwright
, also a singer, are the children of Kate and her former husband (married 1971, separated 1976, divorced 1978), singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III
.
They have performed or recorded with the Irish group The Chieftains
, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
on their No More Shall We Part
album, Emmylou Harris
on her albums Bluebird
, Wrecking Ball
, Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions
, Light of the Stable
, Stumble into Grace
, and All I Intended to Be
, Lou Reed
on his concept album
The Raven, Joan Baez
on her live recording Ring Them Bells
, Gilles Vigneault
on “Charlie-Jos” on his album C’est ainsi que j’arrive à toi, and Robin Holcomb on her 2002 album The Big Time.
Their version of Wade Hemsworth
's song, "The Log Driver's Waltz
" grew famous as the soundtrack for a 1979 animated film by the National Film Board. They provided backing vocals on Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
's 2001
album No More Shall We Part
. They appeared on the children's TV show Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show in Season 4, episode 50 titled "Sibling Rivalry".
They were appointed Members of the Order of Canada
in 1993 and received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award in 2004.
Another sister, Jane McGarrigle
, is a film and television composer who wrote and performed several songs with the duo, but was not a regular collaborator.
Kate died January 18, 2010 after fighting a rare form of cancer. She was 63 years old.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
s from Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, who performed as a duo until Kate McGarrigle's death on January 18, 2010.
Profile
Anna McGarrigleAnna McGarrigle
Anna McGarrigle, CM is a Canadian folk music singer/songwriter who wrote and performed as a duo with her sister, Kate McGarrigle, until Kate's death in 2010.-Musical career:...
and Kate McGarrigle
Kate McGarrigle
Kate McGarrigle, CM was a Canadian folk music singer-songwriter, who wrote and performed as a duo with her sister Anna McGarrigle....
were born in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
of mixed English and French-Canadian background, but lived their childhood in the Laurentian Mountains village of Saint-Sauveur-des-Monts, Québec, northwest of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, where they learned piano from village nuns. In the 1960s, in Montreal, while Kate was studying engineering at McGill University and Anna art at the École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal
École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal
École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal was an educational institution founded in Quebec in 1922. The Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society was instrumental in its creation....
, they began performing in public and then began writing their own songs. From 1963-1967 they teamed up Jack Nissenson
Jack Nissenson
Jack Nissenson was a member of the Mountain City Four, a Canadian folk music group, based in Montreal and active in the 1960s. In addition to Nissenson, the group consisted of Peter Weldon, Kate McGarrigle and Anna McGarrigle....
and Peter Weldon to form the folk group Mountain City Four
Mountain City Four
The Mountain City Four were a Canadian folk music group, based in Montreal and active in the 1960s. The group consisted of Jack Nissenson, Peter Weldon, Kate McGarrigle and Anna McGarrigle....
. Kate and Anna McGarrigle continued to write, and recorded and performed music into the twenty first century with assorted accompanying musicians including: Gerry Conway
Gerry Conway (musician)
Gerald Conway is an English folk and rock drummer/percussionist, best known for having performed with the backing band for Cat Stevens in the 1970s, Jethro Tull during the 1980s, and currently a member of Fairport Convention as well as his side projects...
, Pat Donaldson
Pat Donaldson
Pat Donaldson is a bass guitarist.The 2i's Coffee Bar in Old Compton Street, Soho was a legendary hang-out for early rock artists of Britain. It was here that Tommy Steele, Cliff Richard and Terry Dean played. Albert Lee and Pat Donaldson played here while they were members of Bob Xavier and the...
, Ken Pearson, Michel Pépin, Chaim Tannenbaum, and Joel Zifkin
Joel Zifkin
Joel Zifkin is a Canadian musician and songwriter born in Montreal on April 14, 1954. He is best known as a session and live musician for artists such as Kate and Anna McGarrigle and Richard Thompson...
.
Their songs have been covered by a variety of artists including Maria Muldaur
Maria Muldaur
Maria Muldaur is a folk-blues singer who was part of the American folk music revival in the early 1960s...
, Nana Mouskouri
Nana Mouskouri
Nana Mouskouri , born Ioánna Moúschouri on October 13, 1934, in Chania, Crete, Greece, is a Greek singer who has sold about 300 million records worldwide in a career spanning over five decades, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. She was known as Nána to her friends and...
, Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
, Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
, Billy Bragg
Billy Bragg
Stephen William Bragg , better known as Billy Bragg, is an English alternative rock musician and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, and his lyrics mostly deal with political or romantic themes...
, Chloé Sainte-Marie
Chloé Sainte-Marie
Chloé Sainte-Marie is an actress, singer, activist, and official spokesperson for a in Québec.-Biography:...
, Judy Collins
Judy Collins
Judith Marjorie "Judy" Collins is an American singer and songwriter, known for her eclectic tastes in the material she records ; and for her social activism. She is an alumna of the University of Colorado.-Musical career:Collins was born and raised in Seattle, Washington...
, Anne Sofie von Otter, and others. The covers of their songs by well known artists led to the McGarrigles getting their first recording contract in 1974. They created ten albums from 1975 through 2008.
Although associated with Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
's anglophone community, the McGarrigles also recorded and performed many songs in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
. Two of their albums, Entre la jeunesse et la sagesse (also known as French Record) and La vache qui pleure, are entirely in French, but many of their other records include one or two French songs as well. Most of their French songs were co-written by Philippe Tatartcheff
Philippe Tatartcheff
Philippe Tatartcheff is a Canadian poet and songwriter who grew up in Timmins, Ontario. His father, Dr. Michael Tatartcheff, was a physician and surgeon in Timmins, and his grandfather, Dr. Assen Tatartcheff, was a member of the Macedonian Liberation Front IMRE...
, with occasional input from Kate McGarrigle's son, Canadian-American solo artist Rufus Wainwright
Rufus Wainwright
Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright is an American-Canadian singer-songwriter. He has recorded six albums of original music, EPs, and tracks on compilations and film soundtracks.-Early years:...
. Rufus and his sister Martha Wainwright
Martha Wainwright
Martha Wainwright is a Canadian-American folk-rock singer-songwriter. She is the daughter of American folk singer and actor Loudon Wainwright III and Canadian folk singer-songwriter Kate McGarrigle...
, also a singer, are the children of Kate and her former husband (married 1971, separated 1976, divorced 1978), singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III
Loudon Wainwright III
Loudon Snowden Wainwright III is a Grammy Award-winning American songwriter, folk singer, humorist, and actor. He is the father of musicians Rufus Wainwright, Martha Wainwright and Lucy Wainwright Roche, brother of Sloan Wainwright, and the former husband of the late folk singer Kate McGarrigle.To...
.
They have performed or recorded with the Irish group The Chieftains
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a Grammy-winning Irish musical group founded in 1962, best known for being one of the first bands to make Irish traditional music popular around the world.-Name:...
, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian alternative rock band, formed in Melbourne in 1983. The band is fronted by Nick Cave and has featured international personnel throughout their career.-Formation and early releases :...
on their No More Shall We Part
No More Shall We Part
A limited-edition version included a bonus disc with two extra tracks, plus multi-media CD-ROM files :...
album, Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
on her albums Bluebird
Bluebird (Emmylou Harris album)
Bluebird was an Emmylou Harris album from 1989, which merged a number of eclectic songs with polished, country-music production. It included her most recent top-ten country-charting single, "Heartbreak Hill"...
, Wrecking Ball
Wrecking Ball (Emmylou Harris album)
Wrecking Ball is a 1995 album by Emmylou Harris in which she moves away from the traditional acoustic sound for which she had become known, to team up with rock producer Daniel Lanois and engineer Mark Howard...
, Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions
Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions
Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions is a 1999 album by American singer/songwriter/producer Linda Ronstadt and singer/songwriter/guitarist Emmylou Harris.The album was well-received critically and landed on several year-end Top Ten lists...
, Light of the Stable
Light of the Stable (album)
Light of the Stable is a Christmas album by Emmylou Harris. It was originally released in 1979 by Warner Bros. Records, but has since gone through several intervening releases. The 1992 Warner release was a remastered version of the original with a different album cover. The latest edition was...
, Stumble into Grace
Stumble into Grace
Stumble into Grace is the 20th major label studio album from Emmylou Harris, which peaked at #6 on the Billboard country albums chart.-Track listing:All tracks composed by Emmylou Harris; except where indicated#"Here I Am" – 3:47...
, and All I Intended to Be
All I Intended to Be
Harris stated that “Sailing Round the Room” was inspired by Terri Schiavo and is a celebration of life and death; “How She Could Sing the Wildwood Flower” refers to the relationship between A. P. and Sara Carter and was inspired by a documentary that Harris, together with Kate and Anna McGarrigle,...
, Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
on his concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
The Raven, Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
on her live recording Ring Them Bells
Ring Them Bells
Ring Them Bells is a live album taken from Joan Baez' April 1995 shows at New York's Bottom Line. In addition to her own solo set, the album featured collaborations with Mary Chapin Carpenter, Mimi Farina, Dar Williams, the Indigo Girls and Mary Black...
, Gilles Vigneault
Gilles Vigneault
Gilles Vigneault, is a Canadian poet, publisher and singer-songwriter, and well-known Quebec nationalist and sovereigntist.A poet deeply rooted in his native Quebec, Vigneault has become an icon at home and Quebec ambassador abroad...
on “Charlie-Jos” on his album C’est ainsi que j’arrive à toi, and Robin Holcomb on her 2002 album The Big Time.
Their version of Wade Hemsworth
Wade Hemsworth
Albert Wade Hemsworth was a Canadian folk singer and songwriter. Although he was not a prolific composer, having written only about 20 songs during his entire career, several of his songs — most notably "The Wild Goose", "The Black Fly Song" and "The Log Driver's Waltz" — are among the most...
's song, "The Log Driver's Waltz
The Log Driver's Waltz
"The Log Driver's Waltz" is a Canadian folk song, written by Wade Hemsworth.The Log Driver's Waltz is also a Canadian animated film from the National Film Board, released in 1979 as part of its Canada Vignettes series.-Song information:...
" grew famous as the soundtrack for a 1979 animated film by the National Film Board. They provided backing vocals on Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian alternative rock band, formed in Melbourne in 1983. The band is fronted by Nick Cave and has featured international personnel throughout their career.-Formation and early releases :...
's 2001
2001 in music
See also:* 2001 in music Record labels established in 2001-Events:*January 1**Comeback of Guns N' Roses in House of Blues**Hum disbands.*January 17 – Bass player Jason Newsted leaves Metallica after 14 years with the band....
album No More Shall We Part
No More Shall We Part
A limited-edition version included a bonus disc with two extra tracks, plus multi-media CD-ROM files :...
. They appeared on the children's TV show Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show in Season 4, episode 50 titled "Sibling Rivalry".
They were appointed Members of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
in 1993 and received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award in 2004.
Another sister, Jane McGarrigle
Jane McGarrigle
Jane McGarrigle is a Canadian songwriter and musician.She is the elder sister of Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and has written and performed several songs with the duo. She produced their album Love Over and Over. Songs she co-wrote have been recorded by Nana Mouskouri and by Emmylou Harris...
, is a film and television composer who wrote and performed several songs with the duo, but was not a regular collaborator.
Kate died January 18, 2010 after fighting a rare form of cancer. She was 63 years old.
Albums
- 1975 - Kate and Anna McGarrigleKate and Anna McGarrigle (album)Kate and Anna McGarrigle is the self-titled 1975 debut album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle.The album includes "Heart Like a Wheel," the McGarrigles' most famous song, which was first released by Linda Ronstadt in 1974...
- 1977 - Dancer with Bruised KneesDancer with Bruised KneesDancer with Bruised Knees is a 1977 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle. It employed several notable folk musicians to contribute a bluegrass feel to many of the tracks...
- 1978 - Pronto MontoPronto MontoPronto Monto is a 1978 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle. The title is a roughly phonetic pronunciation of the French phrase "prends ton manteau", which means "take your coat"....
- 1981 - Entre Lajeunesse et la sagesse (French Record)Entre Lajeunesse et la sagesseEntre Lajeunesse et la sagesse is a 1980 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle. The album is also known by the title French Record.The album title is a pun. Lajeunesse is a street name in Montreal, Quebec, but the title can also mean "between youth and wisdom".It is considered by many fans, even those...
- 1982 - Love Over and OverLove Over and OverLove Over and Over is a 1982 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle.Following this album, the McGarrigles did not release an album of new material until Heartbeats Accelerating in 1990.-Side One:#"Move Over Moon" – 3:11 - Kate...
- 1990 - Heartbeats AcceleratingHeartbeats AcceleratingHeartbeats Accelerating is a 1990 album by the late Kate and Anna McGarrigle. It was their first album in seven years, after Love Over and Over in 1983, and received favourable reviews from many music critics....
- 1996 - MatapédiaMatapédia (album)Matapédia is a 1996 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle.Kate's daughter Martha Wainwright appears on the album as a backing vocalist; she is also directly mentioned in the lyrics of the title track....
(winner of 1997 Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year - GroupJuno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year - GroupThe Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year - Group is presented annually at Canada's Juno Awards to honour the best album of the year in the roots and/or traditional music genres...
) - 1998 - The McGarrigle HourThe McGarrigle HourThe McGarrigle Hour is a 1998 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle.The album was recorded at a family gathering, including Kate's former husband Loudon Wainwright III, their son and daughter Rufus Wainwright and Martha Wainwright, Anna's husband Dane Lanken, their son and daughter Sylvan Lanken and...
(winner of 1999 Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year - GroupJuno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year - GroupThe Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year - Group is presented annually at Canada's Juno Awards to honour the best album of the year in the roots and/or traditional music genres...
) - 2003 - La vache qui pleureLa vache qui pleureLa vache qui pleure is a 2003 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle. It is the sisters' second full album of French language songs, following 1980's Entre Lajeunesse et la sagesse....
- 2005 - The McGarrigle Christmas HourThe McGarrigle Christmas HourThe McGarrigle Christmas Hour is a 2005 album by Kate and Anna McGarrigle. A sequel to their 1998 album The McGarrigle Hour, the album features a program of Christmas music recorded by the McGarrigles, their family and a number of friends and collaborators...
- 2010 - ODDiTTiES
- 2011 - Tell My Sister
Other contributions
- 1991 - Songs of the Civil WarSongs of the Civil WarSongs of the Civil War is a compilation album, released in 1991 by Columbia, that presents an assortment of contemporary performers recording period pieces and traditional songs that date back to the American Civil War.-Track listing:...
- "Was My Brother in the Battle?", "Better Times Are Coming", "Hard Times Come Again No MoreHard Times Come Again No More"Hard Times Come Again No More," is a parlor song by Stephen Foster. It was published in New York by Firth, Pond & Co. in 1854 as Foster's Melodies No. 28...
" - 1992 - 'Til Their Eyes Shine (The Lullaby Album) - "Lullaby For A Doll"
- 1999 - Live at the World Café - Volume 9Live at the World Café - Volume 9Live at the World Café: Volume 9 is the ninth volume in an ongoing series of compilation albums showcasing artists that appear on the radio program "World Cafe". "World Cafe" is a two-hour long nationally syndicated music program that originates from WXPN, a non-commercial station on the campus of...
- "DJ Serenade" - 2006 - Leonard Cohen: I'm Your ManLeonard Cohen: I'm Your ManLeonard Cohen: I'm Your Man is a 2005 film by Lian Lunson about the life and career of Leonard Cohen. It is based on a January 2005 tribute show at the Sydney Opera House titled "Came So Far for Beauty", which was produced by Hal Willner...
Soundtrack - "Winter Lady" (with Martha Wainwright) - 2008 - Northern Songs: Canada's Best and BrightestNorthern Songs: Canada's Best and BrightestNorthern Songs: Canada's Best and Brightest is a compilation album of songs performed by some of Canada's "best and brightest" musicians, released in September 2008 under Rhino Records and sold exclusively at Starbucks locations through their Hear Music label.-Track listing:#Feist -...
- "Entre Lajeunesse et la Sagesse"
See also
- List of Quebec musicians
- Music of QuebecMusic of QuebecBeing a modern cosmopolitan society, today, all types of music can be found in the Canadian province of Quebec. What is specific to Quebec though are traditional songs, a unique variety of Celtic music, legions of excellent jazz musicians, a culture of classical music, and a love of foreign rhythms...
- Culture of QuebecCulture of QuebecThe Culture of Quebec emerged over the last few hundred years, resulting from the shared history of the French-speaking majority in Quebec. It is unique to the Western World; Quebec is the only region in North America with a French-speaking majority, as well as one of only two provinces in Canada...
- Joel ZifkinJoel ZifkinJoel Zifkin is a Canadian musician and songwriter born in Montreal on April 14, 1954. He is best known as a session and live musician for artists such as Kate and Anna McGarrigle and Richard Thompson...