Looking Back at Torch

Clockwise from Top Left: Edith Piaf, Patsy Cline, Judy Garland, Dame Shirley Bassey, and Sarah Vaughan

As I have been a bit busy as of late with my niece's wedding, I thought I would revisit this post from about three years ago, for it is all about love, and some magnificent ladies who can sing pretty darned well. The original post was titles 'Torch', and posted on June 21, 2011.

We are back in that smokey club, listening to the ladies sing the blues about love and loss, and matters of the heart. They stand in a simple spotlight, where you can see the smoke wafting through the air. In the background, you hear the tinkling of glasses being raised, drunk from, and collected by the wait staff. There is a whisper that stays steady in the room. But when the really good torch singer comes out, a hush will fall over the room. She will dictate the feeling of the room, be it sadness, hurt, or desire. That never changes. A clear example of the power of the lady in charge is Sarah Vaughan. With her legendary jazz stylings, she delivers a light sweetness to Hoagy Carmichael and Ned Washington's "The Nearness of You". There is just a hint of longing, just enough to keep it interesting.



Born Virginia Patterson Hensley, if she wasn't one of the great torch singers of all time, then she would have been the perfect source of material for many a song. From her struggle in the music business because she didn't fit the standard of feminine beauty in the day, to dying in a tragic plane crash at the age of 30, Patsy Cline used her gorgeous voice to garner the success and respect due her talent. Her "Walking After Midnight" added just the right amount of strength to temper the plaintiff quality a lesser singer might fall victim to that trap.



The French knew here as "The Sparrow," or, en Francais, "Piaf." She was born Édith Giovanna Gassion in Paris. She has long been regarded as France's greatest popular singer of all time. One reason was the sheer emotion she would bring to the songs, especially the ballads. Take, for instance, "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" can be translated as "No, I'm not sorry for anything." The song is sung in French, composed by Charles Dumont, with lyrics by Michel Vaucaire. It is most famously sung by the one and only Sparrow, Édith Piaf.



In 1964, Dame Shirley Bassey sang a song by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, from the musical 'The Roar of the Greasepaint—the Smell of the Crowd'. She was the first to record "Who Can I Turn To?", although it would later be a hit in the United States by Tony Bennett. She also performed the Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray song, "You'd Better Love Me".



When it comes to torch singers, it is tough to deny Judy Garland is up there with the best of them. When she was just 14, she filmed her first song for the movies, "You Made Me Love You". She didn't stop singing until she passed away 33 years later. Many of her great songs were about love - either looking for it, or having just lost it. She added her own touch of melancholia to Charlie Chaplin's "Smile".



Bartender, I'll have another round.

The Torch Just Keeps On Coming

Clockwise from Top Left: Edith Piaf, Patsy Cline, Judy Garland, Dame Shirley Bassey, and Sarah Vaughan

We are back in that smokey club, listening to the ladies sing the blues about love and loss, and matters of the heart. They stand in a simple spotlight, where you can see the smoke wafting through the air. In the background, you hear the tinkling of glasses being raised, drunk from, and collected by the wait staff. There is a whisper that stays steady in the room. But when the really good torch singer comes out, a hush will fall over the room. She will dictate the feeling of the room, be it sadness, hurt, or desire. That never changes. A clear example of the power of the lady in charge is Sarah Vaughan. With her legendary jazz styling, she delivers a light sweetness to Hoagy Carmichael and Ned Washington's "The Nearness of You". There is just a hint of longing, just enough to keep it interesting.



Born Virginia Patterson Hensley, if she wasn't one of the great torch singers of all time, then she would have been the perfect source of material for many a song. From her struggle in the music business because she didn't fit the standard of feminine beauty in the day, to dying in a tragic plane crash at the age of 30, Patsy Cline used her gorgeous voice to garner the success and respect due her talent. Her "Walking After Midnight" added just the right amount of strength to temper the plaintiff quality a lesser singer might fall victim to that trap.



The French knew here as "The Sparrow," or, en Francais, "Piaf." She was born Édith Giovanna Gassion in Paris. She has long been regarded as France's greatest popular singer of all time. One reason was the sheer emotion she would bring to the songs, especially the ballads. Take, for instance, "Je Ne Regrette Rien" can be translated as "No, I'm not sorry for anything." The song is sung in French, composed by Charles Dumont, with lyrics by Michel Vaucaire. It is most famously sung by the one and only Sparrow, Édith Piaf.



In 1964, Dame Shirley Bassey sang a song by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, from the musical 'The Roar of the Greasepaint—the Smell of the Crowd'. She was the first to record "Who Can I Turn To?", although it would later be a hit in the US by Tony Bennett. She also performed the Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray song, "You'd Better Love Me".



When it comes to torch singers, it is tough to deny Judy Garland is up there with the best of them. When she was just 14, she filmed her first song for the movies, "You Made Me Love You". She didn't stop singing until she passed away 33 years later. Many of her great songs were about love - either looking for it, or having just lost it. She added her own touch of melancholia to Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" here.



Bartender, I'll have another round.

Once Again, Édith Piaf...

A few months ago, I posted about the Little Sparrow of Paris, the incredible Edith Piaf. (You can read that post here) Piaf is still considered by many to be the greatest singer of all time, and certainly the greatest French singer. Her career spanned the years 1935 to 1963, when she died at age 47. She was born Édith Giovanna Gassion, but was later given the name Piaf, or Sparrow. Her younger years were spent with her grandparents, before she was brought to her paternal grandmother, who ran a brothel. After he fought in World War I, Edith traveled with her father as a street performer, often doing acrobatics. And she would occasionally sing in public, the beginning of a great career. I guess this is what made her a great torch singer. In 1949, she sang "Hymme Á L'Amour," or a Hymn To Love.



Another of her great songs was the 1954 release, "La Goualante du Pauvre Jean," or the Ballad of Poor John. The song has a wonderful cabaret feel, transporting me to a night club in Paris, being entertained by the best of singers.



With lyrics by Georges Moustaki and music by Marguerite Monnot, "Milord" was released in 1959, and immediately touched the hearts of many. Whether it was the Piaf's ability to communicate, or it was the story of a young French working girl falling for a British man who doesn't know she exists. I think it might be a combination of the two. Give a listen to "Milord".



The stunning "Mon Dieu" has lyrics by Michel Vaucaire and the music by Charles Dumont, and explosive performance by Piaf. Released in 1960, the personal prayer from Piaf to 'my God', looking to be live her life, to make the memories she'd like to make. Listen as Edith sings "Mon Dieu".



You can find these songs and others on iTunes and Amazon.

The Little Sparrow de Paris

If there was ever a queen of the torch singer, it would have to be The Little Sparrow, Edith Piaf. She was born Édith Giovanna Gassion in Paris in December of 1915. Her parents were performers; her mother was a professional singer, singing in cafés, and her father a street acrobat. Of course, much of what has been said and written about Piaf's youth has been questioned, but it is said that before her father went off to fight in World War I, he let his daughter with his own mother, the owner of a brothel. Three is also a story that Piaf was blind from the age of 3, only to have the prostitutes pool their money to pay to send her on a pilgrimage honoring Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, which the author claims resulted in a miraculous healing when she was just seven.

When she was 14, she joined her father as a traveling performer, marking her the beginning of her public singing. When she was just 17, she had her only child, a daughter who died when she was just two years old. In 1935 Piaf was discovered in Paris by nightclub owner Louis Leplée,whose club Le Gerny off the Champs-Élysées, was frequented by the most fashionable of Paris. As the story goes, he brought her in to perform, and she was so frightened she was trembling, so Leplée called her "La Môme Piaf," or The Little Sparrow. She was 4'8". It was a name that stuck with her, as she was forever known as Edith Piaf from then on. But it was from her time in the club that she rose to fame. In 1946, she sang what is arguably her most famous song, La Vie En Rose.



In 1957, Piaf recorded a song she had heard on her travels in South America. The song, La Foule, translated to The Crowd, was originally a song written in Spanish by Angel Cabral in 1936. Once it was sung by Piaf, it became a huge hit.



In 1960, Piaf released a song I know very well, Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien. The song was written by Charles Dumont and lyricist Michel Vaucaire in 1956. However, it was Edith's recording that made the song famous. The English translation of the song would be "No, I regret nothing," which was the very way Piaf liked to live her life.



And, finally, in 1962, Piaf recorded À Quoi Ça Sert L'Amour with Théo Sarapo, whom she wed that same year. Théo was some 20 years younger than Piaf, so it raised many an eyebrow. They sang together often, and this song, translated to "What good is love," was a bit hit for them.



Piaf lived a rather tumultuous life. She had a rather public affair with boxer Marcel Cerdan, until died in a plane crash in October 1949, flying to meet Piaf. In 1951, she was in a bad traffic accident along with French troubadour Charles Aznavour. The result of the accident was an ever-increasing dependence on both drugs and alcohol. In 1952, she married Jacques Pills. Her Matron of Honor was Marlene Dietrich), only to divorced him in 1956. She married Théo Sarapo in 1962, but it did not last long. Piaf died on October 11, 1963, following a rough couple of months when she went in and out of consciousness. According to lore, her last words were "Every damn fool thing you do in this life, you pay for."



Tens of thousands of people showed up to her funeral in Paris. She was buried in Père Lachaise Cemetery next to her daughter who had died years earlier. Despite sharing the cemetery with the likes of Jim Morrison of The Doors, playwright Moliére, novelist Honoré de Balzac, and actress Sarah Bernhardt, it is said Piaf still counts far more visitors than any other celebrity interred there. Piaf was 47 when she died.

Torch

Clockwise from Top Left: Edith Piaf, Patsy Cline, Judy Garland, Dame Shirley Bassey, and Sarah Vaughan

We are back in that smokey club, listening to the ladies sing the blues about love and loss, and matters of the heart. They stand in a simple spotlight, where you can see the smoke wafting through the air. In the background, you hear the tinkling of glasses being raised, drunk from, and collected by the wait staff. There is a whisper that stays steady in the room. But when the really good torch singer comes out, a hush will fall over the room. She will dictate the feeling of the room, be it sadness, hurt, or desire. That never changes. A clear example of the power of the lady in charge is Sarah Vaughan. With her legendary jazz stylings, she delivers a light sweetness to Hoagy Carmichael and Ned Washington's "The Nearness of You". There is just a hint of longing, just enough to keep it interesting.



Born Virginia Patterson Hensley, if she wasn't one of the great torch singers of all time, then she would have been the perfect source of material for many a song. From her struggle in the music business because she didn't fit the standard of feminine beauty in the day, to dying in a tragic plane crash at the age of 30, Patsy Cline used her gorgeous voice to garner the success and respect due her talent. Her "Walking After Midnight" added just the right amount of strength to temper the plaintiff quality a lesser singer might fall victim to that trap.



The French knew here as "The Sparrow," or, en Francais, "Piaf." She was born Édith Giovanna Gassion in Paris. She has long been regarded as France's greatest popular singer of all time. One reason was the sheer emotion she would bring to the songs, especially the ballads. Take, for instance, "Je Ne Regrette Rien" can be translated as "No, I'm not sorry for anything." The song is sung in French, composed by Charles Dumont, with lyrics by Michel Vaucaire. It is most famously sung by the one and only Sparrow, Édith Piaf.



In 1964, Dame Shirley Bassey sang a song by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, from the musical 'The Roar of the Greasepaint—the Smell of the Crowd'. She was the first to record Who Can I Turn To?, although it would later be a hit in the US by Tony Bennett. She also performed the Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray song, "You'd Better Love Me".



When it comes to torch singers, it is tough to deny Judy Garland is up there with the best of them. When she was just 14, she filmed her first song for the movies, "You Made Me Love You". She didn't stop singing until she passed away 33 years later. Many of her great songs were about love - either looking for it, or having just lost it. She added her own touch of melancholia to Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" here.



Bartender, I'll have another round.