Friday’s French music break - Måns Zelmerlöw, “Should've gone home (Je ne suis qu’un homme) "

If you’ve been following Friday’s French music break for a while now, you might have noticed the trend for some featured artists to sing only in English…or a sometimes approximate version thereof.

Conversely, there are also several non-native French speakers who choose to re-record tracks they've originally sung in another language specifically for release in francophone countries.

Josef Salvat did it with “Open season” for example.

And so did Mika - although, with “Elle m’a dit”,  he went the whole hog and released a song he had never previously recorded in English.

Joining the club is Swedish pop singer and TV presenter Måns Zelmerlöw with his plaintive (good word that) but catchy “Should've gone home (Je ne suis qu’un homme) “

Måns Zelmerlöw - screenshot from video of “Should've Gone Home (Je ne suis qu’un homme"

Actually on first hearing the song, you might well think it’s Salvat again as it has the same sort of feel to it.

Now, Eurovision fans among you (and there are a fair number scattered around the globe) will probably recognise the name, because Zelmerlöw won the whole shebang for his country back in 2015 and was one of the co-hosts at this year’s show.

Originally released in August 2015 and taken from his sixth studio album “Perfectly damaged”, the French version of “Should've gone home (Je ne suis qu’un homme)” keeps the original melancholic (OK so let’s not exaggerate too much) chorus cry.

But most the verses have been translated - courtesy apparently of singer-songwriter Doriand (Laurent Lescarret) who has done the same for the likes of Mika, Julien Doré and Camélia Jordan.

Anyway, “Should've gone home (Je ne suis qu’un homme) “ isn’t that bad, and neither is Zelmerlöw’s French as the audience at a one-off performance at la Maroquinerie in Paris in October 2015 was able to hear he performed  Gilbert Bècaud’s French standard “Et maintenant”.

Et maintenant

So take a listen.

And just in case there are any Swedish readers out there - Ha en bra helg

Friday's French music break Lillywood and the prick, "Middle of the night"

Friday's French music break this week comes from a group with the (um) glorious name of Lilly Wood and the Prick.

Great name for a band don't you think?

Er. Pass.

Lilly Wood and the Prick: screenshot from  "Where I Want To Be (California)" official video

"Middle of the night" is the first single to have been released from their latest album "The fight", a fine follow-up to their debut "Invincible friends"

Online information about Lilly Wood and the Prick is a bit thin on the ground.

That fount of all knowledge, both correct and incorrect, otherwise known as Wikipedia, doesn't have a great deal on them. In fact their English entry is - well sparse to say the very least - which means you have to go a-huntin elsewhere.

Their website is a little disappointing although is has links to their Myspace account and the inevitable Facebook page complete with upcoming dates.

So who are they?

Well, they're a duo: singer Nili Hadida and guitarist Benjamin Cotto.

The pair write all their own material.

Their sound is distinctive and categorised  - always a bit of a danger when trying to pigeon hole artists whose music defies labels - as folk Electronic / Folk / Pop.

One thing's for sure - they cannot be mistaken for any other French act - in fact you would have a hard time knowing they were French - more on that in a moment.

Hadida and Cotto were apparently introduced to each other back in 2006 by friends in a bar in Paris and began working together within 48 hours.

"We barely each other at the beginning," Hadida told Nagui, the presenter of France 2's music show Taratata.

"But through music we've had a chance to get closer and really understand how the other person ticks."

Hmmm.  Great story isn't it? And the two seem pretty sincere. There again, who cares whether it's entirely true as their music ain't half bad.

Their big break - in terms of wider recognition came at the 2011 Victoires de la Musique awards (the French equivalent of the Grammys) when the pair walked away with the prize of Best Newcomer (le groupe ou l'artiste révélation du public) ahead of  Ben l'Oncle Soul, Camélia Jordana and Zaz.

Now don't worry if your French isn't very good. The group sings exclusively in English - probably down to Hadida's international upbringing and influences (she was born in Israel, raised in Paris and has lived in London and California).

There's definitely a commercial appeal to their music and unlike some other "foreign groups" writing and singing in English, their lyrics actually make sense.

Hadida's voice is distinctive, and what's more the pair can perform live.

There's no playback or flashy gimmicks necessary as witnessed by this appearance on Le Figaro's music show "Le Live".



Their music is simple without any pretensions although Hadida admits that some of the songs, much like the group's name, are meant to provoke.

Ah yes.

About that name...

"Nili isn't necessarily Lilly and nor am I the Prick. In fact it could be the opposite," Cotto said with a degree of humour in an interview with By the Way blog.

"Seriously though the name is more about a group of words which (to us) sound good together and it's in keeping with how we want to progress: the magical aspect reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland mixed with something a little more down to earth."

Yes. Well.

Maybe they'll think about changing their name should they ever become successful outside of France.

One thing's for sure, whatever they're called, the pair produce some excellent music.

Here's the official clip of "Middle of the night".

Enjoy.

Friday's French music break - Melissa Nkonda, "Nouveaux horizons"

Friday's French music break this week is proof - if it were needed - that there's occasionally life after TV talent shows - even for those who don't win.

It comes from Melissa Nkonda - an "also ran" in the now defunct Nouvelle Star, the French version of Pop Idol.

Melissa Nkonda (screenshot from "Nouveaux horizons" video)

Nkonda took part in season seven of Nouvelle Star in 2009, making it through to the final 15 and then the top 10 but being but eliminated just three weeks into the show's run.

That obviously didn't stop her though and a year later she entered the (non-televised) search for talent launched in 2010 by the French record label AZ, which belongs to the Universal group.

The 20-year-old ran out one of the joint winners of "Je veux signer chez AZ", landing a contract with the label and the chance to record an album.



Since then Nkonda has been on roll.

The album, "Nouveaux horizons", was released earlier this year and includes a track, "J'ai fait tout ça pour vous" featuring one of the most recently rising stars of the British music scene VV Brown and a version of Nkondo's first hit single also entitled "Nouveaux horizons" with the critically acclaimed French rapper, Soprano.

The original of that first single is a catchy, funky uptempo number with an infectious beat and sung in a mixture of English and French which has already been a Top 30 hit in France, Belgium and Switzerland.

Not bad going from a singer who was all but overlooked by the voting public during Nouvelle Star.

Melissa Nkonda (screenshot from Je veux signer chez AZ video)

Oh yes the winner that year - Soan.

Now that was a triumph of audience power in determining a commercially successful artist.

Oh well, Nkonda, along with a fellow contestant from the same season - Camélia Jordana - is proof that TV talent shows certainly don't always get it right.

Here's "Nouveaux horizons".

Try not to tap you foot as you listen.



Bet you enjoyed that.

If you want to catch her in concert, check out the dates on her official website.

Albi's Pause Guitar festival line-up announced

If you're looking to attend an open-air concert in a spectacular location this summer then perhaps you need look no further than the southwestern French city of Albi.

Albi (from Wikipedia, author: Marion Schneider & Christoph Aistleitner)

The line-up for this year's Pause Guitar festival taking place July 7-10 has just been announced, and if you're a fan of the French music scene, then it's definitely the place to go.

All four of the acts nominated in this year's category of Best Newcomer at Les Victoires de la Musique, the French equivalent of the Grammys, are slated to appear; winners Lilly Wood & The Prick, Ben l'Oncle Soul, Camélia Jordana and Zaz.

Also performing at various venues throughout the city will be Joe Cocker, Philippe Katerine, Gaéten Roussel, Aaron, Cocoon and, and and...

Heck, if you want a full list of who'll be playing when and where, and you want to books tickets, head over to the festival's website and take a look around.

If (French) music ain't your thing then Albi has plenty more to offer.

It's the capital of the département of Tarn and just an hour's drive away from one of the country's largest cities, Toulouse.

Set on the river Tarn, it's architecturally stunning with a host of terra cotta brick buildings typical of the region, most notably the 13th century Sainte Cécile Cathedral.

Sainte Cécile Cathedral, Albi

Not to be missed either is the Palais de la Berbie which since 1922 has also housed a museum dedicated to the works of the city's most famous son, the painter Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa.

Last August the Episcopal City of Albi became a Unesco World Heritage site.

It includes the Cathedral, the Palais, the Pont Vieux - a stone bridge built in the 11th century and later clad in the characteristic red brickstone - as well as parts of the banks of the river Tarn.

Albi, river Tarn

France's "Grammys" - les victoires de la musique

Yes, yes, yes.

We all know that when it comes to music and film, only the United States and a handful of other English-speaking countries really count.

Sure there have been "foreign" Oscar winners across categories (usually the less well-publicised ones) over the years but by and large it's a collective slap on the back from Hollywood to itself.

The same can be surely said for the Grammys. Even though there are awards recognising reggae, Latin and World Music, the international headlines are made by the likes of Lady Gaga Justin Bieber and co.

Just take a look at those nominated in the category Best New Artist this year.

There were five them; Esperanza Spalding, the winner, Justin Bieber, Drake, Florence and The Machine and Mumford & Sons.

Notice anything?

Here's a hint: United States, Canada, Canada, United Kingdom, United Kingdom.

Yep. That's where this year's Best New Artists came from!

But of course there's a whole world beyond North America and other native English speaking countries - really.

And there's plenty of music around that never reaches the ears of those most attuned to the language of Shakespeare in all its many forms, simply because...well who knows? But it probably has something to do with it not being in English.

So to redress the balance - just a little - here's a selection of what was on offer this past week in France as the award for Best Newcomer was handed out at part one (it's complicated) of Les Victoires de la Musique, this country's equivalent, if you will, of the Grammys

First up, Ben l'Oncle Soul

Ready to groove? Then how about tuning your ears into Benjamin Duterde, better known under his stage name of Ben l'Oncle Soul.

Ben l'Oncle Soul (screenshot from YouTube video)

The 27-year-old from the city of Tours in central-western France first came to the attention of a wider audience in 2009 after the release of a six-track EP which included his remake of White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army"

Over the past year though his self-titled album has won critical acclaim with what is described as a sound influenced by the "old school of artists such as Otis Redding, Al Green and Aretha Franklin."

Yes, Ben l'Oncle Soul is French "SOUL" writ large very much in the style of all those US greats and, as if to drive home the point, he's signed to Motown France.




Camélia Jordana

The second nominee was 18-year-old Camélia Jordana Aliouane.

French television talent shows have thrown up a number of fresh faces over the years.

Some have gone on to become household names, others have disappeared whence they came.

Camélia Jordana (screenshot from YouTube video)

Camélia Jordana (she dropped her surname for professional purposes) falls into the former category.

Largely expected to win the now defunct Nouvelle Star (the French version of Pop Idol) in 2009, she was in fact knocked out in the semi-finals.

But "talent will out" and after signing with Sony music, she released her first (self-titled) album in March last year and has already had three hit singles.

No matter what you think of her voice, it's certainly one few can forget.




Zaz

Now here's a coincidence - another artist hailing from Tours - Isabelle Geffroy or "Zaz" to use the name under which she performs.

Perhaps there's something in the water.

Zaz (screenshot from YouTube video)

Her music is a truly eclectic mix of blues, jazz, variety, rock, reggae, rap and the kitchen sink combining with her distinctive sound to produce a singer, who in the words of critics, "Beyond dispute has been blessed with a unique vocal ability as well as a power and vibrato."

Her debut album was a best seller in France last year, hitting the number one spot for six weeks has so far produced two enormous hits; "Je veux" and "Le long de la route".




Lilly Wood & The Prick

Last - and by no means least as the saying goes - Lilly Wood & The Prick.

Lilly Wood & The Prick (screenshot from YouTube video)

Formed and fronted by Nili Hadida et Benjamin Cotto[ back in 2006 - the group perhaps puts paid to the idea that Myspace no longer has any role on the Net, because that's where they were first "discovered".

They sing in English and their music is described as a pop, folk, electro.




There you go. Proof that music is alive and well in France with four artists whose styles are refreshing and...well...you judge.

Now you're probably wondering who won.

Well, after all that lengthy introduction about the Grammys and the overall lack of recognition for acts other than North American or British ones because of the overwhelming linguistic bias...blah, blah, blah.

Yes you've guessed it. The French gave the award of Victoire de la Musique in the category "Best Newcomer" to the only act that sings exclusively in English.

Oh well.