C'est Comme Ça - Les Rita Mitsouko
My friend Stephanie asked me to dj her birthday last year. She told me she was inviting everyone—in the East Bay, that's an incredibly eclectic mix of people. I thought i'd better be ready with a little bit of everything to offer—some 80s tunes, old school hip-hop, hyphy beats, a little reggae, definitely some disco, and since there were gonna be a lot of frenchies there (the hostess being one of them) I thought the night wouldn't be complete without a little French pop as well.
Enter Les Rita Mitsouko. The night was three quarters of the way over. People were ALL over the dance floor. It was a dj's dream. But I had no idea what would happen when I tried to play some 80s french pop.... I mixed in "C'est comme ça". Not even 10 seconds into the song and the dancefloor was packed with all the French kids at the party. They were running around in circles, jumping up and down and SCREAMING the lyrics. It was the most fun I ever had playing a party.
Les Rita Mitsouko were a French duo that began playing in 1979, and by the mid 80s were well known in France. They were never really any hits that came to the U.S. so they were a bit of an obscure band for us. I remember only one hit that came to the U.S. called "Singing In the Shower", a collaboration with the band Sparks, which played on Live 105. 15 year olds who listened to music in 1987 and wore all black probably remember this song. They have been making music since then, releasing 11 albums. Their early tracks are unbelievably good, and the best for getting Frenchies on the dancefloor. For all us Americans who missed Les Rita Mitsouko the first time around, I give you some of their greatest hits.
On November 28 this year, Fred Chichin, half of Les Rita Mitsouko, died of cancer at the age of 53. Before he died, Les Rita Mitsouko made a video for their latest album called "Meme Si". There are two versions of the song, one in English, and one in French. You can watch it on their website.
So long Fred, and long live Les Rita Mitsouko!
Andy
...and here's a special treat: the extended version of their first big hit "Marcia Baila" in English!!!
Les Rita Mitsouko — Marcia Baila (English extended version)
and "Andy" in English!
1 comment:
Sorry to see you're no longer active with your blog. I like the idea of it. As an Anglo-Canadian, I've learned conventional France-French at school, so any source annexing that foundational knowledge to the vibrant, living entity that is modern French language and culture is a beautiful thing. Especially liked the Quebeckers post.
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