French Record

Artist: Kate & Anna McGarrigle
Label: Hannibal
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1

UPC: 031257130226
EAN: 0031257130226
ASIN: B000000611

Release Date: 1992-10-30

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Listmania:

Magnificent female voices
Angel voices from Canada
All Sorts of Folk
My "Can't Live Without Them" Recordings

Tracks:

Entre Lajeunesse Et La Sagesse
Complainte Pour Ste Catherine
Mais Quand Tu Danses
Cheminant A La Ville
Excursion A Venise
En Filant Ma Quenouille
La Belle S'est Etourdie
Naufragee Du Tendre
Avant La Guerre
A Boire
Prends Ton Manteau

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Customer Reviews:

Get It While You Can.......2004-08-01

I was vaguely familiar with Kate and Anna McGarrigle when they first appeared on the music scene in the mid-70s. As the decade wore on, my interests leaned more toward jazz and tango and so the sisters dropped from my musical radar screen until a couple of years ago when I heard them singing backup on Nick Cave's No More Shall We Part. And while I am still into jazz and tango, my musical interests have broadened to take in a much greater variety of performers than previously, Kate and Anna most definitely included.
French is a language I neither speak nor understand well, but that does not keep me from enjoying the joyful, whimsical songs offered here. The French Record gives the listener eleven first-class songs to enjoy again and again. The harmonies are heavenly and the music is evocative of the villages and the countryside of French Canada. The music is all written by one or both of the sisters and lyrics are all by the sisters or by frequent collaborator Philippe Tatartcheff. Among better known backup musicians are veteran bassist Tony Levin and guitarist Alun Davies.
My favorites are Entre La Jeunesse Et La Sagesse, Mais Quand Tu Danses, Naufragee du Tendre, and Avant La Guerre, each of which expresses a different mood.
If you missed this album back when it was originally issued, my recommendation is that you get it now while you can. The CD has been out of print for sometime but was recently reissued on a Canadian label. Note that I bought mine at amazon.ca for much less than it is offered for here, even when you take into account shipping charges. Once notified that it was shipped, the CD arrived quickly. I strongly suggest that if you like the style of Kate and Anna McGarrigle that you will be most delighted by The French Record.

C'EST MAGNIFIQUE!.......2002-10-31

I would actually be hard-pressed to choose between this recording and the sisters' newer MATAPEDIA as my favorite McGarrigles album - when either one of them makes it into my cd player, it stays there for several days and many repeated listenings. I remember a little French from my high school daze (we won't talk about how many years ago THAT was...), so I don't understand all of the lyrics - luckily, if I'm curious enough, my best friend is fluent in French, Spanish and Portuguese, so I can turn to her for help. Even without that understanding, however, this record is simply delightful. The McGarrigles sing with that musical telepathy that siblings seem to enjoy - and the results are there for the listeners to reap.

When this record first appeared, without looking at the credits, I assumed incorrectly that the songs here were traditional, or based on traditional works. Au contraire - all of the compositions save one are originals, with lyrics by the sisters' friend Philippe Tatartcheff and the music by Kate and/or Anna. The results are stunningly beautiful, and the arrangements are simple, effective and very evocative of French-Canadian parlor/cafý music, with a bit of dance-hall influence as well. Lots of piano (could it be anything but an upright?) and some tasty accordion - but the vocals, ah! the vocals carry the day, as any fan of these amazing women's work would expect.

I've always heard sheer abandon in Kate and Anna's voices - they sing from the heart and you can hear it in every note. If the voices on this record sounded like they were classically trained, the effect would go out the window. Don't think for a second that I'm saying that the sisters can't carry a tune, or that their voices are rough - their singing is a thing of beauty, but without pretension, without trying to sound like something they're not, emotional and heartfelt without attempting to be a `scholarly' reproduction. It is this honesty - and that's a rare, holy thing in music - that makes this record such an important document, and such a joy to experience.

I don't think I could name a track here that I don't enjoy - but my favorite has to be `Complainte pour Ste Catherine'. Thank God for the `repeat' button! This album is a treasure - and so are Kate and Anna McGarrigle.

PURE BLISS!.......2000-08-27

I don't understand a word of French either but this album never fails to move me on a deep emotional level. Unlike their other albums that I'm familiar with, the mood here is uplifting without the usual undertones of sadness. Every song is great, but my favourites are Entre Lajeunesse ..., Complainte pour St. Catherine, Excursion a Venise (Do they refer to St Frances of Assisi?), En filant ma qenouille. Heavenly harmonies, addictive melodies, this music is a burst of happiness and heartfelt joy. If I knew French, I would sing along as I listened!

You don't need a word of French, trust me..........1999-06-05

...to fall head over heels for this utterly delightful collection from Kate and Anna McGarrigle. Those who love their better-known work - albums like their self-titled debut, self-penned songs such as "Heart Like a Wheel"- as well as the French-language cuts on their first two albums, will welcome this disc into their equal embrace. Whenever I hear these two sisters from Montreal sing and play, I can't help thinking, "there must be a God." Music this beautiful yet totally down-to-earth may be equalled from time to time. Exceeded, never. Find out why - life is too short to wait.

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Soundtrack

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