# I Like Cheesy French Love Songs- help me find some more! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 7, 2002, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729 "2002-07-07T03:22:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Melandry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Melandry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melandry)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729/1 "2002-07-07T03:22:09Z")
As the thread title says, I really like what I call my “cheesy French love songs” although they’re not all love songs, basically I enjoy French vocalists, mostly from the 1920s through 50s-60s. I am especially fond of Charles Trenet. I don’t like Edith Piaf so much, but I may just have been exposed to too much of the extra-sappy stuff. Maurice Chevalier is OK, I’m just now discovering Jean Sablon and Mistinguett. I dunno what this genre is really called, or even if they’re all considered the same genre, I’m just trying to give my fellow dopers an idea of what I’m listening to now. My problem is that it’s pretty hard to walk into a CD store, of whatever size, and just happen upon a clerk who is knowledgeable in this particular genre, especially since I feel like I’ve been through most of the best-known artists, including those listed above, plus Josephine Baker and Yves Montand. My general pattern now is to buy compilations of the sort that are titled “Paris Is For Lovers” and other such junk, but they usually contain mostly very popular stuff that I already have, and the quality is not always what it should be. Basically, I’d like more specific suggestions of other artists I might like, and I figured that in the great big world of the SDMB, there have to be some other folks listening to this kind of music. ---
**Author:** ![detop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@detop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/detop)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729/2 "2002-07-07T19:06:49Z")
Maybe you could try Charles Aznavour, Gilbert Bécaud and/or Jean Ferrat. I would recommend you to try a “Greatest Hit” album first, just to see if they are your cup of tea. ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729/3 "2002-07-07T19:14:47Z")
Serge Gainsbourg? ---
**Author:** ![Globe-trotter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cab0a1/32.png) [@Globe-trotter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Globe-trotter)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729/4 "2002-07-07T19:21:11Z")
A few others (who are by no means cheesy): [ul] [li]Georges Brassens[/li][li]Léo Ferré (who without a doubt wrote one of the most depressing songs in the history of mankind: _Avec le temps_)[/li][li]Jacques Brel[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729/5 "2002-07-07T19:52:55Z")
One of my favorite songs was written by Django Reinhart, the immortal French Gypsy jazz guitarist. The version I have was performed by Chet Atkins, who renamed it “Django’s Castle”. (I believe the original title was whatever is the French for “Castle of My Dreams”. Hauntingly beautiful, and so evocative, if you close your eyes, you’ll swear you’re in a cafe in Paree sipping latee. F U Shakespeare ---
**Author:** ![Melandry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Melandry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melandry)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729/6 "2002-07-07T20:18:53Z")
Oooh, responses! Thanks for all the good suggestions- I’m writing them down. Keep 'em up! ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-cheesy-french-love-songs-help-me-find-some-more/117729/7 "2002-07-07T23:26:52Z")
Get the soundtrack (2 discs) of the lovely French musical _The Umbrellas of Cherbourg_, where all the dialogue is song. Terrific music by Michel Legrand.