The Happy Pals

The Happy Pals
The Happy Pals in performance
The Happy Pals in performance
Background information
OriginToronto, Ontario, Canada
GenresSwing, blues, ragtime, jazz
Years active1968 (1968) – present
MembersPatrick Tevlin
Laurent Humeau
Mike Evin
Roberta Tevlin
Ben Lee
Lucas Gadke
Chuck Clarke
Websitewww.happypals.ca

The Happy Pals New Orleans Party Orchestra are a New Orleans traditional dance hall jazz band which was formed in 1968 by Clifford "Kid" Bastien, originally named Kid Bastien's Camelia Jazz band.

The Happy Pals are a classic New Orleans style ensemble which includes trumpet, trombone, clarinet, banjo, piano, double bass, and drums. They are inspired by the early jazz and blues music of the 1920s and 1930s. The Happy Pals have been playing New Orleans dance hall jazz in Toronto for over four decades. They have also played throughout the United States and tour Europe annually.[citation needed]

History

Kid Bastien in the 1970s
Patrick Tevlin in Grossman’s Tavern (Toronto, July 2026)

Clifford "Kid" Bastien was born in London, England's East End in 1937. Bastien immigrated to Canada in 1962 after a brief stint in New Orleans. Bastien earned a reputation as a "guru of New Orleans jazz in Toronto".[according to whom?] In 1968, Bastien founded the Kid Bastien's Camelia Jazz band, later to be renamed The Happy Pals. Bastien was now considered to be the foremost disciple of New Orleans trumpet legend Kid Thomas Valentine[according to whom?], whom Bastien had first witnessed playing at a neighborhood dance, at the Westwego Louisiana firehall. Bastien also gained a reputation[according to whom?] for outlasting the revolving door of bar owners at Grossmans Tavern, and having personalities such as Woody Allen appear with him onstage.[citation needed]

On February 8, 2003, Bastien died of a heart attack in his Toronto apartment. After Bastien's passing, tenor saxophone player Patrick Tevlin switched to the trumpet in order to take on the leadership of the group.

Repertoire

The singers and composers whose material they favor include Kid Thomas Valentine, King Oliver, Fats Domino, George Lewis, Johnny Cash, Glenn Miller, Hank Williams, Frank Sinatra, and Bob Dylan.

Musical style

Their music has been praised by music critics for its authenticity.

New Orleans jazz is alive and well and has taken root in, of all places, Toronto, Canada. The setting is live, the music is all New Orleans jazz swing, and the band seems to be having a heck of a party. Bourbon Street beckons for this kind of sound.

Discography

References

  1. ↑ "Clifford Bastin, aka Kid Bastien, 1937-2003". 13 February 2003.
  2. ↑ "Character Toronto: Patrick Tevlin's life-affirming jazz journey with The Happy Pals - CityNews Toronto". 29 June 2016.
  3. ↑ Archive, Canadian Jazz (28 May 2018). "Kid Bastien Musician Biography - Canadian Jazz Archive Online". www.canadianjazzarchive.org. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011.
  4. ↑ The Happy Pals
  5. ↑ Jazz, All About (22 March 2006). "The Happy Pals: New Orleans Party Orchestra". All About Jazz.