Paul McCartney to Headline Quebec City's 400th Birthday Party

Paul McCartney will help Quebec City celebrate its 400th anniversary by performing in the French-Canadian province on July 20th. The show is expected to be Macca's only North American concert this year, and his first performance in Canada since 2005. "Music is a good way to celebrate an anniversary like this. It's a universal language which unites everyone," McCartney said in a video message. "Our two countries have historic links which remain important today. We're eager to celebrate this 400th anniversary with Quebec." The former Beatle will perform at the city's Plains of Abraham. Now if only the city can bring the Nordiques back into the NHL, it'd be a real party.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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