About this Artist

• Biography

Editorial Reviews

Reviving a joyous period of French popular music, Roberto Alagna's tribute to Luis Mariano is bound to inspire nostalgia even among listeners who weren't there in first place. Mariano was a French pop star in the years after World War II, bridging the generations between Maurice Chevalier and Serge Gainsbourg. There's a connection here to the swinging bachelor pad style that infected American pop in the '50s as well. But Mariano was not only more debonair than the members of the Rat Pack; he was also technically a more accomplished singer, as much at home on the operetta stage as he was belting out hits like "Vaya Con Dios." That's one of the only songs here that most listeners on this side of the Atlantic will recognize -- two Cole Porter songs saluting Paris are the other exceptions -- for most of Mariano's hits were composed by Francis Lopez. "Mexico," "L'Amour est un bouquet de violettes," and "Rossignol de mes amours" are among the Lopez standards Alagna adopts, with energetic and often jazzy arrangements that bring out this Basque songwriter's infusion of Spanish flavor into the French chanson. With his flexible and gleaming tenor voice, Alagna has a real flair for this music; he never sounds like an opera singer reining himself in to sing pop, simply because he has such a natural sense for the style -- and for the comedy that comes through on songs like the closing "Quand on est deux amis." Francophiles will want to note that Jean Reno, Elie Semoun, Arielle Dombasle are among the guest vocalists joining Alagna on the album. But if these irresistible tunes are unknown territory for you, then you're in for a real treat of discovery. Scott Paulin, Barnes & Noble

Customer Reviews

• Listener Rating: