Another Successful Show!

Back from yet another successful gig. The Pride performed at the Carling Lake Golf Club on the 16th of June to rave reviews. I must admit that we were as wowed by the audience as they were by the band. At this type of show people are looking forward to having a good time so getting them up and dancing is not usually too difficult, but even so we were thrilled with the level of enthusiasm displayed by everyone present. From the first song - and this was while supper was being served, and ignored - the dance floor was crowded with a really wild bunch. Joining The Pride for the evening was the incomparable Sam Berniker on saxophone. Not only does Sam play extremely well, but he also participates in the show with gusto, heading to the front of the stage to better involve the audience. It was great working with Sam and we hope to do so again in the near future. Carling Lake, the resort, is a very beautiful place to be and for those looking to golf and enjoy the wonderful facilities, I highly recommend it as a weekend getaway destination. My thanks to everyone who worked with The Pride, both staff and technical crew. You helped make it an unforgettable evening. I have asked Cindy Raider from Nat Raider Productions if she can have the organizer send us some photos so hopefully we'll have some to post shortly.

Marc C.

Anniversary Report

The Pride, as mentioned in the previous post, held a party last Saturday to celebrate a full year performing at the Bar Mirabel. I must say the turnout was excellent as was the participation of the band members who were there. The small stage was crowded with up to four of us at a time, but the audience really got into the music as well as the three or four part harmonies we put in virtually every song. As small-town newspapers are fond of writing - a good time was had by all. This, of course, includes myself and the other members of The Pride. Who knows? Perhaps we'll be celebrating a second year at the Mirabel next summer. So what's next for the band? Well, Stephane and Sofy will be at the bar this Saturday, while Brian, Samara, Kevin and I will be at the Carling Lake Golf Club for a big private party. We're looking forward to this show as we've been told the guests really love to party! We'll see to it that they have the best time they've ever had at this annual event. I'll write again with news about the show next week and with luck I'll have some pictures to post.

Marc C.

Dual Purpose Post

This post has two purposes. The first is to tell you a bit about the Hawaiian Night event held at the Beaconsfield Golf Club a couple of weeks ago and the second is to invite you to a party!

The much-anticipated (by The Pride, at least) Hawaiian Night gig was a blast and this despite the fact it had to be held indoors due to threat of rain and the very cool evening temperatures. The guests (and the band), many of whom were decked out in island-style finery, were treated to a sumptuous buffet which was divided into two parts or sections. The hot food was indoors and, not surprisingly, the cold half of the buffet was outside under a large awning. The food was truly excellent as was its presentation.

The Pride took the stage at 9:30 PM as scheduled (this is worth mentioning as most such events tend to run late) and we immediately launched into some up tempo dancing music - forget the warm up period. The crowd was right there with us. A short first set and we broke to allow the young ladies of the Hawaiian-style dance troupe to perform. They put on an excellent show, in full Hawaiian regalia, to the delight of the audience and finished their portion of the event by inviting audience members to join them and learn a few steps.

By now the evening was in full swing and The Pride took over once more. I must say the DJ, who was supposed to play between our sets, didn't get much of a workout because we didn't take another break that evening and played a 2 hour non-stop marathon set. I felt that, after a day of golfing and a huge, rich meal, if we took a break the evening would end then and there. So we performed... and performed... eventually ending with a couple of romantic ballads that allowed the audience to come down from the frenetic pace we had set. All in all, an excellent evening and another successful event for The Pride. I've included a few pictures of the young ladies in the dance troupe and a couple of the audience as well. Unfortunately, we had no-one there to take pictures of the band, so new photos of us will have to wait.

The second reason for this post is to invite you to a party on Saturday, July the 9th! Hard to believe, but The Pride has been the house band at the Mirabel bar for a year and to celebrate this milestone the band is hosting its own party there - partly to thank the staff and customers but also because we like a good party as much as anyone. The Mirabel, in case you don't already know, is located at 2417 Jolicoeur at the corner of Monk in Ville Emard. There is NO cover charge and there will be prizes given away in a drawing during the evening. Also, the bar is offering special prices on certain shooters. Best of all, several members of The Pride will be performing that night, rather than the usual duo! Everyone over 18 is welcome and the fun starts at 10:30 PM on Saturday, July 9th.

Marc C.

Scroll down for the photos