In this interview, Michel Rivard, creator of “La Complainte du phoque en Alaska,” which will receive the SOCAN Cultural Impact Award at the SOCAN Montréal Awards on Oct. 2, 2018, reveals what inspired him to write this iconic song, first recorded by the 2017 Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees Beau Dommage. The song – which has made a profound and lasting impact, both at home and around the world – was actually one of the very first ones written by Rivard in 1974. For more than 40 years, it has found its way into the hearts of thousands of Québecers, and people all over the Francophone world.
Photo by Marie-Michèle Bouchard