French Touch

French Touch

by Carla Bruni
French Touch

French Touch

by Carla Bruni

CD

$16.99 
  • SHIP THIS ITEM
    Qualifies for Free Shipping
    Choose Expedited Shipping at checkout for delivery by Thursday, April 4
  • PICK UP IN STORE
    Check Availability at Nearby Stores

Related collections and offers


Overview

As a singer and songwriter, Carla Bruni usually follows the labyrinthine tracks in French music established by artists such as Georges Brassens, Jane Birkin, and Pierre Barouh. Therefore, cutting a collection of standards from rock, pop, and jazz might seem out of character. The songs on French Touch are those Bruni sang and played on the guitar between the ages of nine and 29. The album was initiated by Grammy-winning producer, arranger (and then-head of Verve Records) David Foster. He was knocked out by a Bruni performance in Los Angeles and offered to produce an album. She is accompanied by her regular band and a slew of studio aces including drummer Jim Keltner, guitarist Dean Parks, and harmonica ace Mickey Raphael -- who appears on a lovely, Caribbean-inspired version of "Crazy" that also features its composer, Willie Nelson in duet. While these readings are intimate, they are imbued without nostalgia or artifice. Foster arranges these songs according to Bruni's particular needs as a singer: her breathy contralto, though always intimate and tender, is surprisingly expressive in the English language. She opens with a moody yet sparse read of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence" as a poignant ballad with Cyril Barbessol's ghostly piano, minimal percussion, strings, and nylon-string and slide guitars. Bruni follows with reading of the Clash's "Jimmy Jazz," complete with fingerpops and Fats Waller-esque piano, muted trumpet, and clarinet derived from early-'30s jazz. The Rolling Stones' "Miss You" is viewed through the Barry White and Love Unlimited production aesthetic, with strings swirling atop the airy, funky disco backbeat, hand percussion, and nylon-string guitar. ABBA's "The Winner Takes It All" is delivered sincerely, but its string-drenched chart is twee and forgettable. The reinvention of "Highway to Hell" as a slippery jazz-inflected blues is anything but, with its swinging horns, electric piano, and bumping bassline. The gorgeous cabaret-tinged reading of Lou Reed's "Perfect Day" is imbued with a flawless balance of innocent longing and moody introspection. It's followed -- with a nod and a wink given to her husband Nicolas Sarkozy's difficulties during his time as France's president -- by a too-sweet "Stand by Your Man" that weds Cafe Saravah's nouveau chanson breeziness, upscale honky tonk, and smooth pop. Bruni closes the set with two gorgeous American pop standards: "Please Don't Kiss Me" is modeled directly on Rita Hayworth's version from the 1947 film The Lady from Shanghai. It's juxtaposed with Johnny Mercer's "Moon River," rendered without any of the stylistic artifice of the great pop stylists. Bruni's version is modeled on Audrey Hepburn's singing of it in Breakfast at Tiffany's alone on a windowsill. Though buoyed by an elegant yet economic use of strings, it nonetheless recollects that iconic silver screen moment. The songs on French Touch are idiosyncratic and free of drama. But they are chock-full of tenderness; Bruni delivers them with keen insight into the lyric meanings these melodies convey. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date: 10/06/2017
Label: Decca / Verve
UPC: 0602557726060
Rank: 74288

Tracks

  1. Enjoy the Silence
  2. Jimmy Jazz
  3. Love Letters
  4. Miss You
  5. The Winner Takes It All
  6. Crazy
  7. Highway to Hell
  8. Perfect Day
  9. Stand by Your Man
  10. Please Don¿¿¿t Kiss Me
  11. Moon River

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Carla Bruni   Primary Artist,Guitar
Willie Nelson   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Jeff Driskill   Clarinet,Sax (Tenor)
Mickey Raphael   Harmonica
Robert Brophy   Alti
Jacqueline Brand   Violin
Dean Parks   Guitar
Caroline Campbell   Violin
Reginald Young   Trombone
Josefina Vergara   Violin
Geoffrey Gallegos   Sax (Baritone)
Shawn Mann   Alti
Charlie Bisharat   Violin
Jim Keltner   Drums
David Foster   Organ,Piano,Keyboards
Cyril Barbessol   Piano,Accordion,Keyboards
Tamara Hatwan   Violin
Vanessa Freebairn-Smith   Celli,Soloist
Jochem van der Saag   Synthesizer
Laszlo Mezo   Celli
Ronald King   Trumpet
Kevin Kumar   Violin
Maia Jasper White   Violin
Erik Rynearson   Alti
Jacob Braun   Celli
Katie Sloan   Violin
Nicolas Didier   Percussion
Thierry Teston   Director
Rafael Padilla   Percussion
Songa Lee   Violin
Taofik Farah   Guitar

Technical Credits

Allan Roberts   Composer
Paul Simonon   Composer
Steve Chadie   Engineer
Angus Young   Composer
Billy Sherrill   Composer
Bon Scott   Composer
Benny Andersson   Composer
Topper Headon   Composer
Tammy Wynette   Composer
Doris Fisher   Composer
Lou Reed   Composer
Johnny Mercer   Composer
Bjoern Ulvaeus   Composer
Ronald Scott   Composer
Martin Gore   Composer
Jorge Vivo   Vocal Engineer
Malcolm Young   Composer
Willie Nelson   Composer
Geoffrey Gallegos   Horn Arrangements
Henry Mancini   Composer
Keith Richards   Composer
Edward Heyman   Composer
Jochem van der Saag   Mixing,Producer,Programming,Vocal Engineer
Stan Neff   Mixing,Engineer
Olivier Bassil   Music Copyist,Studio Assistant
Clement Bonneau   Production Assistant
Elisabeth Fabri C   Video Producer
Fabienne Berthaud   Video Director
Plani Presse   Technical Support
John Mellor   Composer
David Foster   Arranger,Producer,Horn Arrangements,String Arrangements
Mick Jagger   Composer
Chris Walden   Horn Arrangements,String Arrangements
Victor Young   Composer
Vlado Meller   Mastering
Michael Geoffrey Jones   Composer
Jean Baptiste Mondino   Video Director
Sylvain Taillet   A&R,Producer
Gina Zimmitti   Music Contractor
Mick Jones   Composer
Marie-Jose Sarazin   A&R
Katherine Frangetis-Tempesta   A&R
From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews