Les Bel Canto

Quebec pop group formed in Quebec City (Canada) in 1962 and split up in 1971. It was founded by three guitarists: Claude Falardeau, Aurèle and Guy Bolduc. They added drummer Marcel Lebel and bassist René Letarte to their trio. In their early days, the group played in dance halls, getting people up and dancing to instrumental pieces. In 1964, Marcel and Guy left the group, replaced by André Fortin and Pierre Paquet, and the group became a vocal group. After their first single, " Tu vas danser / Je ne pense qu'à ça ", they start playing in Montreal cabarets. In early 1965, their eponymous debut album brought them success with the songs " Découragé " and a cover of singer Jean-Pierre Ferland's " Feuilles de gui ". From 1966 to 1969, the group scored several hits on the Quebec charts, including " Seul " (1966), " Quand reviendras-tu? (1967), " Coui coui " (1968) and " Une Croix sur mon nom " (1969). In 1968, they became a quartet after the departure of Claude Falardeau. The following year, Les Bel Canto won the Méritas for best group at the Festival du disque. In 1970, they flew to Europe to promote their 45 rpm " Man man man ". That same year, they performed at the Canadian Pavilion at Expo 70 in Osaka, Japan. The group changes its name to Kanto for the last two years of its career.