|
|
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Girl and Four Guys = one of Célines most personal discs, November 9, 2003
I first fell in love with Céline's music from the early `80s when her songs were delightfully bubblegum-poppish (think Visa pour les beaux jours, Amoureuse, Je ne veux pas etc.), and now, listening back on that simpler era full of puppy love and upbeat tempos is a pleasant sort of Céline nostalgia, but I prefer the strong woman that Céline has become: accomplished performer, loving wife and mother, as I approach the same stage in my life. "1 fille & 4 types" shows us again that Céline's mature talent and creativity have no bounds. She is relaxed, refreshed and radiant here, and this is quickly becoming my favourite Céline album of the last decade. Céline returns triumphantly to the Francophone music arena with « 1 fille & 4 types, » her first French album since 1998's S'il suffisait d'aimer. We find Céline with a new image: short-cropped, mussed hair, wearing a baby tee for Buff's Car Wash, looking older, wiser, and perhaps a bit edgier on the album's cover, surrounded by her four "guys" from the title: Jacques Veneruso, Erick Benzi, guitarist Gildas Arze and French superstar Jean-Jacques Goldman, who last collaborated with Céline on D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer. The thirteen songs are woven from sheer poetic beauty, by turn gentle and pensive, declarations of love and loss and moving on. There are no belted love anthems here. Céline is at a point in her life that she brings gravity to the thirteen songs, makes the listener utterly entranced and hooked on each lyric (the songs were co-written by Goldman, Veneruso, and Benzi). The songs occasionally evoke memories of earlier albums, such as Des Milliers de Baisers (Thousands of Kisses), with a drum intro reminiscent of Pour que tu m'aimes encore. As with D'eux, Céline and the gang experiment with different musical influences, such as a marked Irish rhythm and tinwhistles on Je Lui Dirai (I'll Tell Him), a touching declaration of Céline's love for her young son René-Charles. Ne Bouge Pas (Don't Change) evokes Delta Blues with its saucy slide guitar and blues harp, backed by a gospel choir. The bonus song, Valse adieu (Farewell waltz), is a folksy, five-part harmony, with acoustic guitar, and is beautiful, but much too short at a minute and a half. If you don't speak French, don't let that scare you off from experiencing this wonderful album. The emotions of the songs speak for themselves, although if you do speak French or are learning, dust off your dictionary to appreciate the beauty and simplicity of the French lyrics, which I consistently find to be more emotional and poetic than Céline's English albums. (Also, listening to music is an excellent way to accustom oneself to learning another language.) "1 fille & 4 types" is Céline's most personal, touching work to date and a sure crowd-pleaser for music critics and Céline fans alike. Buy it today and experience the magic for yourself!
|
, recommendations and new releases on SoundUnwound 
