Bedazzled!: Music Video

A Taxi Boy found dead last night... (RIP Daniel Darc)

French Post-Punk survivor and 1980's Synth Pop legend, Daniel Darc (who was mainly famous for fronting Post-Punk synth band, "Taxi Girl" as their main singer/ songwriter...) was found dead last night by his current producer who was helping him on a fairly successful come-back trip. Taxi Girl and Daniel was something of a French equivalent to Joy Division and Ian Curtis; although quite different, they both shared a Dark post-apocalyptique Romantic vision and, starting from 1978 up to their demise in 1986, they were definite role-models for the French post-punk generation of what we called here : "Les Jeunes Gens Chic et Mödernes. Daniel, following the auto-destructive path of Johnny Thunders and the Velvet Underground before them, was having some problems with shaking his Heroin habit (and an assortment of Various other Drugs!)... a nasty habit that killed a lot of his friends along the way and turned him from the Romantic French Pretty Boy he was to something of a vegetable wreck (I know! I met him a few times... Scary); he was considered a Survivor of the times. So, sadly it comes as no surprise, as people were expecting his fall sooner or later. Nevertheless, he still deserves some praise in creating some of the most definite French classic Pop-rock tunes of these Cold-Wave years : "Cherchez le Garçon", "Mannekin", "Aussi Belle qu'une Balle" ... and this : "Les Armées de la Nuit"!
(RIP Daniel; He was 53.)

Vintage French TV doc. on the band... "Hey! Mec. C'est Paris, P-A-R-I-S, Paris! Respire son Bon Air..."; The composing duo had on guitar Mirwaïs, famous for producing Madonna's era-defining album : "Music"!

Posted by Astre Lemocker on February 28, 2013 in French Pop, French TV, Music, Music Video, Obituaries, Punk & New Wave, Video, YouTube | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Kinks on French TV, 1965

As a fanatic of the music of the '60's and a also big fan of collecting beautiful, exotic European picture sleeves (which I hold as pure works of art), I especially enjoy these two Kinks videos that show how the day in the life of a '60's pop group tied in to several aspects of vintage media.

While a Klip of The Kinks lip syncing may not be as exciting as the ones from the era when the group is playing live, it's kool nonetheless to see the group at work in a French TV studio mugging for the camera in all their matching outfit finery.

As I watching these (recently unearthed) clips, it struck me that SOMETHING looked familiar, which drove me over to my boxes of picture sleeves and there it was, lo and behold- a French EP from '66 with lovely color photos of the group from the same TV session. The red hunting jackets of '64 had by now been replaced with similarly Edwardian black jackets, and the image of Dave Davies with red socks, loafers and Guild guitar just makes me smile. Ray Davies looks weary and tired (but still regal), Pete Qualife anxious, and Mick Avory downright majestic behind the kit.

As we see on the back, another image from the TV filming was also used on the "A Well Respected Man" French EP. Unfortunately I don't own that one to scan it.