Leo Ferre

One of French pop's most poetic songwriters, Georges Brassens was also a highly acclaimed and much-beloved performer in his own right. Not only a brilliant manipulator of language and a feted poet in his own right, Brassens was also renowned for his subversive streak, satirizing religion, class, social conformity, and moral hypocrisy with a wicked glee. Yet beneath that surface was a compassionate concern for his fellow man, particularly the disadvantaged and desperate. His personal politics were forged during the Nazi occupation, and while his views on freedom bordered on anarchism, his songs expressed those convictions more subtly than those of his contemporary, Léo Ferré. Though he was a skilled songwriter, Brassens had little formal musical training, and he generally kept things uncomplicated – simple melodies and spare accompaniment from a bass and second guitar. Along with Jacques Brel, he became one of the most unique voices on the French cabaret circuit, and exerted a tremendous influence on many other singers and songwriters of the postwar era. His poetry and lyrics are still studied as part of France's standard educational curriculum.

"Une Vie" / "Ein Leben". On aurait difficilement pu choisir un titre plus approprié pour cette vaste compilation de ses plus belles et plus importantes chansons, car cela fait déjà 38 ans que la voix de Patricia Kaas chante la vie en France, avec ses soucis et ses joies, ses hauts et ses bas. En 28 chansons soigneusement sélectionnées, Patricia nous invite à tourner à nouveau les pages d'une histoire d'amour peu conventionnelle entre elle et ses auditeurs.

2008 release from the amazing Raphael. His voice blended with the music is a wonderful combination that will make anyone appreciate him. You don't need to speak French to tune into the emotion on this album. Raphael is a true artist.

When Grammy-winning artist Petula Clark met poet-songwriter-singer Rod McKuen in France during the 1960s, they became fast friends. Petula, of course, was one of the biggest music stars in the world and in the midst of a long string of hits in both English and French. For his part, McKuen was a huge fan of Petula, naming her his favorite female vocalist; and by the mid-1970s, they had performed together on several television programs. Inspired by Petula’s recorded versions of his dramatic environmental anthem "The Wind of Change" and the tender ballad "I Think of You," McKuen resolved to put together an entire album of his compositions for Petula just like he had done with Frank Sinatra on his 1969 release A Man Alone.

Maledetti francesi, che con le loro canzoni ci hanno fatto sentire innamorati, cinici, rivoluzionari, esistenzialisti, parigini, maudit… La chanson française ha intrecciato per almeno un secolo, dal 1880 al 1980, musica, poesia, teatro, jazz, politica, cinema, facendo sognare soprattutto noi italiani, grazie all'irripetibile capacità dei suoi interpreti, gli chansonnier, di trasfondere una nell'altra la vita e la musica. "Maledetti francesi" è un viaggio musicale che presenta in tutta la sua dirompente modernità la chanson dai precursori realisti (Aristide Bruant e Yvette Guilbert) alle rockstar Renaud e Johnny Hallyday, passando per autentici miti come Léo Ferré, Boris Vian, Georges Brassens, Jacques Brel, Serge Gainbsourg, Yves Montand, Herbert Pagani - e per le voci senza tempo di Barbara, Juliette Gréco ed Édith Piaf..

One of French pop's most poetic songwriters, Georges Brassens was also a highly acclaimed and much-beloved performer in his own right. Not only a brilliant manipulator of language and a feted poet in his own right, Brassens was also renowned for his subversive streak, satirizing religion, class, social conformity, and moral hypocrisy with a wicked glee. Yet beneath that surface was a compassionate concern for his fellow man, particularly the disadvantaged and desperate. His personal politics were forged during the Nazi occupation, and while his views on freedom bordered on anarchism, his songs expressed those convictions more subtly than those of his contemporary, Léo Ferré. Though he was a skilled songwriter, Brassens had little formal musical training, and he generally kept things uncomplicated – simple melodies and spare accompaniment from a bass and second guitar. Along with Jacques Brel, he became one of the most unique voices on the French cabaret circuit, and exerted a tremendous influence on many other singers and songwriters of the postwar era. His poetry and lyrics are still studied as part of France's standard educational curriculum.

When Grammy-winning artist Petula Clark met poet-songwriter-singer Rod McKuen in France during the 1960s, they became fast friends. Petula, of course, was one of the biggest music stars in the world and in the midst of a long string of hits in both English and French. For his part, McKuen was a huge fan of Petula, naming her his favorite female vocalist; and by the mid-1970s, they had performed together on several television programs. Inspired by Petula’s recorded versions of his dramatic environmental anthem "The Wind of Change" and the tender ballad "I Think of You," McKuen resolved to put together an entire album of his compositions for Petula just like he had done with Frank Sinatra on his 1969 release A Man Alone.