Music Appreciation

aint_no_life_nowhere

(21,925 posts) Tue Apr 10, 2012, 04:57 PM Apr 2012

Favorite foreign language pop song

There's a world of music and many decades from which to choose. Although in the summer of '68 I was a budding musician and a fanatic of the music of Jimi Hendrix and didn't appreciate pop music very much there's an amazing song I heard on a trip to Europe that has stayed with me for over 40 years. It was performed by French singing superstar Nicoletta. To me it's one of the most beautiful songs ever written about lost love. And what a voice! Raw and passionate. Ray Charles fell in love with this song by Nicoletta when he visited Europe in 1968 and recorded a beautiful English language version.

16 replies

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Highlight:

Favorite foreign language pop song (Original Post) aint_no_life_nowhere Apr 2012 OP

KAIRIT - 12 Kuud jberryhill Apr 2012 #1

My All time Favorite: Alizee - J'en Ai Marre (Tubes D'un Jour) HD Katashi_itto Apr 2012 #2

"Puis Je" sung by Jenifer Jackson (originally by Kevin Ayers) bananas Apr 2012 #3

Happy Sad by Pizzicato Five Patsy Stone Apr 2012 #4

Ca Plane Pour Moi sweetloukillbot Apr 2012 #5

La Poupee Qui Fait Non limpyhobbler Apr 2012 #6

On the original recording by Polnareff, do you know who was playing guitar and bass? aint_no_life_nowhere Apr 2012 #7

Oh really, no I didn't know that. How cool. nt limpyhobbler Apr 2012 #8

The original of La Mer dipsydoodle Apr 2012 #9

Bobby Darin later did an English language version with a swing beat and it became Beyond The Sea aint_no_life_nowhere Apr 2012 #12

and the live versions swung the most dipsydoodle Apr 2012 #13

Bobby Darin's Mack The Knife was origially a German pop tune aint_no_life_nowhere Apr 2012 #14

Funnily enough I was tempted to post that this morning. dipsydoodle Apr 2012 #15

Paolo Conte - Via Con Me dipsydoodle Apr 2012 #10

Jacques Brel-Ne me quitte pas (Eng. Subtitles) dipsydoodle Apr 2012 #11

Way too many to list, but here's a few for the romantic saras Apr 2012 #16

jberryhill

(62,444 posts)

1. KAIRIT - 12 Kuud

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Original post)

Tue Apr 10, 2012, 05:10 PM

Apr 2012

A more recent pop song from Estonia:

That, um, interesting phrase is "12 Kuud" or "12 months".

Katashi_itto

(10,175 posts)

2. My All time Favorite: Alizee - J'en Ai Marre (Tubes D'un Jour) HD

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Original post)

Tue Apr 10, 2012, 05:47 PM

Apr 2012

&feature=related

bananas

(27,509 posts)

3. "Puis Je" sung by Jenifer Jackson (originally by Kevin Ayers)

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Original post)

Tue Apr 10, 2012, 07:37 PM

Apr 2012

You can hear a short sample here (song #8): http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/jeniferj6

I can't find a full audio link, but I did find a review:

https://plus.google.com/112957774080114880132/posts/6voYFphZ5Pr

Francesco Calazzo - Feb 11, 2012 - Public

At the time of the Jenifer Jackson European tour, which I referred to a few posts ago, we spent lot of time exchanging ideas and cross-pollinating our respective musical visions. Dino Draghen and Jenifer are perhaps better examples of that than myself but one think I go particularly proud of was exposing Ms. Jackson's musical spirit to that of Kevin Ayers.

Jenifer is a polyglot globe-trotter and after having recorded already in Italian for a previous project was looking for other-cultures' songs that could be included in an ongoing project of hers called "Passaporto". Kevin Ayers, always the engaging and original artist had sung a French version titled "Puis Je" of one of of his best songs "May I?"

I had always been a fan and so was Draghen, therefore on that tour they started fumbling with it and a couple of years later Jenifer had made this song so much her own to warrant its inclusion in the "Passaporto" project.

I cannot post her version, as it is nowhere to be found on YouTube, but I will post Kevin Ayer's original version and I strongly suggest you make an active effort and get "Passaporto", or any other of her releases for that matters, and give it a try.

You WILL thank me later.

Enjoy!

Kevin Ayers & The Whole World - Puis Je

youtube.com – Das ist die französische Version von May I aus dem Album Shooting At The Moon.

Patsy Stone

(41,435 posts)

4. Happy Sad by Pizzicato Five

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Original post)

Tue Apr 10, 2012, 07:46 PM

Apr 2012

Not only is she adorable, this song makes me happy. Sure, the chorus is sort of in English, but don't hold that against it.

sweetloukillbot

(11,062 posts)

5. Ca Plane Pour Moi

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Original post)

Tue Apr 10, 2012, 09:30 PM

Apr 2012

limpyhobbler

(8,244 posts)

6. La Poupee Qui Fait Non

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Original post)

Fri Apr 13, 2012, 02:58 AM

Apr 2012

Song originally by Michel Polnareff (1966) but this cover version by Les Sultans (1966) is just one of many cover versions.

aint_no_life_nowhere

(21,925 posts)

7. On the original recording by Polnareff, do you know who was playing guitar and bass?

Reply to limpyhobbler (Reply #6)

Fri Apr 13, 2012, 10:04 PM

Apr 2012

Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones who would become half of Led Zepplin. Polnareff recorded his French hit record in England and they were studio sidemen.

&feature=player_detailpage

limpyhobbler

(8,244 posts)

8. Oh really, no I didn't know that. How cool. nt

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Reply #7)

Sat Apr 14, 2012, 07:20 PM

Apr 2012

dipsydoodle

(42,239 posts)

9. The original of La Mer

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Original post)

Sun Apr 15, 2012, 04:58 PM

Apr 2012

aint_no_life_nowhere

(21,925 posts)

12. Bobby Darin later did an English language version with a swing beat and it became Beyond The Sea

Reply to dipsydoodle (Reply #9)

Mon Apr 16, 2012, 02:38 AM

Apr 2012

I assume that's what you mean when you refer to the original version, La Mer, which was composed and sung by Charles Trenet.

dipsydoodle

(42,239 posts)

13. and the live versions swung the most

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Reply #12)

Mon Apr 16, 2012, 04:05 AM

Apr 2012

There's the full version of that on youtube too which is about 8 minutes long.

aint_no_life_nowhere

(21,925 posts)

14. Bobby Darin's Mack The Knife was origially a German pop tune

Reply to dipsydoodle (Reply #13)

Mon Apr 16, 2012, 03:51 PM

Apr 2012

and he did the same thing, taking a more conventional song and making it swing while adding English lyrics. Darin also covered one of Edith Piaf's hits, Milor and made it a hit of his own. Here's a short portion of a German film from 1931, The Three Penny Opera in which the original German song can be heard which became Darin's hit Mack The Knife.

&feature=player_detailpage

dipsydoodle

(42,239 posts)

15. Funnily enough I was tempted to post that this morning.

Reply to aint_no_life_nowhere (Reply #14)

Mon Apr 16, 2012, 04:16 PM

Apr 2012

I dance to that stuff and most swing dancers would regard this as being the best version of that by Bobby Darin. Its off the same DVD as the other one I posted : Seeing Is Believing. I bought the DVD years ago.