Formed and managed by
Claude Bolling
in 1964,
Les Parisiennes
were a kicky
French pop
vocal quartet whose modest Terpsichorian talents were utilized during carefully choreographed bouts of televised entertainment. During a four year period they concocted no less than four albums for the
Philips
label. In 2007,
Fremeaux & Associes
amassed all of these in an unprecedented 71-track triple-disc
Parisiennes
anthology. Unlike previous samplers and "best-of" collections, this set re-links the group with
Bolling
and will likely be found listed under his name.
' campy novelty music is mainly based in the
Dixieland
/
trad jazz
pop
trend that swept through Europe and the U.K. during the late '50s and early '60s, which accounts for the periodic onset of
go-go
rock & roll
and jet set "twist" arrangements. This means that
were alternately accompanied by a slaphappy nostalgia band consisting of banjo, tuba, ragtime piano, trumpet, and tailgate trombone or a
pop/rock
bubblegum
studio ensemble. With the exception of the moody
"Je Te Deteste,"
almost all of the tunes are weirdly geeked exercises in corn taken at brisk tempi. The most intriguing episodes are a Japanese routine called
"Yamamoto Kakapote,"
a thrilling revival of a traditional
vaudeville
music hall
favorite retitled as
"Tha Ma Ra Boum Di He,"
and a perfectly proportioned cover of
Al Hirt
's lucrative hit
"Java."
Not for the squeamish. ~ arwulf arwulf