Carol of the Belles

After the great meal at Pastorcito, I was feeling unsettled. Perhaps I indulged too much in the spicy sauces or all that meat wasn't great for someone who ate a mostly plant-based diet. Likely it was the same old digestive problem. But I came to Toronto specifically to see The O'Pears Christmas show. Their live-stream during the pandemic reminded me how wonderful they were live. So throwing caution to the wind, I gingerly made my way to 918 Bathurst for the concert.

The space was filled with about 130 people: the "biggest show ever" (exclaimed Jill Harris) for a "band that plays once a year" (quipped Lydia Persaud). That's what frustrating about this talented trio for me. Despite being together for 15 years, they've only put out 2 albums. And they still have un-released material.

In fact, they opened the show with one such song. Their spine-tingling harmonies on Thunder has always thrilled me. Tonight it made me forget about my rumbling stomach. The O'Pears had a full band (Christine Bougie on lap steel, Ben Whiteley on bass, Steve Lavery on keys) to accompany them over 2 sets of comforting lullabies (One Day, Morning Song), warm tunes for the cold season (Long Winter, Lose The Sun, Stay Warm), and lovely covers (The Roches' Hammond Song, The Emotions' What Do The Lonely Do At Christmas).

For their biggest show they've invited some friends to come sing. Harris explained that they loved doing backup vocals. Over the course of the evening, Joanna Mohammad (Aphrose) gave us the gut-wrenching Weapons, James Baley's Call On You was hymnal, and Alex Samaras and Mara Nasrallah's semi-improvised Braid 2 (Meredith Monk) segueing into Now I Walk Beauty was a celebration of pure singing. When all 7 singers came together on the penultimate song Ring The Bells, the audience leapt up in a standing ovation.

I didn't know if the older couple behind me was attending their first O'Pears Christmas show. But they ran out of superlatives by the end. Since a good number of people knew the trio from "all stages of their life", Jill Harris mused that it felt like a small town. Lydia Persaud teased her that "everyone knows of that small town Toronto". Well, a feel-good Hallmark Christmas movie, usually set in a small town, could not outdo the warm fellowship that filled this former Buddhist temple tonight.