Jim Corcoran | |
|---|---|
 Montreal, 22 June 2014 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | James Ashley Corcoran [1] |
| Born | 10 February 1949 Sherbrooke, Quebec |
| Genres | Folk Quebec Folk Pop |
| Occupation(s) | musician, radio host |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1971–present |
| Labels | Audiogram |
James Ashley Corcoran OC [2] (born 10 February 1949 in Sherbrooke, Quebec) is a Canadian singer-songwriter [3] and former broadcaster.
Jim Corcoran was born in Sherbrooke, but went to high school and obtained his B.A. in Boston, Massachusetts in the late 1960s. The former seminarian returned to his native Quebec in 1970 with the idea to continue his studies at Bishop's University in Lennoxville before becoming a Latin professor. [4] Corcoran received his B.A. from Bishop's University in 1973 [5] In his free time Corcoran taught himself guitar. His first language is English, but he has spent most of his musical career singing in French.
In 1972, he formed the duo Jim et Bertrand with Bertrand Gosselin and they began performing in the Eastern Townships. During the 1970s, the group was associated with Quebec folk music. Corcoran began a solo career in francophone music after the group disbanded in 1979.
From 1988 to 2018, Corcoran hosted the CBC Radio program À Propos , a program presenting the francophone popular music scene of Quebec, Canada and the world to the English network's audience. [6] After producer Frank Opolko suggested that Corcoran provide English translations of some of Quebec's most popular songs, the show started to find a large English audience. [6] After announcing his retirement from broadcasting, he hosted the final episode of À Propos on 2 September 2018; [7] the following week, a new program C'est formidable! , hosted by Florence Khoriaty, made its debut. It is produced and recorded by Frank Opolko.
He wrote music for Cirque du Soleil's productions KÀ , Quidam and Wintuk . "Let Me Fall", a song Corcoran co-wrote with Benoît Jutras for Quidam, was recorded by Josh Groban for his self-titled album. Corcoran also portrayed the part of David in performances of the opera Nelligan in 1990. [8]
Bishop's University granted Corcoran an honorary Doctor of Civil Law on 29 October 2004. [5]
With Bertrand Gosselin (Jim & Bertrand)
In Solo
Lennoxville is an arrondissement, or borough, of the city of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Lennoxville is located at the confluence of the St. Francis and Massawippi Rivers approximately five kilometres south of downtown Sherbrooke.
As a cosmopolitan city, Quebec is a home to varied genres of music, ranging from folk to hip hop. Music has played an important role in Quebecer culture. In the 1920s and '30s, singer/songwriter Madam Bolduc performed comedic songs in a folk style with Irish influences. Quebec's most popular artists of the last century include Félix Leclerc (1950s), Gilles Vigneault (1960s–present), Kate and Anna McGarrigle (1970s–present) and Céline Dion (1980s–present).
Gilles Vigneault is a Canadian poet, publisher, singer-songwriter, and Quebec nationalist and sovereigntist. Two of his songs are considered by many to be Quebec's unofficial anthems: "Mon pays" and "Gens du pays", and his line Mon pays ce n'est pas un pays, c'est l'hiver became a proverb in Quebec. Vigneault is a Grand Officer of the National Order of Quebec, Knight of the Legion of Honour, and Officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.
Jean Leclerc is a Québécois singer-songwriter and author from Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada. He is popularly known as Jean Leloup, a stage name he kept using until 2006, when he temporarily changed his name to Jean Leclerc, only to resurrect his wolf character in August 2008. He is known for his colourful personality and unique musical style in the francophone rock community.
Beau Dommage was a rock band from Montreal, Quebec, who achieved success in Quebec and France in the 1970s. The group's style included rich vocal harmonies and elements borrowed from folk and country music.
Ici Radio-Canada Télé is a Canadian French-language free-to-air television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. It is the French-language counterpart of CBC Television, the broadcaster's English-language television network.
Marie Denise Pelletier is a francophone Canadian singer. She served as President of Artisti, a copyright collective for music artists operated by Quebec's l'Union des artistes (UDA).
À Propos was a Canadian radio program, which aired from 1988 to 2018. Airing Sunday afternoons on CBC Radio 2, and repeated Saturday nights on CBC Radio One, the program presented songs and other music performed in French of Canadian and international origins for English-speaking audiences. To aid in listener comprehension of the music, Corcoran would often recite an English translation of a song's lyrics.
Vincent Vallières is a Canadian singer from Sherbrooke.
Damien Robitaille is a Canadian musician from the village of Lafontaine, Ontario in the Georgian Bay area, two hours north-west of Toronto. He is a Franco-Ontarian musician whose career is mainly based in Quebec, where he has lived since 2003.
Félix Dyotte is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Quebec, who won the SOCAN Songwriting Prize in 2020 as the writer of Evelyne Brochu's single "Maintenant ou jamais". He was nominated for the same award two prior times, for his songs "Avalanches" in 2016 and "Je cours" in 2018.
Gary Klang, is a Haitian-Canadian poet and novelist. Since 2007, he is the president of the prestigious "Conseil des Écrivains francophones d'Amérique". Klang's work is very rich. It includes novels, poetry, short stories and essays. On July 14, 2000, "l'Union Française à Montréal" chose Gary as the promoter of the French national holiday marking the storming of the Bastille. The same day, the same French Union participated in the launch of his collection of verses "La terre est vide comme une étoile". Gary Klang is also a member of the "Association des Ecrivains Québécois (UNEQ)", a member of the "Association des Ecrivains de langue française" and of the PEN Club of Montreal. He was nominated for the Haitian grand Literary Prize of 2004, together with Edwidge Danticat, René Depestre, Frankétienne, Dany Laferrière, Josaphat-Robert Large and Leslie Manigat.
Gilles Valiquette is a Canadian rock musician, stage actor and record producer.
Carole Facal is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Quebec who writes and performs in both English and French under the stage name Caracol.
Christine Charbonneau was a French Canadian singer and songwriter.
Luc De Larochellière is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Quebec.
Florence Khoriaty, known as Florence K, is a Canadian pop singer and songwriter from Quebec, who performs material in English, French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese. She is most noted for garnering a Juno Award nomination for Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2014.
C'est formidable! is a Canadian radio show, which airs Sundays on CBC Music and Saturdays on CBC Radio One. Hosted by Florence Khoriaty, the program airs a selection of French language music from Quebec, France and other francophone countries for the English Canadian audience. The show is produced by Frank Opolko.
Dany Placard is the stage name of Dany Gauthier, a Canadian singer-songwriter from Laterrière, Quebec.
Pierre Légaré was a Canadian humorist, writer, and psychologist.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
