Customer Reviews

Gin Tonic

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I first received this album in December 1981 and it has been a firm favourite ever since. One that takes a few plays to appreciate then stays with you forever. Great variety of song styles from the fast Jazzy Retro Satanas to quiet thoughtful ballads such as Seule Comme une Pomme, and the smoky bar late night Gin Tonic. I can't praise it enough. Love it!

"Jazzy Retro Satanas", which opens this album, has that hedonistic, "party like it's 1999", vibe that has alienated many fans of her earlier music. It seems throwaway and inconsequential in contrast to the almost mystical tenderness of her 60s recordings but even here she sings with a cool insouciance that keeps the revelry at arm's length and suggests she may not have sold her soul just yet. And if you stick with the album through its subsequent undulations of mood and caprice you may end up agreeing with me that it's every bit as personal and unique as anything Francoise ever recorded. Sure, she is a little more wordly and self-assured (she was after all 35 when she recorded this album) but she's as unsullied as ever, completely without artifice, vocal "persona", or anything that detracts from that purity and individuality that she alone possessed. And yes, even though once again she hardly wrote anything on the album (as was the case with all her late-70s recordings) most of the songs sound MADE for her; there's no sense she's "interpreting" somebody else's ideas. Try the sublime "Seule Comme Une Pomme" or the magical modulations of "Si C'est Vraiment Vraiment Vrai" or the doomy meanderings of "Que Tu M'Enterres" - each of these she sings as if she owns the song. In fact, her singing throughout is about as perfect as can be imagined in its particular (some may say limited) oeuvre; I can hardly find a single phrase or intonation I'd have wished done differently and believe me this sense of lapidary perfection is a rare experience for me amongst modern singers. A caveat or two: there is one genuine throwaway number, "Juke Box" and you only get barely thirty minutes of music. However, if you love exquisite singing rather than emotional bellowing a la the majority of contemporary vocal exponents you will fall in love with this album along with pretty well everything else Francoise recorded.

I have been a fan of Francoise since I was 12yo. Born and raise in France I moved to the states at 21. I own all of her music. This is a great album. Fun creative and melancholic. This is one of her better work. Gabriel Yared haunting music (The English Patient) is textured and balanced.To say she was at her peak would be unfair since she is now 66 and still producing amazing album. An French Icon no less...