La Vie en Rose [Original Soundtrack] [Original recording remastered, Soundtrack]

Jacques Laure (Composer), Georges Moustaki (Composer), Pierre Roche (Composer), Angel Cabral (Composer), Henri Crolla (Composer), Edith Piaf (Composer), Norbert Glanzberg (Composer), Charles Dumont (Composer), Marguerite Monnot (Composer), Christopher Gunning (Composer), Raymond / Monnot, Marguerite Asso (Composer), Maurice Yvain (Composer), Vincent Scotto (Composer), Paul Dalbret (Composer), Fernando Marchetti (Composer), Jean / Pruvost, Francois / Chagnon, Pierre / The Delabre (Composer), Charly Maresca (Composer), Christopher Gunning (Conductor), David Hartley (Performer), Alceo Passeo (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: David Hartley, Alceo Passeo
• Conductor: Christopher Gunning
• Composer: Jacques Laure, Georges Moustaki, Pierre Roche, Angel Cabral, Henri Crolla, et al.
• Audio CD (May 22, 2007)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered, Soundtrack
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B000MEYIBG
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,097 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #19 in Music > Miscellaneous > Nostalgia
  • #23 in Music > Broadway & Vocalists > Cabaret
  • #30 in Music > Pop > Euro Pop > French Pop

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

As befits the soundtrack of a music biopic, most of the heavy lifting here is done by the movie's subject: iconic French singer Edith Piaf. She was the Gallic Judy Garland, a natural performer who overcame one personal tragedy after another and was never more alive than on stage, forging an uncommon bond with both material and audience. Since actress Marion Cotillard lip-synchs in the film, the first 11 tracks on the CD are by Piaf herself, and give a good overview of her biggest hits (though we get the English version of the title track) and her feverish, ultra-dramatic style. But Piaf wasn't only a tragedienne of song: Her lighter side is represented by "Rien de Rien" and "Mon Manège à Moi," which she infuses with wonderful flair. Tracks 12-20 are made up of Christopher Gunning's richly symphonic original score (check out "La Mort de Leplée"). The last third of the album offers Piaf without Piaf, with contemporary singers Jil Aigrot and Maya Barsoni performing her songs (apparently because the originals' poor sound quality meant they would have stuck out in the movie). Watch out, however, for Mistinguett's hilarious "Il m'a vu nue," a slice of French music-hall history preserved in amber. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Product Description

SOUNDTRACK LA VIE EN ROSE

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great! Could have been superb!, August 7, 2007

By 

Infirmiere - See all my reviews

This review is from: La Vie en Rose [Original Soundtrack] (Audio CD)

I have been a fan of Piaf since I was a child in France. I have multiple LPs and CDs. I saw and loved the movie "La Vie En Rose" and had to have the soundtrack. The Piaf songs are wonderful, so clear and crisp you can hear the nuances of her voice. The "original music" was okay. But, no one should try to "interpret" Piaf's songs on the same CD with her, as those singers of the "additional songs" did. It was truly a mistake.
This CD could have been filled with so many of her wonderful songs; les 3 cloches, les amants de Paris, mon legionnaire, le vieux piano, sous le ciel de Paris, etc, etc. To say the least, I am disappointed. There was not even a rendition of the La Vie en Rose in French!

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Two strong recommendations, September 3, 2007

By 

haregrog "haregrog" (Wilmington, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: La Vie en Rose [Original Soundtrack] (Audio CD)

By placing a passel of Piaf's originals at the beginning of this excellent three-act soundtrack, inevitably anything that follows her set will have a hard time holding up. But the score for this beautiful movie can stand on its own, and fulfills the promise, so often abused, that film offers the last great hope for orchestral music. This short set tastefully reflects on moments of melancholy and transcendence and is, occasionally, breathtaking.

The other amazing thing about this soundtrack that makes it worth having, even alongside one or two other Piaf collections you may already own, is the rich re-mastering of many of Piaf's signature tracks. I never knew it could be done with such technical proficiency while retaining the general tone and atmosphere of the recordings that, along with Piaf's timeless singing, makes them immortal.

If only her original French "La Vie en Rose" and a few others had also been remastered and included as well, but that was clearly outside the scope of this project. What's here is wonderful, even among the (quite understandably) weaker "third act" interpretations.

26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Piaf soars!, August 5, 2007

By 

Buck Green - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: La Vie en Rose [Original Soundtrack] (Audio CD)

Those who have seen Marion Cotillard's Oscar caliber performance in "La Vie En Rose" will love this disk for the eleven songs she lip-synched so brilliantly in the film--10 of them by Piaf. The old recordings were enhanced with modern technology to sound great. The soundtrack's underscoring tracks and other filler could easily have been deleted. Only the Piaf tracks found their way to my iPod.