I was thinking today about how sucky French rock and roll was.
We all love Johnny Hallyday, but he is no Edith Piaf. He is no Charles Aznavour. Edith and Charles have nothing to do with rock, because French is the language of longeurs and triste, and not the language of the hammer, the beat, the job, the drummer.
So, I Googled best French rock songs. The first one listed was not a rock song at all. Typical.
The second one is this one, which is okay. It’s not just a Jack White ripoff, it’s not just a simulation, it sounds of a place and time. Not a great tune, French is not a great language for rock (except for C’est Plan Pour Moi), but it’s growing on me each time I play it.
Electric.
The singer is not too good. Vicki lived in France for five years and Telephone was the big band there at the time. We saw them at Max’s and they were OK. I agree completely that French is not a rocknroll language. You can make it work as a novelty. And I agree completely that Ca Plane Pour Moi is the great exception. At least one of my children thinks it’s the best punk song of all time.