RENAUD.

Renaud tells his story with a voice that seeks no distance: humor and obstinacy make his songs recognizable.

Renaud gives the French chanson a distinctly unique voice. His songs can be tender, but also biting, streetwise, or full of dry humor. The delivery does not seek a smooth surface: the words must retain something of the conversation, the memory, or the annoyance from which the song seems to spring.

A compilation album like Putain de best of offers various entry points into that repertoire. Live à La Cigale shifts the focus to the performance and the intimacy of a concert. Anyone listening to Renaud on vinyl can compare those two perspectives: the carefully constructed recording and the song being retold for an audience.

With a LP or an extensive vinyl box set, the order is part of the experience. A lighthearted track can unexpectedly sharpen melancholic lyrics. Therefore, include the lesser-known songs as well, and listen to the space between the words. That is where Renaud's combination of story, character, and melody often gains its own weight.

Putain de best of brings many sides together; Live à La Cigale gives the songs a different intimacy. Start with Putain De Best of.

The story of the seventies places his rise in a broader musical era. French chanson and rock are both useful entry points to his records. Explore THE SEVENTIES, French chanson, and rock.

From Renaud you can go to Françoise Hardy for subdued chansons, Téléphone for rock, and Zaz for a later French voice.