We interrupt this program for a bit of nostalgia for the old European folk (preferably of the French persuasion).
Over the weekend Sharl and I watched Podium — wait, let me rephrase that. Over the weekend I gently persuaded Sharl to join me in watching Podium. Now before you get any weird ideas, Podium is a comedy about a Claude François imitator whose main character is played by Benoît Poelvoorde of Man Bites Dog fame.
Now who is this Claude François character, I hear you ask. Well, behold:
That’s CloClo performing the classic Alexandrie/Alexandra for you, somewhere back in the late 70s. Pretty shocking for those Young Sophisticates among you, I imagine. Yet I need only hear the beginning notes of that tune and BOOM — there I am: barely 10 years old, fresh out of the bath, hair neatly combed, gushing over those background dansers also known as Les Claudettes. Everything, needless to say, was much better in the seventies. Yes? (No? Discuss.)
Anyway, back on topic: imagine our surprise when during the end credits of Podium, this pops up:
To be fair, it was Sharl who spotted this. It was I who freeze-framed the screen and took the picture. But hey, see that? In their “thank you” list, they actually include Frank Zappa! One can’t but wonder why…
Moving on, here’s another tune that you may actually be familiar with:
Pfeh, a My Way cover, you shrug? Quite the opposite.
Yann Moix, who directed Podium is a Zappa fan…
http://www.lexpress.fr/mag/arts/dossier/proust/dossier.asp?ida=453501
the most important fact about this issue is found later in the same wikipedia article:
“When David Bowie was asked to write English lyrics to “Comme d’habitude” in 1968, the song he came up with was “Even a Fool Learns to Love.” However, Paul Anka bought the rights to the original French version, and Bowie’s version was never released. “Life on Mars?” was Bowie’s riposte to losing out on a fortune; it has similar chords to “My Way.”
IMHO this cover is the best one : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLC3uT3aCoE
no, life on mars? is a hell of a lot better than a drunken gimmick
Having grown up in an officially bilingual country (Canada), these videos remind me of the French language channel (Radio Canada) that our old black and white television antenna brought in along with the other two channels in the mid to late 70s before the advent of cable television. Given that the majority of French speaking Canadians were located in Quebec, with only pockets of Francophones in the remaining provinces, these television personalities were almost completely unknown to non-French speaking viewers. Much like Claude François, the egos of these performers were quite over-the-top, evident even to a Cornflake-box francophone like myself.
Come on, another nice one, english on top of a Godard movie ( watched more a million times):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekQZPozjCX8
Nostalgia about decades passed by are a dangerous minefield. Due to ethics the 70´s in Germany we´re just an extension of the 60´s in many ways. Still a thick crust of old fashioned mind all over the place.
Music. There was only one TV program with pop music (called DISCO) and it was teribble. With one exception nearly the same with radio. Very often me and some school friends met to listen to records or reel to reel (AKAI) with music we liked (Zappa, Wishbone Ash, Genesis, Kraftwerk etc.). Needless to say, that I was a hardcore FZ fan.
Along came the first girlfriend. She wanted to visit a dancing school. So I had (!) to learn dancing or leave (her). Can you imagine me, doing “Dancing Queen” on the dance floor with “Apostrophe (´)” in my mind ?
When I watch retro TV programs about the 70´s toady, I can´t understand the fuzz about it. I am quiet suprised that I survived mentally that decade.
@urbangrafitto: “… barely 10 years old, fresh out of the bath, hair neatly combed…” (quote). Oh yes, I know this feeling very well, and thank you for making me remember it. 😉
@Sharleena: By the way – where´s the “Dr.” gone in your nick? 😉
I don´t know PODIUM. But it is astonishing to see FZ´s name in the end credits. Some years ago, I watched a film by Wong-Kar Wai, called “Happy Together”, about two Hongkong gays in Buenos Aires. To my total surprise all over sudden there was “Chunga´s revenge” as the soundtrack over some scenes. 😉
[quote comment=”364″]When I watch retro TV programs about the 70’s toady, I can’t understand the fuzz about it. I am quiet suprised that I survived mentally that decade.
[/quote]
Funny, I have the exact same feeling about the 80s 🙂
[quote comment=”364″]
@urbangrafitto: “… barely 10 years old, fresh out of the bath, hair neatly combed…” (quote). Oh yes, I know this feeling very well, and thank you for making me remember it. 😉
[/quote]
Well you’re quoting me there actually — don’t make urban say things he didn’t! (mental note: give the “posted by” header a nice flashy green color)
The videos are no longer available…! Is this the curse of Burger Kahn again??
Roland, we are already familiarized… You can call me Sharl 🙂
It was just me, it was just me! The videos ARE still there (breathe :-))
As for ” Roland” I’m getting paid to be his spokesman;
He refuses to familiarize. He wants to be called dr.Roland, the Nighttripper.
By the way in case you would like to get hold of a sort of encyclopedia of ” originals” , ie who composed, where does the song come from, etc:
there’s
http://www.originals.be/
@Barry: Sorry about the wrong quoting, I apologize. 😉
@Sharleena: Hi Sharl ! 😉
@bernard: Dr Dr gimme the news, I have a bad case of … 😉
In my hometown, there was a nice old cinema, where at Sunday mornings matinee shows of films took place. So off I cycled there, to watch the japanese Godzilla movies, japanese Science Fiction films of all sort and other kind of weird stuff at that time. When the matinee was over, I had to cycle straight back home for Sunday lunch. What a wonderful life that was. The 70´s. 😉
Let’s go back to the basic message.
French songs.
There’s Dassin. The filmmaker, he died two days ago.
His son Joe died much earlier. I liked particularly his:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIElXj0ZKlk
Wondreful crap./ kitch.
Yes, this is stubborn Europe.
Extended nostalgia.
Meanwhile in Germany.
Kraftwerk, the Stockhausen pupils.
One of the Kraftwerk people ( great innovative band) just died a couple of days ago.
Just listen to his CDs : Neu 1 & 2 & 3.
ça va pas changer le monde 😉
No, definetly not.
It’s more about the broad view.
For instance, the great B. Bacharach ( jewish) composition “Trains & Boats & Planes”.
Deconstructed: the F. Frithway http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prints_(album)
Lest we forget:
* Sharl made me post this comment, just so you know.
I’m not ashamed of the past!! Non, je ne regreeeeette rrrrrien!!!
Ok, just go back to Charles Trenet.
One of his great songs was ” Nationale 7″.
And listen to the glorious deconstruction by Aksak Maboul.
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Aksak+Maboul
Still: Crammed Records.
Isn´t it strange, that Kraftwerk had a real drummer?
Nostalgia isn’t as good as it used to be.
[quote comment=”364″]Nostalgia about decades passed by are a dangerous minefield. Due to ethics the 70´s in Germany we´re just an extension of the 60´s in many ways. Still a thick crust of old fashioned mind all over the place.
Music. There was only one TV program with pop music (called DISCO) and it was teribble. With one exception nearly the same with radio. Very often me and some school friends met to listen to records or reel to reel (AKAI) with music we liked (Zappa, Wishbone Ash, Genesis, Kraftwerk etc.). Needless to say, that I was a hardcore FZ fan.
Along came the first girlfriend. She wanted to visit a dancing school. So I had (!) to learn dancing or leave (her). Can you imagine me, doing “Dancing Queen” on the dance floor with “Apostrophe (´)” in my mind ?
When I watch retro TV programs about the 70´s toady, I can´t understand the fuzz about it. I am quiet suprised that I survived mentally that decade.[/quote]
What I remember most about the 70s, Roland, is how the mind and music of FZ saved me from much of the dreck of that decade, french or otherwise. If one only listened to AM radio at the time, though, one wouldn’t think so. It seemed as if all of the really good music of the 70s were being played on reel to reel machines in little black light basement apartments, or on late night college FM stations, while the rest of the world was catching Saturday Night Fever or out buying mood rings or pet rocks.
Don’t feel bad regarding your first girlfriend. Girls make guys to funny things, especially when there’s potential teenage plooking involved. I recall, one of my early girlfriends would only “do the nasty” if I wrote her love poems. I wrote one hell of a lot of really really bad love poetry that year, but I figured it was worth it. She wound up marrying a mechanic named Joe who runs a garage in B.C. (can it get any more ironic than that?).
[quote comment=”377″]For instance, the great B. Bacharach ( jewish) composition “Trains & Boats & Planes”.[/quote]
“( jewish)” ?
What’s the relevance of B.B. being of jewish descent? Why do you insist on mentioning this explicitly? To the non-bernard-educated reader this is borderline racist (which I know you are not). You have this puzzling habit of pinpointing race and/or descent when talking about (what you perceive to be) a minority.
Second: what’s ( with) the (random ) spaces featured ( in) your (between brackets ) commentary? I’d ( really ) love (to ) know ).
Xorg: Just wait: next year’s nostalgia will be new & improved!
No, Barry, I do not happen to be a racist. When I was the international secretary of the organisation I worked for, I attended all Jewish New Year festivities and I’ve met Simon Peres several times. The same goes for my relation with the PLO by the way.
Back to music.
B. Bacharach wants to be mentioned as being jewish.
And in case you’re interested in new jewish music, there’s amongst others the Tzadik.com site, click on radical jewish culture.
Another 70´s story is, how I started to listen to FZ´s music: I heard “We´re only in it for the money …” the first time at my uncle´s place. (The same uncle gave my first Beatles record to me, which was “Sgt. Pepper” – isn´t that ironic, too?) So I had a first impressions, which I liked from the very beginning. Then I bought a John Lennon double – longplayer, called “Sometime in NYC” which had one side of “Plastic Ono Mothers” live, which I thought was fantastic. Having very rare pocket money, I decided to buy “200 Motels” at my local record shop. It was a sell out, so my copy was cheap. At that time, I prefered “We´re only in it…” to “200 Motels”. Shortly thereafter, I got a triple vinyl album as a present, called “Super Stars Live” with Doors, Beach Boys, Yes “live” recordings AND The Mothers second half of “Just another Band from L.A.”. This was it – I became a fan. And after a while I started to like “200 Motels” as well. All my friends at that time, listened to The Sweet, Slade or T. Rex. I was the weirdo. And FZ´s music made the 70´s (as a start) worth going through. 😉
Roland, I had heard FZ on the radio ( yes, public radio was broadcasting that music then).
I got puzzled. As soon as the film 200 Motels was released I took the train to Brussels ( 10O km from where I lived) to watch the movie.
I then started telling my friends that this was a very good record. We listened to it.
And – believe it or not- the conclusion of the discussion amongst 16 years old ( in 1970 ) was: ” this happens to be purple music”.
bernard, just some years later (of what I described due to my first contact to FZ´s music) I was able to watch the film “200 Motels” in my home town. Since this very moment, I liked the album even better. And: I started to like the crossover from Zappa / Beatles. First via John Lennon (“Sometime in NYC”) and then via Ringo Starr (who plays Zappa in “200 Motels”).
Anyway: At that time NO music of FZ was aired in Germany. NO WAY!
Years later, when “Bobby Brown” became a “hit” in Germany, it was played on the radio. AND: The last time, I heard FZ´s music aired was shortly after he died. Sad – isn´t it.
Well, the more I write about it, the more I understand, how important all this was for me at that time. Being different in a way. Although, if you would meet me now, you won´t SEE this at all. But my mind is MY mind! 😉