The Great American Songbook has been the source of great repertoires for most cabaret performers seen and heard on big stages and smaller venues. While names like Porter, Kern, Berlin and Gershwin spring to mind, there are a number of other names whose contributions to the French Songbook have placed them in as high stead in France and elsewhere around the world.
In his latest release out today, "Chanteur," cabaret star Lee Lessack has taken on the French Songbook in a way only a few other cabaret performers have done before him. With songwriters like Jacques Brel, Gilbert Bécaud, Michel Legrand and Charles Aznavour, Lessack has chosen brilliantly some of the most well-known and inspirational songs of the past half century.
Lessack's voice is inviting and sweet. His phrasing is extraordinary and the diligence he displays in reconstituting these French classics for an American audience is astounding. The arrangements are simple, yet entirely supportive of the French style of singing. Pianist John Boswell provides most of the incredible accompaniment along with his brother, guitarist David Boswell, and bassist Daniel Fabricant.
While many of the songs were originally recorded in French, others were recorded first in English. Lessack sings almost all of them in English, but his sensibility in approaching them is done with a particular reverence towards the original intent of the French versions. Aznavour classics like "She" and "The Sound of Your Name" achieved limited U.S. success when sung by the composer or released by other artists. "She," for example, reached the top of the charts in England in 1974, but was not successful here until it was used in the opening and closing credits for the Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts film "Notting Hill" 25 years later. The two exceptions are Edith Piaf's "Hymne å l'Amour" and Rod McKuen and Gilbert Bécaud's "The Importance of the Rose (L'important C'est La Rose). Lessack's French voice is very pleasant - not gruff or guttural - and he seems to possess a keen sense of how best to employ it with these songs.
The album begins with a beautifully haunting medley of "The Summer Knows (Theme from 'Summer of '42)" by Legrand and Alan and Marilyn Bergman. Lessack follows next with Legrand's "I Will Wait for You" from "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg," virtually assuring that everyone who is listening is, by then, a confirmed Francophile. Legrand's "The Windmills of Your Mind" is paired in a breathtaking medley with Johnny Mercer and Jacques Prevert's "Autumn Leaves." "Pieces of Dreams," written by the Bergmans and Legrand is the final selection for the album. Even though Legrand contributes to approximately one-third of the repertoire, there is plenty of room for other French luminaries. Aznavour and Bécaud both contribute several selections. Becaud's "What Now My Love" was covered by both Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra, while Aznavour's "Yesterday When I Was Young" achieved considerable success when sung by country singer Roy Clark. The closer of "If We Only Have Love" by Jacques Brel is inspirational and a fitting tribute to a singer and composer Lessack acknowledges in the liner notes as one of his favorites.
"Chanteur," produced by Lessack and Brian Lane Green is available directly through LML Music or online through Amazon.com and other online distributors.
Comments