Bon voyage, Jane

Posted January 29th, 2025 by Anna

Born: April 26, 1941 in Montreal
Died: January 24, 2025 in Montreal

Laury Jane McGarrigle, Mountain City Girl

From a youth playing organ at the funerals of Polish aristocrats, to a stint in the Bay Area during the birth of the internet, to a carnival ride as a collaborator with her little sisters, Jane McGarrigle’s life as a writer, a businesswoman, and a musician, was big and full of adventures.

The first of three daughters born to Gabrielle Latremouille and her husband Frank McGarrigle, Jane was born in Montreal, but raised in the red-and-white house her father built in the Laurentian town of Saint-Sauveur-des-Monts.

Lovingly called “The Duchess” by her doting parents, she learned to play piano and sing harmonies in the family home. Scouted by local nuns, she began her career as the 14-year-old organist at l’Église de Saint-Sauveur-des-Monts, where her propensity for playing Great Balls of Fire on the church organ gave the first hints of both the extraordinary musical ability and the rock-and-roll attitude that would define her.

A few years after skirting expulsion from boarding school at Combermere for her overplaying of Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel,” she married David Dow in Montreal. Together they hit the road, racing their MGB in sports car rallies, setting up life in Fredericton, NB, and ultimately heading west, crossing the Rocky Mountains and moving to San Francisco in 1964.

With a knack for turning the everyday into an adventure, she reveled in the heyday of counter culture there, nurturing many lifelong friendships at happy hours, après-ski, beach excursions and be-ins and riding their motorcycle to the infamous Rolling Stones concert at Altamont. Settling down, she and Dave had a couple of children, while Janie continued writing music and playing piano gigs with local artists such as Dick Oxtot’s Golden Age Jazz Band.

She had an exceptional love for California and maintained her connection to it for the rest of her life. The couple moved about pretty California with their young family, eventually winding up in the Lake Tahoe area. In 1979, Janie felt the pull of Montreal and returned to her McGarrigle family. Back in Montreal, she was a regular on the Main, managing her now successful kid sisters, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, while joining them on tour and in studio.

In 2015 she and Anna wrote a book about their Laurentian upbringing, “Mountain City Girls,” which the Globe and Mail described as “a non-regretting, red-wine read full of anecdotes and antiquity, with the well-turned phrases of a generation who took care of language.”

A rare musician who deeply understood the complexities of the music business, Janie was a friend to many the singer, picker and player on the dusty road, and spent two decades managing artists, serving as a board member of the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) where she defended publishing rights for musical authors. Most recently, she played dobro and piano with her partner Peter and their band, The What Four, while fighting off the heartless beast that is ovarian cancer.

Jane is survived by her children, Anna Catherine Dow (Robert McMillan), Ian Vincent Dow (Kathleen Weldon); her grandchildren, Gabrielle McMillan, Islay McMillan, Anna Sophia “Fifi” Dow; her cherished sister, Anna McGarrigle; much-adored Carmichael, Wainwright, and Lanken nieces & nephews, and her sweetheart, Peter Weldon.

Heartfelt thanks to the extraordinary Gynecologic Oncology team at the JGH Segal Cancer Centre. A special thank you to Drs. Gottlieb, Salvador, and Lau, whose expertise, dedication, and compassionate care kept Jane alive and thriving. We will forever be grateful for their care.

4 Responses:

  1. David Young says:

    January 30th, 2025 at 6:42 am

    I glad to have known her and been friends.

  2. MICHAEL TOMASEK says:

    January 30th, 2025 at 12:00 pm

    Deepest condolences to the family.

  3. Janice Kennedy says:

    January 30th, 2025 at 5:19 pm

    What a lovingly beautiful reminiscence and tribute.
    Please accept my sympathies, Anna. Like you, I’ve lost two siblings in the past few years, and I know the pain.
    I hadn’t heard about Dane, though, and I was so sorry to read about his passing as well. As an Ottawa Citizen journalist (I met with you and Kate in Montreal some years ago for a profile), I had occasion to meet with Dane a couple of times in person and speak with him by phone. He was such a lovely man, and a real fount of delightful information.
    I’m so sorry for all your loss, Anna.
    Janice

  4. Eve Ericsson says:

    February 1st, 2025 at 6:44 pm

    Our thoughts and prayers are with you Anna, and the rest of your family, at this sad time. Reading Mountain City Girls, Jane came across as an intelligent and independent woman with a great sense of humour who was always there to offer advice and support when needed. The sort of ‘big sister’ everyone would cherish. Her character shines through in your lovely message. You must be so proud of her and what she achieved. Thanks for letting all of us share some of those memories.
    Best wishes, Eve

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