Oscar Thiffault

Born April 6, 1912 (Montréal); Died February 6, 1998 (Trois-Rivières) at the age of 85. Folk musician from Quebec, Canada. Lived most of his life in Ste-Étienne-des-Grès. Working on construction sites, Thiffault composed new versions of Quebecois folk songs and also wrote many songs setting new lyrics to traditional melodies. He first found success in 1954 with Le Rapide-Blanc, a humorous song written in 1935 while working on the Rapide-Blanc Generating Station. The song was a country and western adaptation of the traditional song "Le moine tremblant et la dame". Thiffault wrote songs honouring local sports figures, including hockey players Maurice Richard, ("Le Rocket Richard"), and Guy Lafleur ("La Tourne à Ti-Guy Lafleur"). Other songs that he wrote were "Je parle à la française" and "En écoutant Y mouillera pu pantoute". In 1988, a documentary film about Tiffault's life, created by Serge Giguère, was released. Grand Prix de L'Académie Du Country (1988).