Friday's French music break - Christophe Willem, "I will always love you"

Friday's French music break this week is a tribute of sorts with Christophe Willem tackling the late Whitney Houston's signature song, "I will always love you."

Christophe Willem (screenshot from Europe 1 performance)

Actually it's not an official single, but a version of the song Willem has performed several times in concert over the years.

Willem first shot to fame in France in 2006 during season four of the TV talent show Nouvelle Star (the equivalent in this country of Pop Idol).

When he auditioned in Toulouse he appeared to be the most unlikely of eventual winners, dressed as he was in the ugliest of stripey pullovers and an old pair of jeans, and with a posture that earned him the nickname of "La Tortue" (The Turtle) from Marianne James, one of the judges.

Christophe Willem - audition for Nouvelle Star (screenshot from video clip)

It was an epithet that was to stick with a title of the same name by French songwriter Philip Katerine appearing on Willem's first album.

With, in the words of André Manoukian, another of the judges, his "voice of a diva and excellent swing" Willem charmed the jury and public alike, turning in one startling performance after another as the weeks passed and topping the whole shebang off by winning, of course.

Fans had to wait the best part of a year before Willem released his excellent debut album "Inventaire" with tracks written by the likes of Katerine, Zazie and Olivier Schultheis, and there followed concert dates and TV appearances as Willem firmly established himself on the French music scene.

Since then, Willem has released two further studio albums, "Caféine" in 2009 and "Prismophonic" in 2011; in both cases his music has taken a distinct electro-pop music turn.

And that's a shame, because one of the 28-year-old's strengths is the purity and clarity he brings to acoustic versions of songs.

The excellent "Jacques a dit" from the "Inventaire" album is probably the best example, "I will always love you" which he performs in concert, is another.

But - and it's a massive but - in his rendition of the song written by Dolly Parton but made famous by Houston, Willem is walking the proverbial fine line of turning an already over-sentimental song into pure and simple schmaltz.

Arguably, Houston got away with it because of who she was, her voice and her star stature.

Willem, however good he is when performing simple piano and voice (and he is good) sounds like someone putting in a not-quite-as-good performance of a song that probably irritated and moved in equal proportions when sung by Houston, who had made it her own.

Anyway, take a listen - if you dare.

The Europe 1 version is an extract and thankfully lasts little over a minute.



If you're a real glutton for an aural drubbing, you can listen to the one of the live performances available on YouTube such as this one on television a couple of years ago.

Bon courage et bon week-end!

Matthew Raymond-Barker howls his way to win France's X Factor

Yes the winner of the France's version of the X Factor (and you have to pronounce that as "Ix Factor) is none other than a guy who was literally booted off the British version of the show without making it through to the live prime time snore-athons.

Matthew Raymond-Barker (screenshot M6 video)

Matthew Raymond-Barker outwarbled Marina D'Amico to become the country's latest super-talented "find" and in the process securing a record deal with Sony.

Oh what a night it was to be - a very long one.

Sandrine Corman was on hand to continue her sterling job of keeping the whole shebang flowing - just as she had done for the past three months.

The judges took their places with Olivier Schultheis (D'Amico's coach) and Canadian impressionist-singer Véronic DiCaire (for Raymond-Barker) keeping their fingers (and just about anything else) crossed for their protegés and it was time to let battle begin.

The show was to be - in the words of Christophe Willem, one of the judges and as a former talent show winner (Nouvelle Star) and ergo someone who should know, "A clash of the Titans".

Even the rather more surly Henry Padovani, a founder member of the Police (did you know that?) and the poor guy who had to pretend that he had actually enjoyed his role as coach of three groups that were never going to win, managed to drum up some enthusiasm for both D'Amico and Raymond-Barker admitting grumpily (and not with any real sincerity) that they, "deserved to be in the final."

Raymond-Barker's (doesn't that just trip off the tongue delightfully) parents had made the trip over from Britain. Poor things, they looked as though they didn't understand a word of what was being said throughout, which was probably the case.

D'Amico's parents too were in the audience - just as they had been all along to cheer their 17-year-old daughter along.

We learned that the 22-year-old Raymond-Barker had turned up at the auditions by - in his words - "pure chance" (yeah, yeah, we believe you), that D'Amico made endless (mindless) jokes and that the two of them couldn't wait to perform together for the first time in the competition.

The songs came and went: three from each of them including the one that would be the first single should they win the competition.

The judges gave their verdicts, which, let's face it, were never going to be along the lines of, "Well that was a load of old tripe. How the heck did we end up with these two in the final?"

Guests Bouncy - sorry Beyoncé - and Bruno Mars showed both Raymond-Barker and D'Amico how it really should be done.

But once again the presence of two international stars performing live didn't really do it in terms of ratings.

Only 2.3 million could be bothered to tune to X Factor while at the same time 8.2 million were glued to their boxes watching the US import "Dr House" over on TF1.

The finals songs sung, both competitors and their coaches joined Corman on stage as she gave a brief resumé of their capabilities (all that was needed really) and told everyone how close the competition had been with only 1,300 votes separating the two.

"The winner of X Factor 2011..." dramatic pause #1..."is"...dramatic pause #2..."MATTYOU RAYMOND-BARKEEEEEEEEER!"

Dicaire gave her "Mattyou" a huge hug. Schulties looked very purse-lipped about the result and D'Amico jutted out her substantial chin in brave defeat.

Raymond-Barker thanked everyone he could think of in French before uttering the inevitable "I don't believe it" in English and the rest of the "also-took-part" contestants rushed on stage to congratulate/comiserate a they saw fit.

Just time for the winner to prepare himself to murder Daniel Balavoine's 1982 hit "Vivre ou survivre" for one last time.

That's the song which will be released on Saturday as his first (and only?) single.

M6 has yet to decide whether it will continue the search for that someone with the X Factor next year or revert to Nouvelle Star (Pop Idol).

Here's a suggestion...how about "Neither of the above".

In the meantime, here's a chance for you to "enjoy" Matthew Raymond-Barker singing "Vivre ou survivre" with the original from Balavoine to serve as a comparison.

France's X Factor - magnificent Maryvette Lair

The television audiences might not be the highest (just 2.2 million tuned in to M6 for the latest edition) and the whole concept is perhaps missing its mark.

But the French version of X Factor (now in its second season) still manages to throw up some delights.

And none more so than the performance during Tuesday's show by Maryvette Lair in the "Over 25s" category.

Maryvette Lair (screenshot from M6 video)

The 27-year-old actress-singer-trapeze artist (what a combination) took a monster hit from one of France's biggest stars and transformed it.

"Que je t'aime" is universally known in France as a Johnny Hallyday anthem; certainly among fans of the ageing rocker and probably for those who aren't too keen on the 67-year-old's music.

So it was always going to be a gamble to tackle the 1969 hit taken from the album of the same name.

Lair though is obviously one for taking risks and, quite simply, has shown the knack of being able to take a song and...well...make it her own.

She might not win the competition. In fact she probably won't.

That'll most likely be fought out between one of the "boys" such as Raphaël Herrerias in the "Under 25s" - if he can match his voice, talent, and good looks with the right songs - and one of the "girls" in the "Under 25s", probably Marina D'amico who can belt out a song (in tune) but has as much stage presence as a plank of wood (well she is just 16 years old).

But Lair's performances mark her out as something other than just another voice - and even one of the judges coaching an opposing category (girls), the lyricist, composer and conductor Olivier Schultheis, had to admit as much.

"You're talented and that's for sure," he said.

"Congratulations, that was magnificent."

It was.

So here's a treat - Lair's version (just click on the image below from M6 replay and wait for the commercial to pass) followed by the original from Hallyday.

Enjoy!

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X Factor à la française "The musical event of the year" - apparently

Just when the French must have thought they were safe from television talent shows, up pops the latest offering - X Factor.

X Factor judges left to right Henry Padovani, Véronic DiCaire, Christophe Willem and Olivier Schultheis (screenshot from YouTube trailer)

On Tuesday the commercial broadcaster M6 will launch the revamped, prime-time search for France's next...er...Sébastien Agius.

Don't worry if you've never heard of him. The chances are, neither have a majority of the French.

Agius was the winner of the first French X Factor in 2009 broadcast on M6's sister channel W9 and although he has released both a single and an album since picking up the title, and played concerts, the 28-year-old has hardly set the French musical scene alight.

Whatever.

The Powers That Be at M6 have obviously decided there's life in the format and, after shelving Nouvelle Star (France's version of Pop Idol) last year at the end of its eighth season, are ready to (re)launch what they proudly and presumably without hyperbolic intent, announce on the show's website will be, "The musical event of the year".

The programme hits the screens on Tuesday evening with an "all-star" line-up of judges that includes - hold your breath - Henry Padovani.

He, M6 proudly informs us, was a "founding member of the British rock group 'The Police'" and is "one of the few French musicians to have had a successful career in Britain."

Apparently he's still "very close" to Sting et al, even though he left barely a year after the group was formed and before it hit the Big Time.

Rest assured though, he has apparently had plenty of success since and brings "with his 360 degrees experience from the world of music as a musician and manager, vision and wisdom to the X Factor candidates."

Ah. There's nothing like laying it on thick.

Joining Padovani is another "heavyweight" from the (French) music scene, Christophe Willem.

Now his is a name with which many French should be familiar and he's very much on tried and tested territory.

The 27-year-old will doubtless be able to give invaluable inside as he's been there, done that and bought the tee-shirt so-to-speak after winning Nouvelle Star back in 2006.

A couple of best-selling albums, several singles, concerts tours and regular television appearances under his belt, Willem says of X Factor that it's a "competition that can clearly change someone's life. I know: I lived it myself."

There's no messing with the musical pedigree of the show's third judge Olivier Schultheis.

He's a musician, lyricist, composer and conductor, son of singer-songwriter Jean and a former student at the prestigious Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris.

Schultheis apparently has "perfect pitch" and has worked with a host of French stars as well as helping launch the careers of several - including Willem.

Completing the line-up of judges, and presumably proving that France's X Factor knows no international boundaries, is Canadian singer and impersonator Véronic Dicaire.

It's not a bad move on the part of the talented 34-year-old who is already a star within the French-speaking community in Canada and fairly blew audiences away in Paris early last year during an extended run at the capital's Théâtre de la Gaîté and returned to play extra dates in November.

Dicaire has a European tour scheduled from this month taking in cities in France, Switzerland and Belgium and an appearance on national telly will surely only boost her appeal to a wider audience.

"By nature sincere and energetic, Dicaire will bring the jury freshness and authenticity," according to M6.

That and, "Anglo-Saxon artistic standards," apparently - whatever that entails.

The whole shebang, including all the stages that have been completed to "discover" the 12 finalists, will begin airing Tuesday March 15 on M6 at 8.45pm local time.

Can you wait?