The Brothers-in-Law was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
satirical musical group that was active from 1963 to 1970. They recorded six albums and generated occasional controversy because of their subject matter.
History
The members were songwriter Alec Somerville on banjo, Howard Duffy on guitar, Larry Reaume on guitar, and Ken Clarke on bass. Somerville, Duffy and Clarke were police officers, hence the name Brothers-in-Law. Reaume was the City of Windsor's district fire chief. In 1965, Clarke left the band and was replaced by school teacher Bob Lee. In 1966, Duffy left the band, but was not replaced. Everyone kept their day jobs, and only performed about a dozen concerts a year. Their repertoire consisted mainly of musical satire poking fun at the Canadian government, sex and censorship, the law, and consumer issues; their music was a mixture of original songs and adaptations of folk and stage tunes (particularly based on
Gilbert and Sullivan).
The band's most popular recording was the album ''Oh! Oh! Canada'', released in 1965, which sold between 100,000 and 275,000 copies (sources vary as to the exact number). The album's best known songs included "Rally Around the New Flag", which lampooned the extensive political battles over the then-new "Maple Leaf" national flag design, and "The Pill", which satirized the then-topical issue of the
birth control pill
The combined oral contraceptive pill (COCP), often referred to as the birth control pill or colloquially as "the pill", is a type of birth control that is designed to be taken orally by women. The pill contains two important hormones: progesti ...
. The latter song was somewhat controversial for its subject matter and the album liner notes contained a warning to radio stations not to play the song.
The band recorded five albums of songs and several singles in Canada. They also recorded an album for release in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
which included a new rendition of "The Pill" as well as "Canada, U.S.A.", a song about Canadian-American similarities and the long-standing debate over whether Canada should become the 51st state (this song was later covered by
The Travellers).
The group disbanded in 1970. Reaume died in 2009, age 85. Duffy died in 2010, age 79. Clarke died in 2013, age 86.
In 1982, a compilation album entitled ''Oh! Oh! Canada, Eh?'' was released. As an acknowledgment of changing morality, whereas the band's first album contained a warning about broadcasting "The Pill", the compilation amended the warning to say "be our guest."
The Evaporators
The Evaporators is a Canadian garage rock band formed in 1986 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Nardwuar, its founding member, is also known for interviewing musicians and celebrities. As of 2007, the band consists of vocalist/keyboardist Nardwuar ...
reference The Brothers-in-Law in their song "Gerda Musinger" (about the woman of the
same name) on the album
''Ripple Rock''.
Nardwuar the Human Serviette
John Ruskin (born July 5, 1968), better known as Nardwuar, or Nardwuar the Human Serviette, is a Canadian interviewer and musician from Vancouver, British Columbia.Doug Ward, "Trudeau rolled by Human Serviette", ''Vancouver Sun'', November 17, 1 ...
sings, "The Brothers-in-Law sang about her first / but let's further whet your thirst!"
In 2008, the Quebec-based label Unidisc reissued most of the group's albums over a three-volume CD series. ''Volume 1'' collected ''Oh! Oh! Canada'' and ''Strike Again''; ''Volume 2'' featured ''Expose '67'' and ''Onward the Establishment'', while ''Volume 3'' collected ''The Pill'' and the previously unissued recordings featured in the 1980s compilation ''Oh! Oh! Canada, Eh?'' The ''Canadian Encyclopedia'' entry for the group also lists a 1968 release entitled ''Total Lewdity'', but this is erroneous. Somerville recorded a solo album for Arc Records entitled ''Total Nudity'', but not as a member of The Brothers-in-Law.
Discography
Albums
* ''Oh! Oh! Canada'' (1965),
Arc Records
* ''The Pill Administered Orally By The Brothers-in-Law'' (1966), Arc Records
* ''The Brothers-in-Law Strike Again'' (1966), Arc Records
* ''Expose '67'' (1967), Arc Records
* ''Expose '67 Plus'' (1967), Arc Records
* ''Onward The Establishment'' (1969), Arc Records
Singles
*"Can You Say You Didn't Know" / "The Wreck Of The Carl D. Bradley" (1966)
*"The Pill" / "K-K-K-Klansmen" (1966)
*"Canada, USA" (1966)
*"Hockey Night In Canada" / "Come Up To Canada" (1967)
*The Christmas Mad-Rigal" / "Christmas Snow" (1967)
*Nashville, Tennessee" / "Buy Now, Pay Later" (1968)
Compilations
* ''Oh! Oh! Canada, Eh?'' (1982),
AHED
* ''The Brothers-In-Law, Vol. 1: Oh! Oh! Canada / Strike Again'' (2008, re-issued 2016),
Unidisc Music
Unidisc Music is a Canadian independent record label. The label is known for releasing rare music, that was made between the mid-1960s and late 1980s. Genres include rock, electronic, funk, soul, hip hop, jazz, reggae, Latin, disco and a cap ...
* ''Expose '67 / The Establishment, Vol. 2'' (2008, re-issued 2016), Unidisc Music
* ''The Pill / Oh! Oh! Canada, Eh?, Vol. 3'' (2008, re-issued 2016), Unidisc Music
References
External links
The Brothers-in-Lawentry in the
Canadian Music Encyclopedia
Brothers-in-Law song on YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brothers In Law, The
Musical groups established in 1963
Musical groups from Windsor, Ontario
Canadian comedy musical groups
1963 establishments in Ontario
Musical groups disestablished in the 1970s