Very popular French pop singer
Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 01/20/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Michele is not well known in Britain or America, but she only sings in French so that is no surprise. However, for anybody who understands French or who (like me) enjoys quality singing in whatever language, Michele's powerful but well controlled voice is a joy to listen to. This compilation contains many of Michele's best songs from the sixties to the end of the century. Her most successful period was the seventies and, quite rightly, that is the period most strongly represented.British and American listeners will recognize Je M'appelle Michele (based on Glen Campbell's Rhinestone cowboy, though not a direct translation) and might also know J'aime (the title track of Abba's Arrival album, which needed no translation) and L'amour est bleu (a sixties French song that has been translated into English as Love is blue). Eurovision addicts may also recognize Une Petite Française, which Michele took to fourth place in the 1977 contest, in which she represented Monaco. The winner in 1977 was Marie Myriam (France) with Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran (UK) coming second, but neither they nor the third-placed Irish group had anything like the success that Michele achieved over several decades although Lynsey had a string of UK hits in the mid seventies. It was her second entry into the contest, having represented Luxembourg in 1966, though that song is not included here.This is as good a single CD of Michele's music as you are likely to find but I must tell you about my double-CD titled Histories d'amour, which I imported from France. It contains forty songs including all but five of the tracks here. It still doesn't include that 1966 Eurovision song but it has all the others I've mentioned, plus many other outstanding songs including a superb cover of Ave Maria. The packaging is sensational - it comes in book form, with the CD's in pockets inside the front and back covers. The rest of the book contains many beautiful pictures of Michele taken between 1964 and 1995 in a variety of settings (all wholesome), plus a track listing and credits. As I write this, it is not listed here but is still available in France.If you enjoy high quality French pop music, Michele Torr will appeal to you. This CD is brilliant, but Histories d'amour, with more songs and superior packaging, is even better."
Track Listings (19) - Disc #1