There’s a new exhibition on music at the Canadian Museum of History

For the longest time, Canadians suffered from self-esteem issues and didn’t seem to think it worth documenting our music history. That, of course, has changed over the years, starting in the 90s, and now we recognize that we’re a global powerhouse. But what about the years prior to that? Is that history destined to be forgotten? Not if the Canadian Museum of History has anything to do with it.

The Museum has produced the first-ever exhibition about popular music in this country. It’s called Retro – Popular Music in Canada from the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s, which is running in Gatineau, Quebec, from now until January 18. \

The exhibit explores the work of everyone from Joni Mitchel and Neil Young to Gilles Vigneault and Celine Dion. Rush, Rough Trade, The Band, Dream Warriors, kd lang, and many others are featured. Highlights include things like stage clothing, musical instruments, handwritten lyrics, song clips, videos, and photos–more than 160 objects in total. Retro’s goal is to show at how Canadian musicians experimented and created their own sound.

If you’re in the Ottawa/Gatineau area, you’ll want to have a look. Go here for tickets. And to prepare yourself, there’s a special Spotify playlist.