Bertrand Cantat cancels remaining tour dates

Former Noir Desir singer Bertrand Cantat has confirmed his tour has finished and he has cancelled the remaining dates.

Cantat was touring on the back of his debut solo album Amor Fati and had played dates across France, including the Zénith in Paris on June 7. His final date was in Brussels with shows in Pau and in his home town of Bordeaux called off.

His return to live performance as a solo artist would always be controversial. Cantat was convicted of killing his partner actress Marie Trintignant in 2003, and while he has many supporters and fans, others cannot forgive him for this.

While he may have served a lengthy prison sentence, there's been a major public argument over whether or not a return to public performance is appropriate. Much of the debate has been over how convicted criminals can resume their place in society following their release, and whether or not a singer and a celebrity should be allowed to remain in a position where he courts public attention.

Festival appearances were cancelled, and demonstrations held outside his shows. He was scheduled to play at L'Olympia in Paris, but cancellation by the famous hall's management meant it had to be rearranged to take place at the Zénith instead.

At the show, Cantat railed against the 'intimidations' and 'censorship' that he believes he has faced, and directed his anger against journalists who he believed have something against him.

During his show in Belgium, Cantat suggested he was bringing his musical career to an end and that this would be the last show of the tour.

Cantat confirmed on his Facebook page the cancellation of his forthcoming concerts and the early end of his tour. His statement read: "After 27 concerts in front of 35,500 people, the tour (...) ended last night at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. We warmly thank such a large audience."

Whether Cantat will resume live performance again is uncertain. Meanwhile, he faces the possibility of more legal action with regard the death of his ex-wife Krisztina Rády who took her own life in 2010. His lawyer denounced a new formal complaint into her death as 'based on lies' ,  and the magistrate at the time did not pursue charges.  But a lawyer who has been looking into the circumstances of Rády's death was invited to submit a formal complaint to investigators for consideration.

Whatever the outcome of events, whether in the courtroom and on the stage, the debate about Bertrand Cantat looks likely to continue.

Morrissey at L'Olympia

A date at L'Olympia tonight for Morrissey, a suitably historic and grand venue for the historic and grand artist.

He's played there before

Morrissey (partially) recorded his Beethoven was Deaf live album at the Zénith in Paris in 1992, releasing it the following year.

While the sleeve notes say the album was entirely recorded at the Paris show, a number of the tracks were from a London gig a few days before.

But it was his 2009 album Years of Refusal that featured a track that gives him a place in this blog.

If you're at the show tonight, just so you know,  I'm jealous.

Lou Reed 1942-2013

Farewell then Lou Reed, one of rock 'n' roll's true legends.


The guy who hung out on dirty boulevard and reported back to us with a journalist's eye and a poet's heart.

A guy, who despite the fug of drugs and drink, a quick temper and an ego that would dwarf an ocean liner,  wrote some of the greatest songs we've heard.

 A guy who scorned the artistic and musical establishment and its fawning corps of critics, refusing to compromise his art to suit anyone but himself.

Of course he paid a heavy price, with work that at times missed the mark or seemed willfully oblique. But his work was made to please no-one but himself.  If his work pleased you too, that was a bonus.

And he was capable of work that was breathtaking.  While his Velvet Underground back catalogue is best know, his was a career littered with gems like Street Hassle, Martial Law, My House, the songs on Berlin, New York and Songs for Drella as well as the better known Transformer. Any of these would have been a masterpiece in a lesser career.

Meanwhile he quietly raised the profile of some of society's previously marginalised groups, be they the gay community, the transgendered or the drug or alcohol dependent.

For an artist so rooted in New York, it might be a surprise to see connections to France, but there are many, and they go beyond the many Francophone artists that he influenced.

When the VU finally reformed subsequent to his Songs for Drella album with John Cale, they initially took to the stage at an Andy Warhol exhibition at Jouy-en-Josas in Yvelines for the  Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art. While only performing one number together, it was an event that many thought would never happen.

But happen it did, and it led to a full reunion and European tour some years later.

Their 1993 reunion tour saw the band take to the stage in Scotland at their first show. Needless to say, i was in Paris at the time. I was in Scotland when they later played Paris, at the Olympia and supporting U2.

 The band's Live MCMXCIII, the only official CD and DVD release by the reformed act was recorded during their three-night run at the Olympia in Paris.

The reformed band would not last, and Lou Reed would break up one of the greatest ever rock bands for the second time.

However, one interesting footnote to the Velvet Underground story took place in 1972, with Lou Reed, John Cale and Nico performing at the Bataclan in Paris.



Picture credit for image at the top of the page: dannynorton

Jimi Hendrix and Johnny Hallyday

It's 42 years today since the death of Jimi Hendrix, and he's still relevant enough to be trending on Twitter.

A good enough excuse to link to the video of Jimi and Johnny in 1966, when Hallyday gave Hendrix the support slot for his shows in France and his first shows in the country.

Hendrix has been much mythologised over the years since his death,

Hendrix recorded Hey Joe in '66, Hallyday covered it the following year. While he wasn't the only artist to cover the song befire or after Hendrix, he there's no question Hallyday played a significant part in the Hendrix story.

But as I've said before, Hallyday is more than just a footnore in the biographies of the likes of Hendrix or Page, I'm certain that the artistic respect went both ways.

Just a pity that Hendrix isn't still with us, and that he never recorded with Hallyday.

Of course, there are always the questoins. What would Hendrix be like if he was still alive today? Playing stadiums and touring still?

Who knows, but what's for certain is that there's not been anyone who has been able to match him since his death.


Jimi Hendrix et Johnny à Paris en 1966. by Tushratta

Madonna: Je t'aime moi non plus

Well, Madonna's surprise show in Paris at the Olympia didn't seem to go down as well as she might have hoped.

It was a scaled down version of her stadium show, as would be expected from a smaller venue, but I dont think the 45 minutes that ensued pleased the 2,700 fans in the historic venue.

Video on YouTube shows the boos and whistles, and cries of "Remboursez, remboursez, remboursez!" and "Salope!" at the end of the show. Plastic bottles can be seen landing on the stage after being thrown.

During the show she spoke about her affinity for France, saying "It could go all the way back to Napoleon, because I think of myself as a revolutionary."

She spoke during her monologue about the row that saw her being sued by Front National leader Marine Le Pen for screening an image of her with a swastika superimposed on her face during Madonna's Paris show

"I know that I have made a certin Marine Le Pen very angry with me.

"It's not my intention to make enemies, it is my intention to promote tolerance."

She added: "If we don't learn from history we are bound to repeat it."

Le Monde focused on her response to Le Pen

Liberation criticised her show, commenting that she came on 45 minutes late, played for 45 minutes and left without a goodbye or a thank you.

Meanwhile, Les Inrocks uses the word "pathétique" to describe her version of Gainsbourg's "Je t’aime, Moi Non Plus" that she performed at the end of her set.

Madonna at the Olympia in Paris

A special performance of Madonna at the Olympia in Paris is being streamed on YouTube tonight (July 26)

The stream is being presented at LoveLiveTV on YouTube and will be made available for viewing after the show.

The website explains: "LoveLive TV will be hosting the live stream of an EXCLUSIVE Madonna show, performed in the intimate club surroundings of the Olympia in Paris.

"Experience Madonna performing live as you've never seen her before: up-close and personal, exclusively on YouTube.

"She will be playing to a global audience on the LoveLiveTV YouTube channel on July 26 2012 at 22:15 (Paris), 21:15 (London), 16:15 (New York)."

It will, I expect be a more low key show than the one she presented at the Stade De France and to other stadiums around Europe on her MDNA tour.

Interesting that she's chosen to put on the a special show at the Olympia.

Madonna's website notes: "The Olympia, founded in 1888 has been the site of legendary shows by performers such as Marlene Dietrich, Charles Aznavour and Jacques Brel."

It's hard to imagine a more historic venue and given the French connection with her most recent album, it's certainly appropriate that she puts on a special show in France.

Prix Constantin: Selah Sue

This year's Prix Constantin winner has been announced, and Belgian singer Selah Sue came out as this year's prizewinner with her debut album.

Selah Sue works in a soul/funk fusion style, an urban sound that is as accessible outside France as it is to a French audience.

Her self-titled debut album was released in March 2011, reaching number one across Belgium and the top ten in France.

The announcement the album was the winner was made at the Olympia in Paris on Tuesday October 17.

The award is similar to the UK's Mercury Music Prize, going to an album by an artist who has come to prominence but who has not had major media coverage.

Its the tenth anniversary of the prize, and ten acts had been shortlisted.

Alex Baupain, Brigitte, Cyril Mokaiesh, Lisa Portelli, Sly Johnson, Bertrand Belin, cascadeur, L, and The Shoes were all selected for the finals along with Selah Sue by a jury of 19 music professionals, including journalists and TV and radio producers.

The ten artists performed live and the winner was announced at the end of the show.

Last year's winner was Hindi Zahra with her album Handmade. Previous winners include Mickey 3D, Camille and Emily Loizeau.

Others nominated in previous years inclued Justice, Stromae, Julien Doré, Thomas Dutronc, Grand Corps Malade, Phoenix and even Carla Bruni, all of which have gone on to take their place among the best-know contemporary artists in French music.

There's always some debate about competitions with regard musical artists, and whether in an artistic matter one act can actually ever be said to be 'better' than another, but in terms of introducing artists to a public who might not be aware of them, it's a process that succeeds for both the artists and the audience.

While winning a prize might not necessarily be a guarantee of an immediate A-List music career - remember that with many of the Mercury Award Winners like Roni Size, Gomez and Speech Debelle have not gone on to be household names - the process certainly succeeds in raising awareness about an artist.

The shortlisted acts receive a huge amount of press and media attention and no doubt win over a few more listeners, and while there might only be one overall winner, all ten certainly win in terms of the benefits of the publicity.

Hopefully some of the names shortlisted this year, as well as the winner, will become the big names in years to come. We'll certainly keep a listen.

Radio station France Inter will be broadcasting a special programme on October 24 and there will be TV coverage of the event on France 2 on October 28 and France 4 on November 9.