Putumayo Presents: Acoustic France

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Editorial Reviews:

Album Description
Experience the romance and charm of Paris and the French countryside with Acoustic France, a CD collection featuring contemporary chanson and acoustic pop by established stars and up-and-coming artists from today's thriving French music scene. Inspired by the classic styles of an earlier generation, young artists are borrowing from old-school chanson, folk and Gypsy jazz to create an appealing modern sound. The music captures the ambiance of strolling along the Seine or sipping wine in a cafe on a beautiful summer day. These days, the acoustic singer-songwriter movement of the 60s and 70s is being revived by a new generation of artists. Called the Nouvelle Scene, or New Scene, it includes many of the artists featured on this collection who combine traditional sounding melodies with contemporary attitude. Featured alongside established stars are several exciting artists who have spent much of their lives outside of France. Constance Amiot was raised by French parents in West Africa and the Washington DC area before settling in France a few years ago. Acadian artist Pascal Lejeune's French/English song "Bilingue in Paris" tells of a romantic moment between two lovers in Paris. Rupa & the April Fishes is a San Francisco-based group. Lead singer and songwriter Rupa spent many of her formative years in southern France, where her mother still resides. A portion of the proceeds from Acoustic France will be donated to La Chaine de l'Espoir (The Chain of Hope), an organization that provides

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars

Beautiful...? beguiling...? ...believe it! August 19, 2008
5 out of 6 found this review helpful

A sweet sampling of the Nouvelle Scene, a modern musical movement that revives and reworks some of France's best musical traditions, producing sweet acoustic tunes with sleek, sly lyrics. Some of these artists were familiar to me from a bit of persistent poking around on the Amazon-France website, but many were not... The most famous singer here, of course, is model-gone-musician Carla Bruni (these days also known as "Mrs. Sarkozy," the newly-minted wife of French President Nicolas Sarkozy...) who contributes one fine, understated track from her delicious debut album. And if you loved that record, you'll delight in this disc as well. There's plenty more soft-voiced acousto-crooning on here, too, including Constance Amiot and JP Nataf (both on the fab Tot Ou Tard label) and others. The best discovery for me was actress Sandrine Kiberlain, whose "Le Quoditien" is an album highlight. (I've since picked up her first album, and love it!)

There's also a bit of gypsy jazz from guitarist Romane as well as from Thomas Dutronc (the son of French pop superstars Jacques Dutronc and Francoise Hardy) as well as some crazed, catchy Eastern European hybridization from the multi-national, San Francisco-based Rupa & The April Fishes. All in all, this is a really nice record, the kind of album you can leave in rotation for weeks on end and never grow tired of. Recommended! (DJ Joe Sixpack, Slipcue Guide To French Pop)

5 out of 5 stars

Putumayo Captures the Acoustic Spirit of France. September 6, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Putumayo World Music has been releasing world music since 1993, and Acoustic France is among the strongest Putumayo compilation discs yet. Blending contemporary chanson, folk, pop, and Gypsy jazz, it contains a nice collection of thirteen acoustic songs by seasoned singers like the First Lady of France, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, and gypsy guitarist, Romane, as well as newer singer-songwriters like San Fransisco's Rupa & the April Fishes. Though far from ,complete in its survey of French acoustic music, the album succeeds in dishing up some of the best acoustic music France has to offer. Album higlights include Bruni's "Raphael," Romane's "Passion," and Sandrine Kiberlain's "Le Quoditien." This album is a personal favorite. Complete track listings include:

1. Assedic - Les Escrocs
2. J'Suis Pas d'Ici - Thomas Dutronc
3. Quotidien - Sandrine Kiberlain
4. Bilingue in Paris - Pascal Lejeune
5. Mon Ami d'en Haut - J.P. Nataf
6. Clash Dans le Tempo - Constance Amiot
7. Aleas de l'Hiver - Gordon Sanchez
8. Raphael - Carla Bruni
9. Sombre Con - Rose
10. Couplet de la Rue de Bagnolet - Gerard Pitiot.
11. Passion - Romane
12. Maintenant - Rupa & the April Fishes
13. Savon de Marseille - Astier & Les Freres Sakarine.

G. Merritt

5 out of 5 stars

Tour de France October 10, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Putumayo's "Acoustic France" is a stylish,savory offering in the label's lineup of unplugged world music. It's a Tour de France one can enjoy in the comfort of one's home, complete with a delicious sole, banana, and lime recipe!

"Acoustic France" opens with Les Escrocs' melodic "Assedic (Welfare)",sardonic social commentary set to a lively beat. They critique the European welfare state with breezy chanson. Actress Sandrine Kiberlain shows she's as at home with a guitar as on the set with her joyous "Le Quotidien (The Ordinary)",an ode to love in everyday life. Pascal Lejeune's "Bilingue in Paris",at once in English and French, is about a brief encounter in the City of Light. It would be perfect for a soundtrack to an Ethan Hawke/Julie Delpy movie. Constance Amiot's "Clash dans le tempo" is rhythmic,with a beat. Carla Bruni,the First Lady of France/supermodel,who numbers Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton among her former paramours,has "Raphael." It's a stylish,sexy song. Rose's "Sombre Con" is a lighthearted song to an unfaithful former lover. Romane's "Passion" is passionate gipsy jazz. The closing song, from the San Francisco-based Rupa&the April Fishes,is the tango "Maintenant."

"Acoustic France" is an exuberant exploration of unplugged Gallic music. It's stylish,sweet,and savory. It's also for a good cause;a portion of the profits goes to Chain of Hope,which provides health care in poor countries. "Acoustic France" is as bubbly as champagne,with an edge like Dijon mustard,and as sweet as creme brulee!

5 out of 5 stars

Delightful, as always September 28, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful

I love Putumayo, and this CD continues that tradition. My only wish is that Putomayo would put more minutes of music on each CD...

1 out of 5 stars

most dissappointed in cd quality, but music is great. November 16, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

We had purchased several cd's from this publisher and were always delighted, so this time we bought two sets, one for us and one for a gift. We took one cd out of the packeage and placed it in our player. The first 7 songs were great, then came the 8th song which skipped to song number 9. Song number 12 skipped continuously. Thinking that this was a single problem, we opened the cd which we intended to give as a gift, but we encountered the same problem. The music is great, but be sure to listen to the entire cd for quality issues. We are most dissapointed. One star for quality, but should be 4 stars for music.

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