Who is your favourite Canadian composer of songs?

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Inspired by meltzerboy’s [great thread](Who is your favourite Canadian composer of songs?), who is your favourite Canadian composer of songs?

Just a few suggestions:

Stompin’ Tom Connors, Burton Cummings (The Guess Who, solo), Randy Bachman (The Guess Who, BTO), Leonard Cohen, Tom Cochrane, Neil Peart (Rush), Joni Mitchell, Daniel Lanois, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Gordon Lightfoot, Stan Rogers, Loreena McKennitt, Sarah McLachlan, Bruce Cockburn, Gord Downie (The Tragically Hip), Robbie Robertson (The Band), Ian Tyson, Paul Anka, Michel Pagliaro, Ron Hynes, Buddy Whasisname…

I haven’t included Justin Bieber because I have not seen his long-form birth certificate…

I myself think I would have to pick Leonard Cohen — knowing the background story, “Dance Me to the End of Love” breaks my heart, even more than “Hallelujah”.

Note: Yes, as a Canadian maybe I need my ego stroked… “We do cool stuff, too!” :rolleyes:
 
Does Doug and Bob McKenzie (Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas) count for their beautimous “Take Off” from the early 80s? 😉

(Sorry for any offense to my neighbors to the north)
 
Usige said:
Does Doug and Bob McKenzie (Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas) count for their beautimous “Take Off” from the early 80s? 😉

(Sorry for any offense to my neighbors to the north)
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They did share writing credit
with three others…and if I remember correctly, the totality of the lyrics were,

“Take off…to the Great White North…
Take off…it’s a beauty way to go…
Take off…”

and

“Coo loo coo coo, coo coo coo coo,
Coo loo coo coo, coo coo coo coo…”

the latter of which I think Thomas did write.

So, as OP, I declare it counts! :thumbs up:
 
If I remember correctly, the totality of the lyrics were,

“Take off…to the Great White North…
Take off…it’s a beauty way to go…
Take off…”

and

“Coo loo coo coo, coo coo coo coo,
Coo loo coo coo, coo coo coo coo…”

Can you believe it took five people
to write this? Although, to be fair, I thin kThomas wrote the “Coo loo coo coo…” part alone.

So, as OP, I declare it counts! :thumbs up:
 
Ummmm…well I know you said he doesn’t count but…Justin Beiber…😛



For some reason, he’s the only Canadian artist I know…I really need to broaden my horizons.
 
John_Lazarus said:
Inspired by meltzerboy’s [great thread](Who is your favourite Canadian composer of songs?), who is your favourite Canadian composer of songs?

Just a few suggestions:

Stompin’ Tom Connors, Burton Cummings (The Guess Who, solo), Randy Bachman (The Guess Who, BTO), Leonard Cohen, Tom Cochrane, Neil Peart (Rush), Joni Mitchell, Daniel Lanois, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Gordon Lightfoot, Stan Rogers, Loreena McKennitt, Sarah McLachlan, Bruce Cockburn, Gord Downie (The Tragically Hip), Robbie Robertson (The Band), Ian Tyson, Paul Anka, Michel Pagliaro, Ron Hynes, Buddy Whasisname…

I haven’t included Justin Bieber because I have not seen his long-form birth certificate…

I myself think I would have to pick Leonard Cohen — knowing the background story, “Dance Me to the End of Love” breaks my heart, even more than “Hallelujah”.

Note: Yes, as a Canadian maybe I need my ego stroked… “We do cool stuff, too!” :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
For me, it would have to be Leonard Cohen for writing the most beautifully depressing songs ever, and Joni Mitchell, who is by far the greatest songwriter among women.
 
I only know a few, Fr. Andre Dumont, O.M.I, Alanis Morrissette and Rene Angelil who was actually a producer who sang many French translations of Beatles songs.
There is a lot of talent up north there.
 
A friend told me about a Catholic music artist by the name of Matt Maher. I checked a couple of his songs out on Youtube, they were great.
 
I’m a big fan of Ron Hynes (mentioned in the OP). Sonny’s Dream is one of my favorite songs.

Also Alan Doyle and Sean McCann of Great Big Sea.
 
Since no one mentioned Neil Young yet, gotta include him. He’s not my absolute favorite, but I like a lot of his songs. And Gordon Lightfoot too, but he’s in the OP.
 
Big Stan Rogers fan from way back. Also Anne Murray (oops - just found out she didn’t write ‘Snow Bird’.).
 
meltzerboy said:
For me, it would have to be Leonard Cohen for writing the most beautifully depressing songs ever, and Joni Mitchell, who is by far the greatest songwriter among women.
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Even though I love ‘Suzanne’ I find the rest of Cohen’s oeuvre a bit overrated. Give me Serge Gainsbourg anyday (whom he somewhat resembles).
 
Leonard Cohen’s songs, especially “Suzanne” are top notch.

For the body of his work … some of his songs the equal of “Suzanne” IMO …

I have to go with Gordon Lightfoot.
:clapping:

Per the “Canadian Railroad Trilogy” (a wonderful medley of three individual songs toasting that epoch in Canadian history) … Gordon rather out-Canadians everyone else (to coin an adverb). 😉

youtube.com/watch?v=Yzo6Otpgj-E < This “song,” especially with the graphics in this video, conveys a love of nature on a par with his contemporary at the time John Denver – yet sees the works of the “white man” in building the railroads and the nation as a thing to be equally as proud of as the scenery.

It is so unlike the PC canard that “the white men” simply came to the West to wage genocide on the natives and became as wealthy as Croesus in doing so.

For every robber baron milliionaire or military opportunist there must have been thousands or tens of thousands of this kind of “white man” … whose work and sacrifice for a pittance of pay, sometimes far from civilzation and family, should be remembered with thanks and appreciation for the benefits of building and modernizing a nation. < I’m not even Canadian and this story of Lightfoot’s brought me to tears (somewhat happy ones).

Seeing those photos of old, I found myself thinking … they all deserve to be in heaven for what they did. Probably an overstatement. But a sincere sentiment. They were better than I am per the greatness of their sacrifice.

It’s also nice that Gordon Lightfoot’s own name sounds like an amalgam of New World and Old, Native American and pioneer. (Though to my surprise some sites on the internet claim it’s Anglo-Saxon and that Gordon counts his forebears as from Manchester, England 🤷). FWIW.

It is by no means Lightfoot’s only great song. But the changing of mood, style, tempo, “scenes” and viewponts … makes it one of my favorites.

Thank you Canada for blessing us with many great composers of music. Among other things.

(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)
 
No one here has mentioned Stephan Moccio, although he has won a Grammy and worked with Canadian artist “The Weeknd” (this guy is huge).
Stephan Moccio (born October 20, 1972) is a Grammy and Academy Award nominated composer, producer, pianist, arranger, conductor and recording artist. He co-wrote and co-produced the two end credit songs for Fifty Shades of Grey and the Fifty Shades of Grey (soundtrack) - Earned It (The Weeknd) and I Know You (Skylar Grey). He also co-wrote Miley Cyrus’ single Wrecking Ball from her 2013 studio album Bangerz. He co-wrote Celine Dion’s hit “A New Day Has Come” with Aldo Nova, which reached and held the number one spot on the Billboard AC Chart for a record breaking 21 weeks. For the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, Moccio co-wrote the theme song “I Believe” performed by Nikki Yanofsky. He has collaborated with artists such as Seal, The Weeknd, Ellie Goulding, Shaffer “Ne-Yo” Smith, Sarah Brightman, Josh Groban, John Legend, BeBe Winans, Gladys Knight, Skylar Grey, Randy Jackson, Jordan Smith, DJ Khalil, Carole Bayer Sager, JC Chasez, Fergie, BC Jean, Planet VI, Boi-1da, as a songwriter, musician and producer. Moccio was one of the three judges on Canada’s Got Talent, alongside comedian Martin Short.
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