Ali Hassan's musical tribute to Brossard, Que.

Originally published on April 4, 2017

In a segment we call the q Block Party, we invite guests to pay musical tribute to the neighbourhoods they hold dear to their hearts. 

Today, comedian and q guest host Ali Hassan takes listeners on a guided musical tour through Brossard, Que., one of the most multicultural municipalities in Canada. Hassan's Brossard playlist is equally diverse, ranging from pop heartthrobs to metal staples. 

Take a listen to Hassan's song picks below.

Corey Hart, Sunglasses at Night

"With the retrospective lens of today, that song might seem very, very cheesy. But in Brossard, Que., when you're a kid, you don't live in Montreal and you're trying to attach yourself to something cool and Corey Hart just oozed cool." 

Claude Dubois, Le Blues du Businessman

"I was raised on a steady Anglophone diet, even in my music. But I think CRTC regulations at the time were that every station had to play a little bit of French every hour, so I got this little exposure to Harmonium and other bands. And then there was this guy, Claude Dubois. Even in my limited French, I was so impressed by this song."   

Iron Maiden, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

"Like so much of Canadian suburbia, I imagine, you were either into metal or you were into rap in the '80s, and I had a hard time picking but I fell in love with Iron Maiden. Bruce Dickenson's vocals, the guitars, the drums — they're just such a powerful band."

Anthrax and Public Enemy, Bring the Noise

"I couldn't pick a side, between metal and rap, and I felt flawed in some way. When this song came along, it justified everything that I had ever been feeling. It was my 'I told you so' to all of my friends, that these genres of music came together."

— Produced by Ben Edwards