TS: french variété vs. canzoni italiane FITE

Because, you know, Germans do a lot of schlager crap and nobody knows what the Spaniards do, but France & Italy have shitloads of singer-songwriters since over half a century. They could get by on national production alone.

This will never be about italo-disco.

This is an ILM test. Does it really love music? Next thread: eastern medieval polyphony.

Both are unbearingly unbearable. I'll be happy to provide any info on French variété.

Would the french variété be stuff along the lines of Brassens, Aznavour & co? If so, who would the Italian equivalents be?

Enrico, Mireille, Gilbert et les autres.

Uh, ok that is indeed unbearable ... though they're fun to listen to once in a while (if you mean stuff like "il jouait du piano debout" "sous les sunlights des tropiques")

"Variété" is kind of hard to define. For me it involves saccharine strings and a certain degree of pompousness (I'm thinking Dalida). But then again, Gilbert Montagné doesn't fit that definition, yet he's definitely "variété".

For our non-French friends who'd like to know what we're talking about: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_sXYC8LEgg

French "yacht pop" if you like.

"Would the french variété be stuff along the lines of Brassens, Aznavour & co? If so, who would the Italian equivalents be?"

Paolo Conte.
In the Sixties we had some really good pop songs written by guys like Ennio Morricone and Pino Donaggio. From the early 80's on, it was just horrible.

There were other singers/songwriters like Fabrizio De André, Bruno Lauzi, Luigi Tenco, all very influenced by Jacques Brel and Brassens - but they weren't as good as their Belgian/French counterparts.
Paolo Conte, on the other hand, is plain great.

He certainly is.

Adriano Celentano had his moments in the '60s and '70s but has gone off a bit lately.

Adriano Celentano was so incredibly good for a short moment in his career: a sort of extraordinary idiot savant always fighting in his innocent way every kind of cultural pompouosness.
He also discovered Paolo Conte, singing "Azzurro" sometime in the mid-Sixties.

"20,000 Baci" is undeniable.

His demented cameo in "La Dolce Vita" too.

Is "Canzoni Italiane" all that half-rockabilly, half-croonery 60s "yeah yeah, fare la whiskey soda" stuff then?

Celentano's Nostalrock album from '73 is worth tracking down - it's like the Avalanches meet Jive Bunny in Serge Gainsbourg conference and features the should-have-been-massive hit "Prisencolinenseniciusol."

"the should-have-been-massive hit "Prisencolinenseniciusol"

so OTM. Enormous song!

"Is "Canzoni Italiane" all that half-rockabilly, half-croonery 60s "yeah yeah, fare la whiskey soda" stuff then?"

unfortunately, no.

Ah you guys, I thought this would never take off and was about to leave ilm in a huff. Well canzoni italiane sure comprises 80's-90's stuff too, or recent pop for that matter. As trite as it may be I find it incredibly more... musical? emotional in an affirmative way? than crybaby whispery miserabilist french poseurism of late. Variété for me includes that recent trend too, faux-indie nouvel-auteur ..personnages.
No names yet, 'cause I'm not sure either.

But surely Macias & co. are best left alone, I mean there's been tons more pop française than those old fogeys (although Sarko's party did feature Mireille, but it really takes a fascist midget to rescue that boring cunt).