French Music

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So I've had an interest in finding the sort of music you might hear in a World War 2 movie played by soldiers with a phonograph; I'd prefer French music. I figure this is probably just popular French music from the 20s through the 40s, but even that has not been enough.

― Peter Densmore (pbnmyj), Wednesday, 1 February 2006 23:45 (nineteen years ago)

6 bucks. go to town:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000005RMC/002-4688856-3007208?v=glance&n=5174

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:00 (nineteen years ago)

Now find him that on vinyl.

― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:02 (nineteen years ago)

he said played by soldiers in movies on a phonograph. he didn't say he would be playing them on a phonograph. in that case, go to ebay. you can probably get 100 chanson albums for 6 bucks.

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:04 (nineteen years ago)

I only said that because of your ability to find vinyl, not because I thought it was part of the question.

― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:08 (nineteen years ago)

Edith Piaf usually does the trick and that comp doesn't seem to reach that far back in time. There's old pazz&jop to be researched as well.

This question led me to a scholarly paper describing how most French musicians and leading music figures were at the forefront of fascism - and how some of these figures stayed in power afterwards.

Put that in your pipe et fume-le !!

― blunt (blunt), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:10 (nineteen years ago)

just say oui to ye ye.

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:14 (nineteen years ago)

you can probably find a piaf box for five bucks.

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:15 (nineteen years ago)

http://goodhealthdirectory.com/lundberg/lundberg_moroccan_pilaf/lundberg_moroccan_pilaf.jpg

― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:17 (nineteen years ago)

(Sorry, too tired to do anything constructive.)

― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:19 (nineteen years ago)

it's okay. it's only french music.

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:21 (nineteen years ago)

french prog shopping list:

http://rateyourmusic.com/list/PhilZ/french_progressive_artists/

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 2 February 2006 00:23 (nineteen years ago)

GUS VISEUR!

you have to like the accordion though

― terry lennox. (gareth), Thursday, 2 February 2006 11:36 (nineteen years ago)

also a lot of fun is claude bollings soundtrack to borsalino, from 1969. the film is set in marseille 1929, so the soundtrack is sort of a homage to that kind of sound.

― terry lennox. (gareth), Thursday, 2 February 2006 11:39 (nineteen years ago)

For crying out loud get yourself some Charles Trenet, the great French hitmaker of WWII, and one of the greatest singer-songwriters of the century. His big songs of the War era include "La Mer" (later remade, and trashed, by Bobby Darin), "Douce France," "Que Reste-t-il De Nos Amours," and a bunch of others. But everything the guy ever recorded is great.

― Jody, Thursday, 2 February 2006 12:00 (nineteen years ago)

also, it might be a bit obvious, but how about a little django music in the night?

― terry lennox. (gareth), Thursday, 2 February 2006 12:50 (nineteen years ago)

ten years pass...

What is it about French pop lyrics that I often find so clever and affecting? From Jacques Brel to George Brassens, Boris Vian's 'Le Deserteur', France Gall's 'Bonsoir Jon-Jon', Michel Fugain's 'Fais Comme L'Oiseau' and 'Une Belle Histoire'. There's a tradition of metaphor, of painful bluntness that I rarely get from English songwriting.

― TARANTINO! (dog latin), Wednesday, 15 June 2016 14:38 (eight years ago)

So many recurring themes - especially to do with war and hunting ('guerre', 'chasse') and also a general disillusionment with the world, a sense of ennui.
On 'Le Deserteur', a soldier writes to the president of France telling him he 'wasn't put on this Earth to kill people' and that he'll roam the countryside until the army catches up with him.
On Fugain's 'Fais Comme L'Oiseau', he declares that he feels lost and alone in the universe, that he's 'scared of the sky, winter, madmen and war'. Some deep and dark stuff for a mainstream chanteur. His conclusion is that he should make like a bird, live on fresh air and water with a bit of hunting and fishing on the side, and not let his troubles stop him flying high.

― TARANTINO! (dog latin), Thursday, 16 June 2016 09:46 (eight years ago)

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