Customer Reviews

Attraction

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

...and there are plenty of other adjectives for this wonderful recording - I'm sure I'll find more to use before I'm done here. This was my first exposure to this group - and I flipped over it so much that I went back the next day and picked up their previous effort, LIVING-ROOM, which is a fine album as well.

Paris Combo is an extremely talented, vivacious five-piece whose members skillfully combine elements of various genres into their own sound: Parisian café music, Gypsy jazz, be-bop, cabaret and other forms swirl together in a mix that would prove unwieldy in the hands of many. They are all accomplished musicians, and very obviously in tune literally and figuratively with each other on many levels - each member finds a way to both shine and blend on every single track, without ever seeming to eclipse the contributions of the others.

All of the tracks are truly standouts - for the sake of brevity (I looked up the word, for those of you who might wonder...), I'll limit my comments on individual selections to four. On track 2, `Trois petits points', the band takes a breakneck 7/8 rhythm and makes it graceful and natural; tracks 7 and 10, `Dans les bras dun loup' and `Avril', respectively, have two of the loveliest melodies I've ever heard; track 12, the mostly instrumental `Escapade', allows each member to step up in either solo or duo sections - the guitar on this track will bring to mind the stylings of Django Reinhardt, and the tandem work between the scat vocal and upright bass is incredible.

Belle de Berry is the quintessential chanteuse (although she's not limited to that style alone), and she adds some very tasty accordion here and there. Potzi's guitar is astonishing - he's quick and precise where he needs to be, but he never plays without feeling, never like a machine. Multi-instrumentalist David Lewis (trumpet, bugle, piano, string arrangements and co-producer) is excellent on the keys and never overbearing in his brass playing - the production/arrangement values are especially fine and unique in several places where he sounds like he's almost off-stage from the rest of the group, a nice, very effective touch. Mano Razanajato provides a steady (but again, never mechanical) bottom on his upright bass, as well as contributing vocals; and François-François is always inventive, being alternately supportive and driving with his drums and percussion.

The whole thing comes together marvelously - and the spirit of this music is so strong and delightful that knowledge of French is not necessary to enjoy it (or to sense the humor in some of the songs, such as `Mais que fait la NASA?' (`...but who made NASA?'). Whenever I put this into the assortment of CDs I take in the car with me, I might as well leave everything else at home - it stays in the player for days.

Weird things happen sometimes. A world renowned band plays to a gathering of two hundred
at a veteran's hall in a California farming town. Most in the audience have never heard
of the group, but by the end of the performance everyone is gyrating on the dance floor.
The band's infectious music and enthusiastic attitude seduce everyone in the hall.
One fellow is doing cartwheels. In between the sets and afterward band members mingle
with the audience, sign autographs, chat. I saw Paris Combo there, 60 miles from my home,
on a Saturday in May after seeing them two evenings earlier at a club a mile from home,
and only four weeks after first hearing one of their songs on a compilation album with
a Starbucks logo, entirely by chance while waiting for a record store performance by
another new sensation - Portugal's Mariza. The first track on that Starbucks CD was
"Living Room" and I listened to it repeatedly never getting past it.

Listening to Paris Combo, I'm reminded of Burt Bacharach and the complex music he produced,
with its jazz, classical, Latin influences, with its sudden changes of tempo and key
and with the prominent trumpet in many of his arrangements.
Seeing Paris Combo I think of the early days of rock and roll when music was exciting
and fresh, when it was intended for dancing, and when you could see top flight performers
in comfortable, unmobbed settings. But of course their music sounds nothing like
Burt Bacharach's or early rock'n'roll.

Three days later, Mano's bass lines, Belle du Berry's vocal embellishments, David Lewis' piano
riffs, Potzi's amazingly inventive guitar solos and Francois-Francois' terrific drumming are
still ringing in my ears. I can't wait for Paris Combo's next visit to the area and their next
album. ...

Finally, what do they sound like? Like no band you've heard before. They leave one in awe of
the range of influences they seem to absorb so effortlessly, most times several at once in a single tune:
American jazz, Cuban salsa, Brazilian bossa nova, North African and Middle Eastern and of course the
French chanson. How do they manage to do it?

...

The europeans are so cool. I visited France over spring break and I kept hearing this one song all over the place, then, on the last day I was there I found out that is was this band, Paris Combo. I can't understand a single word they say but I love the music so much. To me it kind of sounds like Cirque Du Soliel type music with a little bit of swing thrown in. It's like lounge music and I really like it. The lead singer is a girl and she has such a lovely voice and tons of style.

We have a number of Paris Combo cds....their music always makes us feel transcended into Parisian smiles and joy in lieu of anger from some of the current trash on the US radio. Each of their cds has something a bit better, and different, than on their other cds....enjoy them all.

I am a HUGE Paris Combo fan. I have worn out their first two CDs because I listen to them constantly. I couldn't wait for Attraction to come out. And it is just as fantastic as their previous albums. These five are brilliant musicians and you can't help but dance to their rhythms and melodies. And if you ever get a chance to see them live... GO... you will not be disappointed, it will be the best concert of your life.

Listening to Paris Combo jolts you out of daily existence into a world that lacks mediocrity and is infused with playful spontaneity. Vocalist Belle Du Berry's voice is sensual, fresh and smooth as vanilla syrup over strawberries. She captures the French "joie de vivre" and takes it to entirely new levels of joy that almost feel angelic.

Paris Combo is French, but has an international flair. At times jazzy and infused with Latin sensuality, it has an additional element of gypsy mystery. The sounds of the words melt into the music and it is sumptuous.

~The Rebecca Review

The europeans are so cool. I visited France over spring break and I kept hearing this one song all over the place, then, on the last day I was there I found out that is was this band, Paris Combo. I can't understand a single word they say but I love the music so much. To me it kind of sounds like Cirque Du Soliel type music with a little bit of swing thrown in. It's like lounge music and I really like it. The lead singer is a girl and she has such a lovely voice and tons of style.

Unique, a lot of fun, a very interesting sound, even if you don't speak french (like myself). It has the translation of the lyrics, by the way. Marvelous.

Como toda la discografía de París Combo, es genial. Aqui encontrarán las versiones originales de varios temas que se encuentran en el disco Live, el cual es simplemente fenomenal.

.

Paris Combo's third album is a tour of another world, a forgotten era, when music moved your heart but was classy and seductive at the same time. The second and third tracks from this disc are positively haunting.

There is no one today producing a sound like this. Their music will stay with you; it is mesmerising.