Bob Hallett on American and Canadian Audiences...

Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies are playing the last concerts of their second leg of their American tour this year through some of the southern states.

So what are some of the differences between American and Canadian audiences? As I have only been to Canada and not America it would be unfair of me to even attempt to answer this question.

This question was pondered by Bob Hallett six years ago as Great Big Sea toured America. It was the topic of his first post on the Bob’s Journey in 2010 that explains the differences from his point of view about Canadian and American audiences.

The post is copied here for Bob to speak in his own words. As always no copyright infringement intended.

On RE-FIGHTING THE WAR OF 1812

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

After guff about kitchen parties, one of the most common questions interviewers pose to us is about Canada vs. the USA. Somewhat surprisingly it is a question we only get asked in Canada – are audiences in the USA different?

The fact that we only get asked this question in Canada tells you almost everything you need to know about the difference. At the risk of making a sweeping generalization, English Canadians tend to have a fierce inferiority complex when it comes to the US. In Toronto and other centers close to the border, it is a conversation that never ends.

All this has been in my mind lately, during a tour that has crossed and re-crossed the border countless times over the past year. We used to make a huge distinction about playing in the USA and Canada, but as time goes by, and audiences south of the border have grown, it made less and less sense to draw a line between US and Canadian legs of a tour.

To answer the uber question, however, there are differences, sometimes big ones. They are just not the ones the interviewers are expecting. Some differences are obvious, some not so much, some so subtle you really have to think hard. For example, in the paragraph above I used the phrase ‘south of the border’ to describe America; this is a common Canadian expression, understood by everyone. There is no real equivalent in the American lexicon. In the unlikely event that someone needs to discuss Canada, they just say ‘Canada’. Our country registers so little on American culture that it has never even been necessary to invent some linguistic nickname. I titled this piece ‘Re-fighting the War of 1812’. In America that was a minor conflict, pretty much forgotten by the history books. To Canadians it was a defining moment, the subject of libraries and monuments nationwide.

This is where the real differences lie – while both countries share similar language, economic systems and racial make-up, cultural history makes people think along very different lines. Canadian history is all about the easy transformation from colony to country, a state built on compromise. This has lead to a very relaxed attitude about social practices and cultural expressions. There is just no equivalent to the American culture wars. To offer an example, Newfoundland is a religious and conservative place by Canadian standards, at least on the face of things. At the same time it is socially liberal in a way that would be unthinkable in most of modern America. A few years ago a law was passed making gay marriage legal in Newfoundland. The attitude of the government was that ‘really, who cares anyway’. All parties supported the motion, and it caused barely a ripple in the public eye. In America this is a serious public issue, with political lives and millions of dollars devoted to fighting this battle. In Newfoundland it was a massive collective yawn.

On the other hand Newfoundlanders, and many Canadians look on America’s energy and pride with stark envy. Canadians are cautious and self-effacing, qualities useful in your banker, not so much in the arts and business worlds. A messianic figure like Obama would never arise in Canada – not because of racism, but because characters that dynamic just do not enter politics in English Canada.

A few recent events put this all in my mind. Walking around Windsor, Ontario, gives you a tangible physical divide to compare to the mental one. You can taste and touch America from Windsor, as Detroit looms right across the water. And the cities could not be more different. Windsor is a pretty typical small Canadian city, very multi-cultural, clean and prosperous, with a bustling downtown and a fairly diverse economy. Detroit feels a little like a war zone these days, buffeted by economic forces beyond its control, a city turning into something very different altogether. It can be a scary place, but also one where you feel something fascinating and amazing might emerge. It is a city that spawned both Motown and Eminem. I cannot see such figures coming from our side of the river. Windsor feels a hell of a lot safer; and believe me, this is a good thing. But it also, like Canada in general, it may lack the edge from which great ideas spring forth.

A better illustration of this whole difference thing might be found in our shows themselves. When introducing ‘Hemethead’, Alan sometimes does a funny bit about the Vancouver Olympics, when the Canadian hockey teams defeated their American counterparts for the gold medals. The subtext of this joke works entirely differently depending on what side of the border we are on. In Canada, this was a major national triumph, the Superbowl and World Cup all rolled into one, the sports story of the decade. In America, where hockey is a minor sport with zero cultural resonance, no one even noticed. The joke is secondary in Canada, where doing the bit reminds our audience of that great outpouring of pride and patriotism, and everyone collectively basks in the glow for a few minutes. In America, people laugh more at the gag itself, while seemingly a little bemused that we are attaching so much weight to an event that barely made it onto their radar.

Introducing ‘Yankee Sailor’ every night has also revealed a few truths. Myself and Alan and Joel and Paul talked and thought a lot about this song while we were writing it. We were trying to tell a simple story, one man’s heartbreak and redemption, and through that make a statement about the bittersweet history of Newfoundland. It can feel like a very different song, depending on where we play it. Our American audiences feel bad for the guy, but also appreciate the song on another level – they also see the celebration of America that is the songs subtext. They see the girl’s embrace of the American dream as logical and admirable, even if a little painful for those left behind. Canadians seem to take the opposite tack. They feel really bad for the guy, and are irritated at the girl who left him to go to America. While it was not our intention, the song actually feeds on Canadians fear of the other, their insecurity about living next to (and largely ignored by) the most powerful country in the world. (It is also quite possible that I am imaging all this; you have a lot of time to think when you are just standing there with a low whistle, waiting for a chorus).

Now that I think about it, this whole essay really makes no sense in American terms. To be Canadian is to worry about this sort of thing – we are a nation of navel gazers and second guessers. Americans just forge ahead, confident in theirs and their country’s future. And as someone who works in both countries, I am fine with that. It’s what makes it fun.