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François Feldman’s “Joue pas” (“Don’t Play”) Posted by Hichem on May 24, 2011
French people remember François Feldman as a distinguished chanteur (singer) who left an indelible mark on the French song scene of the 1980‘s. But in addition to an early successful carrière (career), they tend to remember his later “gaffe“, or to use nowadays popular “mème internet“(“Internet meme”), his “EPIC FAIL“, so to speak, performed en direct (live) on French Television, in…
Crêpes à l’ananas (Pineapple crepes) Posted by Hichem on May 23, 2011
L’ananas (pineapple) is a tropical fruit pas comme les autres (unlike the others)! Yes, just ask the Dominican botanist Jean-Baptiste Du Tertre, the Frenchman who joined les hollandais (the Dutch) against les espagnols (the Spaniards) during the siege of Maastricht, almost 400 years before the two would meet again in a World Cup final, and about 40 years…
Robbie Williams Sings “Supreme” with a French Accent Posted by Hichem on May 21, 2011
The question suprême of this fin de semaine (weekend) is not the one you were perhaps expecting (Namely: “Do you think that Manhattan’s new embattled French politician DSK is truly coupable (guilty) or innocent”), but rather: Would you say that Robbie Williams’s song “Supreme” sounds better en français? * * * Robbie Williams in French: “Suprême” (compare…
French Rap: DÉSOLÉ (Sorry) Posted by Hichem on May 19, 2011
They were tapped for la B.O. (no, not for “body odor”, silly French bashers). It’s for “bande originale“, meaning “O.S.”, i.e. the “original soundtrack”) of the movie “L’Agence tous risques” (“The A-Team“), and like that wasn’t enough”prestige” already, together with Daft Punk and David Guetta, were among the first French artists to hit the one million bar…
French Conjugaison: The Verb Pardonner Posted by Hichem on May 18, 2011
“L’erreur est humaine; le pardon, divin” (“To err is human, to forgive divine”), say the French today, borrowing the maxim of the famous English poet Alexander Pope, who himself had a lot of reasons to be “pardonné” (forgiven), considering the irreverently “satirical” aspect of his œuvre littéraire (literary work) * * * Ivory Coast singer O’nel Mala…
When France was “Diagnosed” with The “Folies d’Espagne” (Spanish Folia) Posted by Hichem on May 17, 2011
Instead of the litany of “follies” that thrashed France from le nord (the North), especially by way of la Manche (the English Channel), from the London-inspired “Folies Bergère” to the outbreak of la vache folle (mad cow) disease (a British bovine concoction of highly “symptomatic” character), consider, for a refreshing change, this passionate form of pure esprit musical (musical…
“Trop d’amour tue” (Too Much Love Kills) Posted by Hichem on May 15, 2011
Some have upheld the old sacred view that l’amour, le véritable amour (love, true love) is the one that leads to the attainment of l’immortalité (immortality.) The kind of love that, souvenez-vous (remember), impelled Dante’s ascent to the gates of le paradis (paradise), whence he joined his beloved Béatrice. The sort of love that was…