LOOK WHAT I HAVE FOUND vol 212
"Le vilain pacha" - 16 yé-yé treasures by sixties vilains

 

In The Trashcan Records       GARBAGE212
"Fais-moi mal, Johnny, John, Michael, James, Louis..."

1. le pacha - jo alan

No version can beat Jean Constantin's original from 1960, but this ain't bad either. Jo Alan recorded it in 1968 for Disques Vogue. See also vols 41 and 154 for info about this Belgian singer, born Jorge Aliane.

9. john et michael - brigitte bardot

B-side of her terrific "Tu veux ou tu veux pas", one of her best recordings, released in 1970 on Barclay.

2. vieile fille - eddie mitchell

I love "Spinning wheel". It's hard to record a bad version. This funky yéyé rendition works always when I spin it parties. From 1969 EP on Barclay.

10. marchand de parasols - the cousins

The best known Brussels outfit in the early 60s (remember "Kili watch" and "Kana kapila") with a funny rock 'n' roll tune. Released in 1961 on Palette Records. See vol 250 for the best song from this EP.

3. les james dean - petula clark

Her funny French singing gave her a lot of hit singles in France, although I'm not sure this was a big seller in 1964. I like it though. See later vols 231 and 233 for more Petula tunes.

11. ya ya twist - petula clark

A French twist version of "Ya Ya", the big Lee Dorsey hit, also from 1961. But the first to call this song "Ya ya twist" was Joey Dee & The Starlites.

4. oh qu'il est vilain - brigitte bardot

Tropical yé-yé tune from 1968 on the "Le diable est Anglais" EP. It also appeared on her "Show" album, on Disc-AZ in 1968. All four tracks were written by Jean-Max Rivière and Gérard Bourgeois. See also vol 117 and vol 237.

12. la fille de paille - brigitte bardot

A lesser known BB single from 1969. Her next single was "Tu veux ou tu veux pas". It's not on one of her albums, only on later samplers. You can't but fall in love with her when listening to this sensuous tune.

5. tout me ramene a toi - francoise hardy

Slow yé-yé song by the one and only real queen of French pop in the mid sixties. It is the B-side of "Et même", a Vogue release of 1964. If you're a Hardy fan, check out vols 139, 145, 152 or 154.

13. plus d'amis - les sunlights

First released on Sachem in 1965 and one year later this one on Vogue. Excellent French sung beat tune from 1966. See also vols 161 and 170 for more Sunlights.

6. 18-39 - jane birkin

Hot French latin tune by Serge Gainsbourg's muse and partner. They recorded it in 1969 for Fontana.

14. les mercenaires - hugues aufray

Sometimes called the French Bob Dylan because he recorded so many Dylan songs in French. But this is a self-penned tune he recorded in 1966.

7. fais-moi mal johnny - les charlots

No version can beat Magali Noel's version from 1956. The song was written by Boris Vian. Les Charlots were Antoine's backing band in the 60s. This silly cover was released in 1969 on Disques Vogue. See vol 47 and also vol 170 for more info.

15. oh louis - michel polnareff

Polnareff wrote this rock 'n' roll tune in 1967 with a boogie piano and horns and even handclaps. It's also featured on his third album "Volume 2".

8. l'affreux jojo - michel polnareff

Son of Ukranian born father he was a big star in France and not only because of his weird outfits he used to wear. This is maybe an atypical Polnareff recording he recorded in 1968 for Disc'AZ. See also vol 110.

16. habibi rock - bob azzam

Mix "Shish kebab" and "Mustapha" with a Bill Haley topping in Egypt and you get "Habibi rock". Azzam did it again; a catchy Middle-Eastern flavoured rock 'n' roll tune on  Festival Victory in 1960.