Call in the conspiracy theorists.
The CBC has garnered much attention for broadcasting a two-minute montage in honour of the Montreal Canadiens over a song called Le But last week on Hockey Night in Canada. The controversy centred around the fact the group behind the song, Loco Locass, is made up of staunchly separatist rappers and that the song includes nationalist lyrics.
On Monday, however, there were 13 seconds of the song missing on the broadcaster’s website. Was it a coincidence that the excised part was exactly one verse, which includes the words of former Quebec premier René Lévesque after losing the 1980 referendum – “until next time” – in relation to the feelings of Habs fans when they fall short of the Stanley Cup?
In an email, CBC spokesman Jeff Keay said it was only a “technical glitch” and not a political one. “They’ve been trying to fix it,” he said of the HNIC crew.
Mr. Keay added that commentator Don Cherry said on Sunday night’s show that he loved the song. In fact, Mr. Cherry went further, saying he agreed with the band’s message, wishing Loco Locass “the best of luck in all your endeavours.”
One of the three members of Loco Locass, Mathieu Farhoud-Dionne, responded that it seems both Mr. Cherry and he agree that “Canada would be better off without the Quebec millstone around its neck.”
Loco Locass gained much of its fame with a 2004 song that attacked Jean Charest’s government, entitled Libérez-nous des Libéraux (Liberate us from the Liberals). In Le But, the focus is on one of the greatest franchises in the National Hockey League, which has just celebrated its centennial and reached the semi-finals for the first time since going all the way in 1993.
The song is a celebration of Habs fans (“Anglo, Franco, whatever the colour of your skin”), as well as a nationalist analogy between the victories and defeats of the Montreal Canadiens and the ups and downs of Quebec’s history. “It’s more than a sport/It’s a metaphor for our fate,” the song says.
During this year’s NHL playoffs, Jason Shutt (son of one of the great Habs mentionned in Le But, Steve Shutt) flagged the song to the HNIC team, which responded by putting together the images of great players and their unwavering fans.
Montreal lost Game 1 of the semi-finals against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday, with Game 2 on Tuesday.
The missing lyrics
Here is the part of the song in the original montage that was not on the CBC website, with an accompanying translation:
Nos chevaliers sont en cavale pour ramener le graal à Montréal
Le tournoi est un chemin de croix parsemé d'émoi
Mais la coupe on y croit,
Comme autrefois, on a la foi
Pis si c’est pas c’t’année
Ben comme dirait René “ à la prochaine fois
Our knights are off to bring back the Holy Grail to Montreal
The tournament is like the stages of the cross, full of emotion
But we believe in the cup
As in the old days, we have the faith
And if it’s not this year
Well, as René said, “until next time.”
Update The full video was restored to the CBC website by Tuesday morning.
