Late Night Music Club with Edith Piaf
By Howie Klein Thursday Feb 21, 2008 10:30pmBy the time she died in 1963 Edith Piaf had established herself as the greatest icon of French music, whose heart-wrenching songs reflect her tragic life. "Non Je Ne Regrette Rien" ("No, I Regret Nothing") is, fittingly, her last smash hit (1960). She dedicated it to the French Foreign Legion and they ate it up and adopted it as their anthem. This version is sung by Jil Aigrot, the voice of Edith Piaf in her biographical film, La Mome (in the U.S., La Vie En Rose, nominated for a Golden Globe this year). The actress who plays Piaf on screen is Marion Cotillard couldn't sing Piaf's songs and the writer-director, Olivier Dahan, met Aigrot by chance. Her own album of Piaf songs, Words of Love, will be released on March 11.
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Talk about covered songs! The Beatles doing a Buddy Holly song - Words Of Love
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25YSyGnNaDI
I saw the movie La Vie en Rose and the actress who played her just simply couldn't have done a better job. The make up that stransported her from a 19 year old to a very sickly old 47 was just amazing.
OK Howie,I can see going out on a limb to further peoples scope on music.
But this brought (to me) to mind Marlena Dietrich.
Thanks for the effort Howie. Just not my cup of tea.
I never could take that particular style of singing.
It reminds me of a ww2 movie. Bon Jour.
never heard this version!
Quelle belle!
Is this is the artist mentioned by Tom Hanks in "Saving Private Ryan"?
I wish I could find her singing Black Denim Trousers, a song sung by the Cheers, written by one of their members, Bert Convy.
Lovely. Thanks, Howie.
Of course, not only the French Foreign Legion ate this up. There's not a Frenchie anywhere who can stop themselves from singing along at "Non Je Ne Regrette Rien” . It is as much the French anthem as the real thing. Perhaps, in fact, more. Thanks for sharing this lovely version with us.
My Oma left me a batch of old 38's, most of which are Edith....now I just need to find a quality record player...do they make them anymore?
8 Strawberrybitch Says: My Oma left me a batch of old 38’s, most of which are Edith….now I just need to find a quality record player…do they make them anymore?
Do you mean 78's?
Sorry yes, those really thick one's, 3/4 the size of regular LP's, Oma left me her old Victrola but my uncle hawked it before I could get it. I'm so bummed.
10 Strawberrybitch
Look in pawn shops, they may have some players with that speed on them, some will have 4 speeds,-78- 45- 33 1/3- 16 7/8.
Nice, but its hard to beat the passion and strength of Piaf's voice. One of a kind
Edith Piaf - Hymne à L'Amour
Sorry, like it maters anyway but that last speed should be 16 2/3!
I hate to be wrong, that's why I hardly ever am!
sure, jil aigroit did a great job singing as piaf in the film; and marion cottillard was nothing short of brilliant in her portrayl of the chanteuse (see skippy's original review of the flick written the nite he saw it).
but with all due respect, if you're going to listen to non, je ne regrette rien, you'll do no better than the original: ladies and gentlemen, i give you edith piaf!
ps...sorry i missed the leonard cohen cover song fest last nite...i just happened to have posted last week the incomparable johnette nepolitano & concrete blonde doing the cohen classic everybody knows.
p.p.s. just listened to the piaf and the cb everybody knows back to back...amazingly similar in tone and texture...and god, now i need a stiff drink...
Thanks for the Piaf and the Cohen cover - don't usually like Cohen covers, but this one was great.
sorry, but the cover singer is ever so slightly sharp.....
I know that's so bitchy of me ... but apart from that she
is strikingly so close to Piaf's voice... quite amazing
thanks for the two versions!
RayC @ 2:
And today she won the Best Actress of the Year award for that role in France
Pretty ugly sad version.
This is how it's really done. Let's ruin beautiful music.
- Edith Piaf
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBC_UUxacQc
Mireille Mathieu
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5uzdwlvWJk&feature=related
NON, JE NE REGRETTE RIEN
Non, Rien De Rien, Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien
Ni Le Bien Qu`on M`a Fait, Ni Le Mal
Tout Ca M`est Bien Egal
Non, Rien De Rien, Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien
C`est Paye, Balaye, Oublie, Je Me Fous Du Passe
Avec Mes Souvenirs J`ai Allume Le Feu
Mes chagrins, Mes Plaisirs,
Je N`ai Plus Besoin D`eux
Balaye Les Amours Avec Leurs Tremolos
Balaye Pour Toujours
Je Reparas A Zero
Non, Rien De Rien, Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien
Ni Le Bien Qu`on M`a Fait, Ni Le Mal
Tout Ca M`est Bien Egal
Non, Rien De Rien, Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien
Car Ma Vie, Car Me Joies
Aujourd`hui Ca Commence Avec Toi
TRANSLATION
No, not at all, No I don't regret a thing
Not the good done on me, not the bad
Is all the same to me.
No, not at all, No I don't regret a thing
Paid, swept, forgotten. Damn the pass
With my memories, I have lighted the fire
My agonies, my pleasures
I don't need them anymore
Sweep away the romances with its tremors
Sweep away forever
I will fix it to nothing
No, not at all, No I don't regret a thing
Not the good done on me, not the bad
Is all the same to me.
No, not at all, No I don't regret a thing
'cause my life, 'cause my joys
Begins today with you.
I'm a total junkie for Piaf...my youngest daughter looks sooo much like her but can't, or won't, sing a lick...damn!
Some tidbits :
"Piaf" means sparrow (popular), and, by extension, any bird (but not ducks, geese, chicken, turkeys…). She was called Piaf because she was petite and a damned fine singer of the streets of Paris.
The Foreign legion never adopted "Non, je ne regrette rien" as its anthem. The Foreign Legion's anthem was, and is "Le Boudin" (musical version here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dA8nhhpccWI&feature=related ).
That said, the Legion did adopt that song (never dedicated to the legionnaires, in fact), but not as anthem. All the story here :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Fanion_de_la_Légion
It's, in a way, like the song "Lili Marlene", considered a nazi war song when it was just a song the Germans (and the german soldiers throughout Europe and Africa) loved (and has nothing nazi or warlike).
A problem with the second link. Let's try again :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Fanion_de_la_L%C3%A9gion
Ignatius @ 12:
I agree. I think Howie missed a chance to turn people onto Piaf's voice. It's not like there aren't any recordings of her music around. While stationed in Spain in the early 60s I visited France numerous times and was befriended by some former and current La Legion members (Marseille was home to many ex-Legionaires.) They indeed loved her. Her death, shortly before I arrived in Spain, was deeply felt by them.
march or die! wich would you rather be ? the butcher or the pig?
thanks skippy, for the real stuff. I found the aigroit version extremely unsatisfying, probably because Piaf's original has always been my heartbreak go to song. When Gore gave his concession speech all those years ago, I listened to it over and over for days. Which is why I still cry when I hear it...
skippy @ 15:
La Vie En Rose was by far my favourite movie for the year.
I hope Marion Cotillard gets an oscar for her performance.
She was magnificient.
La Vie En Rose is really a great movie, not the typical Hollywood blockbuster. The French can shoot good films too. But that's definitely not a movie for right wingers.
They should rather go to Rambo IV.
LMAO
skippy @ 15:
but with all due respect, if you're going to listen to non, je ne regrette rien, you'll do no better than the original: ladies and gentlemen, i give you edith piaf!
Thank you.
If you are going to feature one of the major hits of France's most famous singer, please let her do the song! Would you do a spot on Billie Holiday, with images of her...and somebody else singing one of her tunes?
Late night music suggestion:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=QAcAWWU_0mE
Chopin Nocturne Op.27 No.1 C# min. (Arthur Rubinstein)
This one's a lot of fun:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=PcsRl_LIJHA&feature=related
martha argerich - scarlatti, sonata k. 141
ncmlist @ 30
Sometimes, Madeleine Peyroux really sounds like Billie Holiday.
New song by David Wilcox, late of A&M records.
Please give a listen and share it with your "lists".
http://www.whatarerecords.com/fallingforit
Thanks,
block
to: Wil @ 19
I agree.....Jil was 'sharp' in this. I didn't notice it in the movie, which was astronomically wonderful. We watched it without subtitles the first time around because we didn't know they could beset them on the tv ;-). Watched it again the next day with titles. Magnificent either way. Hope Marian wins.
Sorry, I didn't mean for my post above to sound spammy, I guess it was off-topic for this thread. I just felt it was important enough to try to get it a listening or two, maybe even a Late Night Music Club spot somewhere down the road...
Carry on,
robert
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