Various Artists - Putumayo Presents: French Cafe

It really does feel like I'm sitting in a cafe in Paris. It makes me want to go to France!

Everything about this made me yearn to return to France, as i had been there just the year before. The light beat to the chanson songs made me wish i was sitting on the cobbled streets of Paris or the south of France, enjoying "un cafe" and watching everything just pass me by as i lingered on every sip of the always-fabulous rich brew that French all did so well. (A croissant on the side wouldn't go astray!)
This is one album that i can't get enough of.

I am French Canadian, my husband English and we both love it. It's very European.

Listen, I know it's universally fashionable to bash the French these days. And I won't pretend I'm above it. Sometimes it seems the French go to great lengths to be unlikable. But, after listening to this collection, I just can't bring myself to be another jackal heaping on the abuse. Sure, the French can be relentless with their humorless, self-righteous, hypocritical pretensions. But they come by it honestly. Historically, they've played enough of a role driving cultural evolution to earn them a little deference.

Truth be told, I do like the French. There have been entire eras when the French acted as the last defense of sanity. Sure, the last century or so hasn't been anything to brag about, but they have still have some haughtiness banked up. And recently there have been increasing signs of reflection and self-criticism. Their anti-Americanism may be hard to take, but truthfully, it isn't much different from what plenty of us say to each other. I'm a proud American, but I can admit we are ridiculous.

I like the French. I like the sound of the language. I like their surly new president. I like the idea of riding a bike with a loaf of bread sticking out of the basket. I like hairy armpits. I like showering infrequently and working up a little funk. I like Camus. And- please don't tell my kids- but I think some people really do look cool smoking. I'm okay with Faure and Debussy. I'm not crazy about poodles and I don't like paying a lot for small portions, but that's okay, there's room for a little give and take. The fact that they have government commissions encouraging their citizens to replace "carjacking" with "piraterie routiere?" I like that. At the very least, it's harmless silliness.

French Café is a good compilation. I particularly like the vibrant shuffle of "Fimbre De Verre," the inebriated warble of "Ondule," and the seductive "On N'a Pas Besoin." The songs are similar enough to create a toasty, breezy mood, but different enough to keep you listening. I'm not sure what the expert-music-snob take on Putumayo is, but for my amateur ears, these cats do a great job of selecting songs that sound great and flow well together. Check it out. French Café will put you in a dreamy, romantic mood. And it'll make you dig the French. After all, the worst thing about the French is that they are just as bad as the rest of us.

Putumayo's French Cafe is a charmant blend of old and new from such luminaries as Brigitte Bardot, Jane Birkin, Barbara and Serge Gainsbourg, mixed with modern panache from the Paris Combo, Sanseverino, Polo, and Coralie Clement (whose breathy delivery is a cross between Birkin and Astrud Gilberto). Clement recorded her debut album Salle Des Pas Perdus at the tender age of 19 and captures that breezy bossa nova style immortalized by Astrud Gilberto in the '60s, and her album is worth tracking down if you enjoy the music on French Cafe.

The resulting tracks capture that sort of carefree, bohemian joie de vie that Paris is famous for, some with quirky lyrics, Django-influenced manouche guitar, accordion, and Edith Piaf-inspired vocals from Paris Combo (Motifs). The charming En Douce sounds like it could have been a bonus track on Amelie: Original Soundtrack Recording, with a scratchy fiddle and spritely accordion that could have been the soundtrack to Toulouse-Lautrec's Montmartre. Others are slower and moodier, such as Brigitte Bardot's Un Jour Comme Un Autre. If you've always wanted to visit a Paris sidewalk cafe but have been scared off by the skyrocketing Euro, purchase Putumayo's French Cafe and enjoy with a bowl of cafe au lait and a croissant; if you close your eyes, you won't know you're not in Paris.

I'm not an expert at French chanson, but I like this little collection of cafe songs. "La Fee Clochette" is fast and fun, and "En Douce" has that classic French sound with the accordian and violin. None of these songs are profound in any way, but they're good to learn French by or to sing along to, whatever the case may be. Have fun with it.

This cd is so nice to listen to. It's the perfect background music for a gathering or party... I even like having it on while I'm cleaning the house. I don't speak french.. but still find the music lively and entertaining.

I read, write, speak, and understand French. Don't waste your time trying to find the words to these songs on the net. It isn"t worth the effort.

It has been afew years since I've been back, but if this is the current state of French cafe music, I'm surprised more French people don"t eat/drink at home.

Nicely produced. Good sound. Worth a one time listen through. Then after that, save the disk for low level background muzak for those times when you're entertaining, and trying to sound more sophisticated than you are. Light Mozart or Vivaldi would serve the same purpose, possibly improve your intelligence, and actually give people something to listen to during lulls in the conversation.

If you want to relax and sip on a good cup of coffee / tea on a Sunday afternoon, this is a good choice.

This cd didn't do much for me...there's only a couple songs on the entire cd that i enjoy...i skip through the rest of them (they are just goofy).

I am a high school French teacher and it is REALLY hard to find French music that doesn't make the kids groan. When I first listened to this cd I loved it, but I didn't think THEY would since our tastes in music are sometimes not real similar! Quelle surprise!!! They loved it as much as I did - some have even asked me where to purchase it. I have played it so many times that I am now ordering a back-up copy to keep here at school.
This is French music at its finest!!

I love sitting in a cafe and remembering when I went to Europe. This CD gives me the exact feel when I stayed in Paris. I love this cd. I play this cd all the time when I want to relax to mellow tunes.

I love this CD and it is one of my favorite French CD's (I own many). Putumayo does such a great job of putting together wonderful compelations from different artists. If you are looking for something you will be able to enjoy during a nice dinner at home, a relaxing car ride or as some easy listening background music, this is a great CD to get. I speak French on an intermediate level, and I've enjoyed trying to figure out what the songs are about. My husband, on the other hand, speaks no French at all, but also enjoys this CD as much as I do. Kind of strange as his regular favorites CD's include anything by U2, The Killers, Cold Play and the like. With that said, I guess French Cafe will appeal to anyone! Additionally, the new Paris Cafe, also by Putumayo, is just as popular in my house!

Je n'aime que la moitié des chansons. I only like half the songs and hit fast forward a lot when I try to listen to this disc. Putumayo could have done better.

The Putumayo World Music Hour devoted one of their weekly programs (MOSTLY) to this album.While it was perfect as background music for an hourlong drive to Santa Rosa,I was glad I HEARD it on the radio for free instead of buying the CD for myself.

"French Cafe" is lauded because it's French,like the settings&characters in the bestselling "Da Vinci Code." As I found the novel "Da Vinci Code" overrated&boring (oh my!the descendant of Jesus&Mary Magdalene is the redheaded Sophie Neveu!Alors!),so I find it with this album.

Brigitte Bardot is good at sulking musically;the sex symbol version of Edith Piaf.Serge Gainsbourg groans in his songs,as if overcome with ennui.Paris Combo is mult-culti,but it comes across as strained&sappy.

When it comes to French music,I prefer Lo'Jo.Denis Pean sounds like Serge Gainsbourg,but he also has Yamina&Nadia El Mourid to counterbalance him.Lo'Jo offers a spicy musical ratatouille;this album is as sappily sweet as a cream puff.Chocolate-filled croissants are great,just not in excess.

I bought both this record and this underground new funk and jazz electronica album called Paris Under a Groove. The Paris under a groove album is nice and funky. It really captures the evening lounge and nightlife sounds of the beautiful city of light. But these french artists, including the great St. Germain, always keeps a funk and jazz bassline or, a nice fusion of that great french touch sound. Highly recommended.

The French cafe sounds capture the chanson, or classic songs of France. This is nice, but it gets kind of monotonous and lets face it. The songs aren't that thrilling.

Putumayo presents another well-crafted collection of tunes evoking the mood of a particular place, in this case the much-romanticized street-side French cafe. An interesting aspect of this compilation is that Putumayo did their research and went for authenticity rather than an American idealization of what many would ANTICIPATE hearing at a French cafe. (The solo accordion pieces ain't here, folks.) You'll hear authentic French artists performing their best chops, not something Disney-esque or "Rugrats in Paris"-like. The result is a breezy, easy to listen to, largely club-jazz album that may make one want to whip out a hard baguette to gnaw on.

Paris Combo does a fine job on their two pieces, delivering smooth, low-key vocals backed by a serviceable jazz quartet. Serge Gainsbourg sultrily growls in his piece, evoking passion showing how his music reached superstar status in France (even recording a couple of albums with Brigitte Bardot, also featured here). Enzo Enzo's wispy vocals waft from one's stereo light and airy, emulating a musical breeze. Some may find a tune or two somewhat pretentious (as many things French can be easily deemed) but most of the songs are by-and-large quite discreet. One could almost imagine an alternate album title: French Lounge Lizard...

;-)

As with all Putumayo albums, the liner notes are so informative and interesting, they bear meantioning in a review. The clean, crisp production is in typical Putumayo fashion, very high.

FRENCH CAFE comes highly recommended for those who've been France and want an album that'll take you back. Also recommended for those in search of a change of pace album good for setting a low-light mood. Overall, an unobtrusive and enjoyable collection.

Great mix of french classics. Good for relaxing or a dinner party!

This is a really lovely collection of Frenchy music--you really do feel transported to a cafe somewhere in France. I love it!

This brings back fond memories. Ca me reviens au temps perdu.
Merci bien.

Great stroll through the best selections of classic and modern French music. Suprisingly very upbeat (some Francophiles like the more 'brooding' nature of a lot of French music, but not me). Excellent addition to your music collection. Thank you Putumayo!

A very pleasant selection of contemporary French jazz pop fusion that should please any Francophile.

I LOVE THIS CD! It's an excellent sample of classic and modern French music. This is a very upbeat and jazzy collection of songs and brightens my mood when I listen to it. It is an excellent addition to your music collection that introduces you to some great French musicians. I will definately be buying more Putumayo CDs.

This turned out to be exactly the sort of French music I had been looking for to help me develop my French auditory processing skills. The lyrics are as crisp as can be, the simple instrumental support does not get in the way of hearing the words, and the pacing of the language is slow enough that the words don't get all jumbled together. That's true on every song. The accompanying liner notes booklet contains about one page in English and one page in French about each of the songs. The one drawback is that the lyrics are not included. As another reviewer reported, most of the lyrics can be found at paroles.net as long as you have the dedication to search out one song at a time. Just pasting in the title of a song from Amazon's listing does not always yield the song immediately. There are some spelling variations. Sometimes you will need to browse an alphabetical title list or search on the name of the artist first in order to find a title.

Another great album from Putumayo. They sure know how to put together the best world themed compilations! This one is another winner. This collection has the modern artists like Coralie Clement and Paris Combo with the classics like Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot. I especially love Ondule by Mathieu Boogaerts. It's a fun, poppy tune. Check it out!

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Putumayo always puts out good, eclectic collections, and this one is no exception. The title conjures up images of Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron dancing on the Seine, Edith Piaf ripping her heart out with "La Vie en Rose" and a hot demitasse with a couple of madeleines. Listening to this album will not provide such a complete throwback, but it will make you appreciate the different textures of popular French musical styles - genres like chanson (French song), musette (traditional style influenced by immigrants) and manouche (gypsy jazz). The eclecticism is enhanced by the wide variety of performers presented here from contemporary artists to legendary stylists since WWII.

The old guard is represented by the likes of Serge Gainsbourg, a controversial figure and notorious womanizer, whose song here, "Marilou Sous la Neige", a rather tame pop ballad, sounds a bit like Gordon Lightfoot. Two of his lovers are represented as well - Jane Birkin, who provides an updated version of Gainsbourg's "Elaeudanla Téïtéïa" swimming through what sounds like a Wurlitzer organ, and sex kitten Brigitte Bardot showing surprising jazz vocal chops on "Un Jour Comme un Autre". A charming-sounding chanteuse named simply Barbara contributes a musical tribute to a criminal in "Si la Photo est Bonne", and George Brassens' guitar-plucked "Je M'Suis Fait Tout Petit" is café chanson at its most heavily Gallic.

The newer tracks hold up well to their predecessors with Paris Combo proving two manouche songs with style, the mood-setting opener "Fibre de Verre" and "On N'a Pas Besoin" with exemplary guitar by Potzi and trumpet by David Lewis. Sanseverino provides a bouncy track with a Stephane Grapelli-like jazz violin that reminds me quite a bit of Manhattan Transfer. Matthieu Boogaerts' "Ondulé" sounds like a Gallic version of a Jason Mraz song with an unearthly calliope-like instrument. Coralie Clément contributes a breathy performance complete with undulating seashore sounds on "La Mer Opale", and Enzo Enzo's "Juste Quelqu'un de Bien" is a smoky chanson with a compelling jazz guitar. The CD comes with an informative booklet which gives mini-biographies on all the performers and the genesis of their songs. This is a genuine musical treat for Francophiles. C'est si bon.

I was very pleased with this CD. An excellent sample of all kinds of different artists. I recommend this to anyone wanting a good sample of french music. I will pick out my best ones and look for these artists to find what music they have done. Once again, I recommend this.

Well thought-out selection of various French cafe artists, nicely presented in one long playing CD. If you're in the mood for this genre of music, this ecclectic mix will be sure to delight. A real diverse group of artists, time periods and personalities.