Plume Latraverse launched his career as a rock musician during the 1960s, then transformed himself into one of Canada's preeminent solo artists during the countercultural era of the 1970s. He was born as "Michel Latraverse" on May 11, 1946, in Montreal, Quebec. Latraverse's first band, the short-lived La Sainte Trinité, was formed with with Pierrot le fou during the late 1960s, and he began performing as a duo with fellow musician Steve Faulkner in 1972. Meanwhile, he began releasing a slow trickle of solo albums, too, making his debut with Triniterre in 1971 and releasing a follow-up record, Plume Pou Digne, in 1974. When his project with Faulkner came to a close in 1975, he focused exclusively on his solo work, releasing two acclaimed albums — Le Vieux Show Son Sale and Pommes De Route — that year alone. A multi-instrumentalist whose songs touched upon folk, rock, and blues music, he quickly became a leader of Quebec's counterculture, a distinction that would come to define his artistic career. Following 1976's À Deux Faces and 1978's All Dressed, he won the prestigious Prix International De La Jeune Chanson in 1980. Latraverse released eight albums during the 1980s and remained active during the 1990s, although his musical output slowed as he began to focus on painting and writing. As an author, he released three books during the 1990s, including 1993's Pas d'admission sans histoire. Meanwhile, albums like 2003's Chants d'Épuration and 2016's RECHUT! (Odes de ma tanière) found Latraverse continuing to break new ground during his middle age.
