Yves Lambert

La Bottine souriante

Yves Lambert was born and raised in Joliette, in Quebec’s Lanaudière region. He plays the accordion, harmonica and jaw harp, and has been a professional musician and singer since he was 20 years old.

In 1976, Lambert was one of the founding members (with André Marchand, Mario Forest, Gilles Cantin and Pierre Laporte) of La Bottine souriante. The prominent Quebec folk group helped popularize traditional Québécois folk music both at home and internationally. Their debut album, Y’a ben du changement (1979), was released when Quebec nationalism was arguably at its peak. The album was certified gold in Canada for sales of more than 50,000 copies. In 1980, the band strongly supported the “Yes” side in the Quebec Referendum.

From 1976 to 2003, Lambert recorded 14 studio albums with La Bottine souriante; four were certified platinum in Canada and another three were certified gold. The group also won two Juno Awards (from seven nominations) for Best Roots and Traditional Album (1990, 2002) and eight Prix Félix, including four for Folk Album of the Year (1992, 1995, 1997, 1999).

La Bottine souriante also performed at the Festival d'été international de Québec, one of the largest annual festivals in the country. Lambert also performed a series of annual Christmas concerts with La Bottine souriante at the venerable Montreal concert venue Le Spectrum in the early 1990s.

Solo Career

A prolific musician and performer, Yves Lambert has also recorded with the Bébert Orchestra and with his Yves Lambert Trio. His work with Bébert Orchestra is notable for a musician so strongly associated with Québécois folk music. It featured a more obvious international influence, including a marked Middle Eastern influence, leading to a more fusion-based sound.

Lambert toured for several years with the Quebec folk group Les Charbonniers de l’enfer. He also performed on the 1994 comeback album by Quebec rock pioneers Beau Dommage. He has collaborated with artists such as Chloé Sainte-Marie, Michel Faubert, Hassan El Hadi, Groovy Aardvark, Socalled, and The Chieftains.

Because of his extensive knowledge of traditional Québécois music and his own contributions to Quebec folk music styles, Yves Lambert is a regular performer at Fête nationale du Québec (formerly known as Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day) festivities across the province.

In his role as the lead vocalist for La Bottine souriante, Yves Lambert is credited with popularizing traditional Québécois folk music while also adapting and reinventing it as tastes changed and evolved. He is also generally credited with placing Québécois folk music as a mainstay in the “world music” category.

Other Activities

Lambert has advocated for the preservation of Quebec’s historic churches; namely, that they might serve a public social or cultural function given declining attendance in the province’s Catholic churches. He has specifically advocated for churches to be used as performance venues.

Awards and Recognition

Yves Lambert has won many awards and distinctions throughout his career. In addition to his work with La Bottine souriante, he has been nominated for a dozen Félix Awards and won several, including the 2005 award for Best Traditional Album. In 2006, he was nominated for a Juno Award. He has twice won the Opus Award, issued by the Conseil québécois de la musique. He has also been recognized for his considerable musical achievements in Joliette and the Lanaudière. In 2010, Lambert was named Traditional Singer of the Year at the Canadian Folk Music Awards. In 2021, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada.