A French composer whose work may be more familiar to you than his name...

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that, while I do watch more foreign films than most of my peers, I have little knowledge of French cinema. There are the occasional French films that pop up on IFC or Sundance Channel, but usually the descriptions don’t inspire me to delve into them. And without this quick reference to French film in mind, I really had no clue about who Francis Lai was. So when this CD was dropped in my lap, I thought, 'Really?' I popped it into my player, and wound up finding that I enjoyed what I heard.

Francis Lai is an accordionist and composer, born on April 26, 1932 in Nice, Alpes-Maritimes, France. He started out playing in jazz clubs in Marseilles, and eventually moved to Paris, honing his skills as a composer and arranger, and even worked with Edith Piaf. He has since scored over 100 films, starting with Un Homme et Une Femme (A Man and a Woman), and has been nominated for Grammy and Golden Globe Awards, with an Academy Award win, a Golden Globe win (both for his original score for Love Story), and a Cesar Award win for Itinéraire d'un enfant gâté. His soundtrack for Love Story even went to number 2 on the Billboard album charts.

The first track on this CD, '13 Jours en France', is misrepresentative of what is in store for the listener. It comes across as the sort of music one would expect to hear sat in a bistro in Paris: simple strings and accordion. It’s a lovely piece, with layers of light and lofty sounds, but stereotypically French. The second track, 'Bilitis', is a beautiful work of piano, guitar, strings, and haunting female vocals. 'Concerto Pour la Fin d’Un Amour' is a piano-based piece that starts out with jazzy overtones, then halfway through works into a full orchestra. 'Emmanuelle II' is the theme from the softcore erotic film of the same name, and is really a nice track, which one wouldn’t expect from an erotic film (apparently, the French have more taste than Cinemax does). 'Ballet Apocalypse' sounds like the sort of thing you would hear at a cabaret, or while watching can-can dancers. He utilizes Spanish guitar and stylings for 'Itinéraire d'un enfant gâté', and 'La Course du Liévre a Travers Les Champs' sounds like something you would hear in a Bond film as James drives through the countryside.

It’s not until I got to 'Un Homme et Une Femme' that I realized I knew the composer. This track has been used in commercials and other films and television programs, and is a light pop theme that gets stuck in your head. In fact, there’s danger of many of these songs getting stuck in there, because they’re all catchy tunes. Lai is no one-trick pony, sticking with 'what works', but rather seems to assimilate many differing styles into his own unique voice. He can score anything from sweeping epics (check out 'Folies Bergéres') to intimate love stories, and every time the sound is definitively his.

The packaging has a brief history of Lai and his music written by Michael Beek, and lists each track with a brief description of the film it is from. This album came to me from out of nowhere, and isn’t one I probably would have gone out to search for, but I am now a fan of Francis Lai and his work, and will keep an eye out for his other albums. If you like instrumental music, French cinema, or just need something for some nice ambient background music, I highly recommend this CD. There is something on there for most music lovers.

Francis Lai – The Essential Film Collection is available now.

See also:

Hawk soundtrack review

IF YOU ENJOYED THIS ARTICLE, PLEASE HELP SUPPORT OUR SITE, AT NO COST WITH ONE CLICK ON THE FACEBOOK 'LIKE' BUTTON BELOW: