Femmes de Paris, Vol. 1

by Femme De Paris / Various

Overview

The "ye-ye" style is inherently frivolous, but if you're in the mood for some good, clean, kitschy fun with a whiff of naughtiness, this is a pretty respectable 19-song collection of French-sung, women-sung pop/rock from the mid-to-late '60s. True, if you've already started to collect the mini-genre, there's a good amount of repetition between this CD and some other compilations you might already have in your collection, like those in the Ultra Chicks and Swinging Mademoiselle series. It's at least the third time around, in fact, for a few of these, like Elizabeth's "Je Suis Sublime," Cosette's "Idealisation," and Jacqueline Taieb's "7 Heures du Matin" (which slips in a sly parody of the chorus of "My Generation"). It's also true that this suffers from too many inferior Francophone covers of big American and British hits, like "Nitty Gritty," "Sloop John B" (titled here, oddly, "Fille ou Garcon," i.e. "Girl or Boy"), "Baby Love," and "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'." On the other hand, a couple of the covers are really cool, those being Marie Laforet's "Marie Douceur, Marie Colere" (the Rolling Stones' "Paint It Black," sung with a Marianne Faithfull-like quaver) and Patricia's dramatic reading of "Nights in White Satin" (retitled "Mes Reves de Satin"). Though Violaine's "Jai des Problemes Decidement" is a pretty good pop-punker with its pounding beat and bleating harmonica, other songs often incline toward a more typically French/continental pop feel, albeit with a go-go sheen. Tiny Yong sounds like a French Sandie Shaw on "Tu Es le Roi des Menteurs"; Michele Arnaud a little like a French female version of the Righteous Brothers on "Les Papillons Noirs"; and Taieb's "Le Printemps a Paris" ("Spring in Paris") is lush orchestrated pop-rock with the kind of buoyancy that makes you want to go right out and take a stroll around Paris' Jardin du Luxembourg. ~ Richie Unterberger

Product Details

Release Date:	07/09/2021
Label:	Imports
UPC:	3700403516944
Rank:	70516

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Marie Laforet   Primary Artist
Liz Brady   Primary Artist
Michele Arnaud   Primary Artist
Christie Laume   Primary Artist
Jacqueline Taieb   Primary Artist
Eileen   Primary Artist
Patricia   Primary Artist
Brigitte Bardot   Primary Artist
Annie Philippe   Primary Artist
Christine Pilzer   Primary Artist
Elizabeth   Primary Artist
Paul Mauriat   Orchestra
Syd Dale   Orchestra
Jean-Claude Petit   Orchestra
Michel Colombier   Orchestra Leader
Herve Roy   Orchestra
Paul Piot   Orchestra
Hubert Rostaing   Orchestra
Jacques Denjean   Orchestra
Clyde Borly   Orchestra
Ralph Milko   Orchestra
Jean Bouchety   Orchestra
Jean Claudric   Orchestra

Technical Credits

Syd Dale   Direction
Lamont Dozier   Composer
Eddie Holland   Composer
Serge Gainsbourg   Composer
Jean-Claude Petit   Arranger
Lee Hazlewood   Composer
Brian Holland   Composer
Justin Hayward   Composer
Jacqueline Taieb   Composer
Christian Eudeline   Text
Paul Piot   Direction
Thierry Wolf   Producer
Noel Commaret   Direction
Michel Jourdan   Composer
Bryan Andrew Wilson   Composer
Hubert Rostaing   Direction
Lincoln Chase   Composer
Mick Jagger   Composer
Henri Salvador   Composer
Mya Simille   Composer
Clyde Borly   Direction
Hubert Ithier   Adaptation
Maurice Pon   Composer
Pierre Saka   Composer
Jean Bouchety   Arranger,Direction
Herve Roy   Direction