It's '23 décembre' time again

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This mural depicts Beau Dommage, one of Québec's most popular 1970s bands. Their first eponymous album features '23 décembre', a staple of French Canadian Christmas music. All the members are still around. Alongside Rush, The Guess Who and The Tragically Hip, Beau Dommage are featured on Canadian stamps from 2013, which shows how popular they are.

'23 décembre' from 1974 written by band member Pierre Huet is sung from a young boy's perspective during the 1950s when French Canadians in Québec were still second-class citizens because they didn't speak English as a first language. Much in the same way people learn 'House of the Rising Sun' by the Animals on guitar, people learn this as a Christmas song.

Here's a famous live version of the original by Beau Dommage. Notice how young and old know the song off by heart.

An acadian traditional and cajun country version from Les Gars du Nord, a party group from the Maritime provinces.

A faithful country version by Denis Miron, a Canadian country music singer from Valleyfield, Québec.

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