Fairmont Hotel Vancouver Remembers Its Swinging Past
Chris · August 09, 2007
Legendary Vancouver band leader and musician Dal Richards was honoured by The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver last year with a sidewalk art tile (featured above). I walk by this tile quite often and I never get tired of the story of Dal Richards.
Dal has a long and proud history with the Hotel Vancouver. For over 25 years, Dal and his orchestra made the city swing on the dance floor of the popular ‘Panorama Roof’. The former dance club on the top floor of the hotel is still operating as an exclusive room for events.
Legend has it that in the days of post Canadian Prohibition, the hotel was in a jam with their liquor license. The hotel was allegedly one of a few dance halls in Vancouver at that time that served booze, and the band would play a special song for guests and patrons when it was time to hide their drinks from the police. Dal and his orchestra would get tipped off by the front desk when police were on their way up to the Panorama Roof on a raid. Tunnels used for running rum during prohibition are still in existence under the hotel, and they supposedly lead all the way to the former docks in the historical Gastown neighbourhood.
Dal still plays gigs around the city for VIP weddings and events, and he recently sang a few oldies at the recent farewell party for G.M. and RVP Philip Barnes, now Regional VP for Fairmont Middle East.
The art tile of Dal, on the corner of Burrard & Georgia, is appropriately titled ‘The Swing of Things’. The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver has sponsored this tile; one of many placed in sidewalks around the city depicting famous people, places and events.
Here’s an oldie by Dal and the Band:
Linkage
Image thanks to flickr [Breeonnne]
The King of Swing [Dal Richards]
