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APPELLATION D’ORIGINE CONTRÔLÉE

A brand new album for a 35th anniversary ! With Appellation d’origine contrôlée, LA BOTTINE SOURIANTE continues to amaze with their energy, joie de vivre and superb musicianship. And as the title suggests this is music that could only come from Québec.  With guests from Basque Country : Oreka TX

(2007, Direct Source Records, DVD 20199).
Documentary of Rénald Bellemare recorded in Montreal in 2001.

J'ai jamais tant ri really lives up to its name, offering hyperactive rhythms on a foundation of contagious humour, creating the perfect party mood that will make you giddy! And since the group is taking a new direction, we would like to applaud their innovative desire, obvious in all their instruments... Add to this a number voices blending together with exciting arrangements and you have a full-bodied album full of personality!

(CERTIFIED GOLD)
This musical anthology underlines the 25-year career of La Bottine Souriante. Each title was carefully selected from some 121 musical pieces recorded by the group since the beginning of its career in 1976, all re-mastered. It also includes three brand-new versions of previous successes recorded in February 2001. This album brings together songs having special significance to the band's history; that is to say, songs which best illustrate certain decisive moments which have been responsible for LBS's musical direction. Throughout this short journey, we invite you to discover (or rediscover) the different ensembles and musical influences which have marked the band's growth and development.

"Cordial" is LBS' long awaited 11th album in a career spanning 25 years. It is a powerful concoction of LBS' instrumental prowess and lively vocal harmonies. They are true masters of their craft, creating an ovenproof blend of traditional and contemporary flavours. Led by the charismatic singer, accordionist and harmonica player Yves Lambert, this nine-piece freight train boasts fiddles, accordion, piano, flutes, whistles, tap shoes and an airtight horn section.

(CERTIFIED GOLD)
The Xième (10th) album is an explosion of sounds and rich flavours based on the original version of songs of Québec heritage. This album is coloured by different musical influences resulting in a truly new sound. The teaming up, while on tour, with the Basque accordionist Kepa Junkera and the Finnish violinist Arto Järvelä, have marked such pieces as Arin Québec and Alice au pays d'Arto. Already famous for its musical "criss-crossing", La Bottine Souriante has surpassed all expectations with this album entitled Rock & Reel out of Canada.

(CERTIFIED GOLD)
La Bottine Souriante's 9th album, is a celebration of the group's twenty years of work in traditional Québécois music. Recorded live at Clouzo Saxo in Saint-Sauveur, the album is a tip of the hat to the loyal public who has offered unwavering support during the group's 20 years of existence. It is an audio "cocktail" of explosive sounds that gives us the vigour of the band in concert. This album gathers a variety of songs and instrumentals from La Bottine Souriante's vast repertoire. Sparkling reels, spicy airs, and crisp lyrics, harvested from the group's recorded heritage are served up with fresh arrangements in the trademark style of La Bottine brass - Mr. Jean Fréchette. Three new pieces round out the album's 20-year retrospective: À travers la vitre, Galope et Quadrille and a naughty little song entitled Bidoulidou.

(CERTIFIED PLATINUM)
La Mistrine evokes the Middle Ages with its mystery lore, sorcery and devilish rhythms. It bewitches us with its musical risk-taking where jazz, Latino and even African beats are all infused into one while at the same time the overall flavour maintains its traditional roots.This album is evidence of the group's musical maturity. It is daring and original, establishing La Bottine Souriante on the World Music scene. Pushing ever harder toward new sounds and textures, the brass section defies us to keep our feet still. Le Rap à Ti-Pétang and Le Reel des Soucoupes Volantes are among the many notable cuts.

(CERTIFIED PLATINUM)
With this release, the group from Joliette flies off to new destinations. It is a love story about the chemistry between the members of La Bottine and a brass section. While the concept originated as part of a live show, it became a "keeper" when it unexpectedly turned into a hit and a whole lot of fun. It is in the midst of this ambience and spirit that the album was created, giving witness to a very-much-alive tradition. With tremendous energy, the group's new formation created a link between different musical influences and styles, pushing the envelope even further while respecting its traditional sources, always solidly rhythmic. The characteristic La Bottine sound of today had arrived - a fizzling, cultural fusion between traditional Québécois, salsa and jazz.

This album marks a change for La Bottine Souriante as it begins to travel new paths. From music that has its roots in traditional dance, La Bottine ventures into a world where music is for listening. With the arrival of new members - jazzman Denis Fréchette, bassman Régent Archambault and multi-talented musician/singer Michel Bordeleau - subtleties uncommon to traditional music become part of the group's developing sound. It is a refined album with bold jazz-influenced arrangements.

(CERTIFIED PLATINUM)
Produced live during a party with a bunch of friends, this album perfectly recreates the ambience of a typical "veillée" resounding with reels, call-and-response songs and mischievous good humour. While the first half gathers together favourite holiday songs, the second features lively instrumentals.

To mark its 10th anniversary, La Bottine Souriante's fourth album pays homage to the musical roots of diverse regions of Québec and France with a bevy of reels, waltzes, jigs and call-and-response songs. The album has much in common with Chic'n Swell with regard to the meticulous research and exceptional arrangements heard here. Once again, the group moves forward toward new frontiers with maturing style, vocals, harmonies and dual-guitar arrangements. La Traversée de l'Atlantique creates a bridge between Québec and Europe, or more precisely, between Quebec traditional heritage, French traditional songs and Irish, Scottish and British music.

As André Marchand put it, "this album takes the group out of the cabin and ushers them into the parlor." This album is under Celtic influences. High-quality production, a bit more polish on the arrangements, some reach to the vocals (a cappella for Ziguezon) and the addition of the flute, all put a professional edge on the group's second release.

The second album carries the same trade mark. Mario Forest left but Martin Racine and Guy Bouchard joined the team and bring a new energy. A nice repertoire that goes from Louis Pitou Boudreau (La belle Catherine) to Oscar Thiffault (La confession d'un moribond) and a beautiful piece : Les p'tits plaisirs de Basile.

(CERTIFIED GOLD)
This album gathers a vast repertoire of traditional songs collected primarily from the Cantin family, with instrumentals originating from the cultural heritage of Québec's Lanaudière region. Y'a ben du changement beautifully preserves the simplicity, vitality and spirit of the group's live performances and was an instant success. Today, its timeless repertoire (En l'an 2033, Sur la gran'côte and Trinque l'amourette) can still be heard in La Bottine's concerts. When this album came out, the band was comprised only of Gilles Cantin (guitar, foot tapping, vocals), Mario Forest (harmonica, vocals), Yves Lambert (accordion, harmonica, vocals), Pierre Laporte (fiddle) and André Marchand (guitar, vocals).