Carla Bruni: Live in London

A chance to see that very sophisticated chanteuse Carla Bruni in London this weekend, with the former first lady playing at the Union Chapel on Saturday night.

With her husband no longer in office for the past few years, she's been able to resume her musical career and has released two albums since then, Little French Songs in 2013 and French Touch earlier this year.

She released her Comme si de rien n'était in 2008 while her husband was president, the collection reaching number one in France. She was already an established artist be then, her debut Quelqu'un m'a dit from 2003 reaching number one in the French charts, her second No Promises from 2007 doing the same.

French Touch sees her covering songs originally recorded in the English language. While some like Moon River or Crazy are standards, there are some interesting choices including a version of Highway to Hell and Enjoy the Silence.

Alain Souchon, Nolwenn Leroy and Carla Bruni: 2 générations chantent pour la 3ème

A new track has to promote a special charity concert later this month featuring some of the biggest names in French music.

The song Vole comes ahead of a special concert at the Olympia in Paris benefitting dementia charity L'Association pour la Recherche sur Alzheimer.

The event - entitled  2 générations chantent pour la 3ème - takes place on February 15 and will feature Brigitte as well as Carla Bruni, Nolwenn Leroy as well as Alain Souchon and Laurent Voulzy and others.

Awards: Globes de Cristal 2015 shortlist

Another French award ceremony for your diaries, with the shortlist published for the Globes de Cristal 2015 ceremony next month.

It's the tenth anniversary of the award,  which has categories across the world of arts and entertainment, including cinema, theatre, literature, music, television, exhibition  and style.

There are two music shortlists, for best male artist and best female artist.

The male artists are Alain Souchon and Laurent Voulzy for their eponymous release, Black M for Les yeux plus gros que le monde, Calogero for Les feux d'artifice, Johnny Hallyday for Rester Vivant and Kendji Girac for Kendji.

The female list features Brigitte for A bouche que veux-tu, Carla Bruni for A l'Olympia, Christine and the Queens for Chaleur Humaine, Indila for Mini World and Zaz for Paris.

Last year's winners were Ayo and Stromae.

The Globes de Cristal 2015 is held on April 13.

Band Aid 30: Noël est là.

France's version of the Band Aid 30 song has emerged, with a cast of celebrities performing the track Noël est là.

The cast includes Jean-Louis Aubert, Louis Bertignac, Benjamin Biolay, Thomas Dutronc, Yannick Noah, Vanessa Paradis, Nicola Sirkis and Zaz.

Bob Geldof, the instigator of the original Band Aid song 30 years ago also makes an appearance. Geldof brought about the creation of the French version by asking Carla Bruni to organise it.

For many, of course, the highlight will be the brief re-appearance of Renaud. He remains one of France's best loved singer songwriters, and ill health in recent hears hasn't diminished his profile on account of the two recent chart-topping tribute CDs.

The song has, like its UK equivalent, been released to raise finds for the fight against Ebola.
The UK release sparked debate about whether a benefit single is the best way to do this, as well as serious  discussion about how the west looks at Africa. Other questions have been asked about the appropriateness of the lyrics.

Some things are certain though, and that is that the releases have raised the profile of the crisis in West Africa, and that money has been raised to help those fighting it.

 No one can deny that has been worthwhile.

Carla Bruni: Quelqu'un m'a dit

A new video and single by Carla Bruni ahead of the release of a live DVD/CD later this month.

The track Quelqu'un m'a dit comes from her forthcoming à l'Olympia set, which was recorded in March this year.

The show followed the release of her Little French Songs album in 2013, and the forthcoming live album features some of tracks form this collection, as well as interpretations of some  of her earlier work.

Quelqu'un m'a dit originally featured as the title track on her 2002 debut album.

 Other work on the new live album includes a cover of John Prine's All the best, performed as a duet with Marianne Faithful.

The set will also include a 20 minute documentary covering her tour in the USA.

Bruni is reported to be working on her fifth studio album, with a release likely some time in 2015.

Renaud: La bande à Renaud

Renaud has become the latest French performer to have his  work re-interpreted by a new generation of artists on an album.

The singer might not have released an album since 2009's Molly Malone, but the new La bande à Renaud collection sees singers like Nolwenn Leroy, Coeur de Pirate and Raphaël and  Carla Bruni pay tribute by covering his songs.

Renaud is a French artist who achieved a certain amount of notorierty in the UK in the 1980s with his song Miss Maggie, concerning Margaret Thatcher who was then at the peak of her powers.

His most recent release was a complete collection box set in 2012.

In previous years, the Génération Goldman collections showcasing the work of  Jean-Jacques Goldman were among the biggest selling albums in France, both topping the charts in France.

 Obviously there are hopes that the same kind of success will come to this new collection. The strength of Renaud's material will go some way to make that a certainty.

Carla Bruni: J'arrive à toi.

 A new clip for by Carla Bruni for the track J'arrive à toi.

The song is the opening track of her latest album, her fourth,  Little French Song which was released in March this year.

To these ears it's the best track on the album to have been released as a single so far, following as it does Chez Keith et Anita, Mon Raymond and Le Penguin.

The Little French Songs collection gets a re-issue next week with four bonus songs including a duet with Julien Clerc.

She plays at the Casino de Paris on November 22, 23 and 24, and returns to the French capital for  a show at l'Olympia on March 11.

Carla Bruni: Le Pingouin

A new video for Carla Bruni, with the song Le Pingouin from her recent album getting some attention.

Not that it's not had some attention in France already, with a 'row' (ie a few comments in the media) about the supposed political message of the song.

Some have taken the song to be a reference to François Hollande, but Bruni herself has denied this, saying that the song doesn't have any political thinking behind it. In in an interview with L'Express she said that the song's about disagreeable people in general, about no one and everyone.

If she wanted to make a political song, she's probably more entitled to do so than many others, having actually been involved in that world, but I have my doubts that she'd be interested. From what I've read, she's not all that bothered about getting involved in the mud-slinging of politics, leaving that to others - including those in the media - to deal with.

The video certainly doesn't take itself too seriously and is more of a nod towards Monty Python than towards any particular politician.

The song comes from her latest collection  entitled Little French Songs, her first since her days as First Lady. the album came out on April the first.

It's been a successful release, despite her having to take a step back from music on account of her position over the last few years.

She's playing a series of live dates at the end of the year, including three shows at the Casino de Paris in November.

Carla Bruni: Chez Keith et Anita video

The new video has emerged of the new single Chez Keith et Anita by Carla Bruni.

The song surfaced earlier this year, and its release comes ahead of her fourth album Little French Songs.

Her last album Comme si de rien n'était came out during her time as First Lady in France, now she's got a bit more time on her hands and a husband to support we can expect to see more of her musical output.

Apparently during her time as First Lady she suffered because she wasn't able to write music, took criticism of her husband badly and never felt at home in the world of politics.

Her position gave her a huge amount of attention that perhaps eclipsed her reputation as a musician, so with that weight now lifted she can perhaps now be judged on her merit as a performer rather than as a figure on the political scene with an interesting sideline.

Bruni's new album is released on April the first and she's playing some dates at the Casino De Paris in November.

Carla Bruni: Chez Keith et Anita.

A new single by Carla Bruni, as the former first lady makes her return to music with the song Chez Keith et Anita.

With her husband out of office she's probably got a bit more time on her hands and can

The song comes from her forthcoming fourth album entitled Little French Songs and it comes five years after he last release Comme si de rien n'était.

While her day job as first lady kept her busy, she still had time for the occasional release, with her last album coming out during her husband's time in office. Whatever people's views were about her husband didn't stop it reaching number one in the French charts. It was also a critical success, many noting that the songs were mostly her own work, with two cover versions and another song adapting the work of Michel Houellebecq.

Bruni's changed her record label, moving from Naive records to a branch of Universal Music, which suggests the album will be given a much higher international profile than her previous company could have done.

Reports suggest that she's keen to see the release as a continuation of her career as a musician rather than a comeback following her involvement in the world of politics, and the new song certainly sounds like a natural progression on her previous work.

Her new album is released on Barclay records on April the first, and there is a possibility that she'll tour later in the year.

2012 Presidential election

An absolutely massive weekend for France, and while the election result may have come as little surprise, its magnitude cannot be diminished.

It marks a turning point, and it will have implications on the French music scene as much as it will have an impact on every area of life in the Republic.

Things will settle, and it remains to be seen if change will be as radical as some expect or as fundamental as some fear. It should be remembered that the  result was actually quite close, it was no landslide, and Hollande will face a huge amount of social and political inertia.

Although the same could be said for Sarkozy and his right-wing predecessors. Each came to office with a promise of shaking the country up in a similar way to Margaret Thatcher in the UK. All failed in this ambition, and although each did manage to pass many an unpopular piece of legislation, the core Republican values were not transformed into an Anglo-Saxon free-market free for all.

A couple of other thoughts about the campaign. It was possible for an outsider - non native French speaker located outside France as I am - to folllow it like never before. Twitter and Facebook brought comment and developments in a minute-by-minute basis, opinion came from blogs and news sites - special credit to France 24 - and video could be quickly caught up with on YouTube.

A real success in new media coverage of the election.

But this certainly wasn't the picture on the traditional broadcast media. Again, the UK media followed the usual line of ignoring it completely until the first round of the election, then focusing on the National Front's vote. Their scripts were already written, and the narrative would be about another chapter in the rise of the European right, missing the significance of a Socialist president

We are always better informed about the US elections than we ever are about the French elections.

 I would guess that just about anyone in the UK asked to 'name the president' would answer 'Obama' before thinking to ask 'Which president?...'

And on the National Front vote, although disappointed to see them getting any popular support, it was heartening to see them completely collapse under any political pressure. Had Le Pen reciprocated to Sarkozy's disgusting overtures the political map of the country could be very different, with potentially a UMP president indebted to the FN. But the fascists fell apart under pressure due no doubt to a fatal combination of arrogance and stupidity.

But it's time for optimism and looking ahead at hopefully better times.

Apologies if this blog reads like one of the many political blogs that haunt the internet today. It's a music blog, but music doesn't exist in a vacuum and political circumstances shape music and the music of France is no different in that it is part of a wider political and cultural environment.

If nothing else, Carla Bruni will have more time to focus on her musical career.

Carla Bruni - Jolis Sapins

A chilled Xmas song by Carla Bruni, just getting into the relaxed mood for the holidays.

The song comes from the Noël ! Noël !! Noël !!! a collection arranged by Michel Legrande featuring performances by Mika, Jamie Cullum, Rufus Wainwright, Madeleine Peyroux, Iggy Pop, Imelda May, Ayo, Carla Bruni, Emilie Simon.

Also on the collection are -M- and Coeur de Pirate.

The collection was compiled to mark Lrgrande's 80th birthday and is a lush old school production with a big band and a relaxed jazzy feel.

If time permits I'll post a couple more tracks from this great collection

Carla Bruni - You've Got The Silver

In light of the birth of France's First Baby, I thought it worth putting on a video of Carla Bruni doing what she used to be known best for in her pre-Sarko days.

I'll leave the politics and the celebrity stuff to other blogs. There's plenty that can be said there and little point in me adding to the debate.

Bruni has been working in music since 1997, her debut album Quelqu'un m'a dit coming out in 2002, having already worked with Julien Leclerc's 200 album Si j'étais elle.

Her second album came out in 2007, featuting the work of leading poets set to music, and her third Comme si de Rien N'était the following year, after she was married to Sarkozy.

Given her track record with classic rock artists a cover version of a Rolling Stones song seemed appropriate and its an interesting take on one of their many great songs hidden in their back catalogue.

Carla's sound is a sophisticated and jazzy one, along the lines of american artists like Norah Jones. It's a smooth and easy listening experience to sooth troubled ears.

I'm sure given the current difficult times, it's exactly the kind of thing that Monsieur le Président needs to chill out to after a hard day at the office.

Rétro - Johnny Hallyday and Carla Bruni

Sometimes there are moments in French music that are almost surreal when you look at them.

Case in point is this one, a duet by Johnny Hallyday, French rock 'n' roll icon who remains pretty well unknown outside the French-speaking world - duetting with Carla Bruni, the chanteuse and ex-model who is these days best known as the wife of President Sarkozy.

The song was originally written by Michel Berger and performed by Johnny in 1985 on the Rock 'n' Roll Attitude album.

Berger was the husband of and musical collaborator with France Gall between '74 and his death in 1992.

He was a singer-songwriter in his own right, and is best known in France for the rock opera Starmania, which was a massive hit. His work with France Gall re-established her career in the 70s and 80s, writing her best-known songs during this period.

As I said, this clip seems tremendously strange. The wife of the president duetting with a singer either seen as the living embodiment of Rock 'n' Roll or as a past-it ham who never really had any artistic merit to begin with and has gone downhill since is pretty strange concept to the non-French listener.

Stranger still is that it sounds pretty great as well.