The Wheel Club
One of the more interesting places I have found in my neighborhood is a little bar on Lachine called The Wheel Club.
It is in the basement of a building, and has the cigarette-stained decor of your local VFW, complete with acoustical tiled-drop ceiling, and fake wood paneling.
It is a "Newfy bar," that is to say, its major clientele are from Newfoundland. Newfoundland is one of the maritime provinces of Canada, and from what I hear it is beautiful and hardscrabble. Newfies are a lot like Kentuckians: somewhat inbred, alcoholic as a rule, fiercely proud of their island, and eager to get off of it. They say, for example, that Nova Scotians are "Newfies who learned how to swim." (That joke only makes sense if you look at the map.)
Anyways Mondays nights at the Wheel Club are called "Hillbilly Nights." It is a sort of open mic, with the following rules: you can only sing country-western or bluegrass / old timey, and you can only sing songs that were written on or before Dec. 31st, 1965. The owner of the bar, it is said, has a fierce temper and an encyclopedic knowledge of country music; violating these rules can get you banned.
When I went, the clientele (as well as performers) were a pleasant mix of sextegenarians and 20-something hipsters, not much in between. The pool tables were mostly taken up with Indian sharpers. The atmosphere was congenial, and around 11pm they brought out plates of free sandwiches (egg salad or baloney, your choice), and sweet corn. Beers were cheap, as well; and the only "imported" one they had was imported from Ontario.
I have thought about maybe trying to perform at Hillbilly some night, but I need to do a little research to find the right song.
It is in the basement of a building, and has the cigarette-stained decor of your local VFW, complete with acoustical tiled-drop ceiling, and fake wood paneling.
It is a "Newfy bar," that is to say, its major clientele are from Newfoundland. Newfoundland is one of the maritime provinces of Canada, and from what I hear it is beautiful and hardscrabble. Newfies are a lot like Kentuckians: somewhat inbred, alcoholic as a rule, fiercely proud of their island, and eager to get off of it. They say, for example, that Nova Scotians are "Newfies who learned how to swim." (That joke only makes sense if you look at the map.)
Anyways Mondays nights at the Wheel Club are called "Hillbilly Nights." It is a sort of open mic, with the following rules: you can only sing country-western or bluegrass / old timey, and you can only sing songs that were written on or before Dec. 31st, 1965. The owner of the bar, it is said, has a fierce temper and an encyclopedic knowledge of country music; violating these rules can get you banned.
When I went, the clientele (as well as performers) were a pleasant mix of sextegenarians and 20-something hipsters, not much in between. The pool tables were mostly taken up with Indian sharpers. The atmosphere was congenial, and around 11pm they brought out plates of free sandwiches (egg salad or baloney, your choice), and sweet corn. Beers were cheap, as well; and the only "imported" one they had was imported from Ontario.
I have thought about maybe trying to perform at Hillbilly some night, but I need to do a little research to find the right song.
posted by stoned chef at 5:10 PM
2 Comments:
Sounds like a good place to bust out some old time tear-in-your-beer country ballads.You should do it, man (easy for me to say, I know).
On a side note, a friend of a friend of mine who's going to Brown to get his PhD in Ethnomusicology is doing his thesis on country music in Nova Scotia and New Foundland. From what I gather, they have a long tradition of country music going back quite a ways in those parts (Hank Snow was from Nova Scotia).
May I suggest Borat's "Throw the Jew Down The Well". It is ALWAYS a crowd favorite.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9zRVxIlo2A
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