Olympia 64

I couldn't get past the first song and a half

I know it sounds brutal but I really don’t get how this album is on this list. If you look at the wider picture, if this is on there. Then surely so should all 78 studio albums by Houmous & Chutney! 1.3

It is nothing to do with it being in a language I don't understand, but I didn't like the singing. Unless he is acting in a musical and this is the style then I gey it. If he is just a singer, then, it's a no from me.

I assume that this has masterful lyricism in French. Otherwise, why?

Belgian guy singing (chansonging?) in French. Very dramatic, dramatically awful. One star for the longest 28 minutes of my life.

No thanks

I’m sorry this is not a must listen to album. There is so much better music from this era that this does not belong in this list

could i write poetry to this? n

Perhaps if I had paid one lick of attention during Madame Grasso's French class in high school, I might have been profoundly moved by this album. The truth is, I skipped that class a lot, rendering these songs to jibberish. The music itself sounded to me like common French street music. I may throw a spare Franc into their open accordion case as a tip, but I'll likely never listen to this again.

Mediocre at best. The voice is OK, I guess, but the songs are bland and uninspired. The music is uncreative and overall it sounds like an amateur lounge singer at kareoke night.

1.4 1x catch up 11/5/24 -- good voice just not something i'm interested in

Foreign languages are hard to rate but I hated the music so that made it easy. 1.375

Jacques Brel may be a very good and important chanson singer. If I remember correctly, I also like one or two of his songs. I think the track Amsterdam is one of them. However, I can't do much with the live version of the album. I have also realized that chansons are obviously not my preferred music genre. It joins the rap, country and hip hop genres that I have avoided. As I read in another comment, I can live very well without having heard this album. 1/5

Please. Gimmie a break.

No. Not for me.

Wish I knew what was being said

The French are my near neighbours. I can watch a ferry leave for Dieppe three times a day from the window of my lounge. Heading due south, there is precisely one address between myself and France. On clear, calm summer's days, occasionally the French TV signal will overwhelm mine. Nonetheless, this here by Jacques Brel is precisely why we did a Brexit.

Not my thing

Album was in French and sounded very dated. It was live in the singer sounded very commanding. Aside from that I couldn’t finish this out. 1.5/5.

This one was not of any interest to me. I'm more of an Air fan.

french

Enough live albums - this is like listening to a musical which I cannot understand at all because it is in French. Why do I have to listen to this before I die?

c'est terrible

I've been duped! The album is Olympia 1964! Unless I'm listening to an album that is 19 centuries out of date. "Cest fini Miss Molly" isn't the literal translation, but it's interesting. But, as with all my reviews, if you need to add extra noise at the beginning and end of a song, and sometimes in the middle, then the album is a one star.

What. Why? Just why is this on the list? I'm so glad rock and roll came around or else this would have been the height of entertainment. I can't believe this was recorded live and people paid to see it. ACCORDION MUSIC?! Necessary to listen to before you die? COME ON

This is the best French music ever made

It sounds like any french song from that era. I hate french music. Never got into it.

No

This guys sounds like the inspiration for pepe le pew. I had no idea what was going on. At least Spanish music has good instrumentals. 1.0/10

Fav: Le Plat Pays Least Fav: Les Timides

Que diable

did not listen to whole album, wtf was this??

What are we doing here? What album did this knock out? Whos man is this?

Made it through..

Ew it's French

Couldn’t understand. LOL

Nah. This was lame.

I guess not everything French is worth exporting

Couldn't get through it. Maybe some other ti,e. He's a good enough singer, and I'm sure this is a good example of the genre. I couldn't do it. Grateful for having a streaming subscription so I don't have to buy or try to borrow stuff like this.

Olympia 64 offers a glimpse into the world of chanson, a genre that has deeply influenced artists like Scott Walker and The Divine Comedy. However, despite my love for the latter, I found connecting with Brel's voice and lyrics to be a challenge. Brel's distinctive voice and emotive delivery are central to the chanson tradition. As I struggled to understand his lyrics, sadly, I felt disconnected. For those who appreciate chanson and can connect with Brel's lyrics and unique style, Olympia 64 is undoubtedly a valuable addition to their collection. NUMBER OF BANGERS - 0 STAND OUT TRACK - None

Good singer bur bad concert recording. Will not listen again

This one's not my cup of tea.

Zut Alors 28 minutes of my life gone in a swirl of gitane smoke and badly recorded crooneur nonsense. I'm sure this is fun if you get the words, but if it was an English guy with this level of histrionics and that musical backing it would be absolutely awful and nowhere near this list

Live album

not bad but its live and if I had tried to go to the concert i probably would've waited in a line outside.

Didn’t understand a word!

Please stop

Overly romantic sop. I can barely take Gainsbourg. This, not at all.

This album is pretty bad before you consider the fact that it's French, making it even worse. 0/10

Oui oui 🇫🇷🥖📯

Non merci

Crooning in french to the accordion. Not for me.

I won't do it

I found absolutely nothing to like about this record. How anyone could enjoy it is beyond me. But, vive la difference.

nah.

Oof. That was a difficult listen. Just couldn't get into this one.

What in the French hell

The French Frank Sinatra I guess? I few too many selections from the HMV “World Music” section for my liking

Did I really just spend 30 minutes listening to some French dude singing to an accordion? A little more entertaining than the previous album, but I did start thinking about Margaret on the Guillotine pretty early into this album. Maybe if I understood French, but then again, I understand English and it didn't help with Viva Hate. Sounded like the audience had a great time. I did not. Will not revisit. 1

This will be a tough one for non-French speaking people. I will say Brel sings with passion but the culturally this one is just too difficult to get into. Considering this was released in 1964, it seems culture and music has already past it by then 3.4/10

I didn’t like his voice, or the music. Live albums shouldn’t be on this list. At least it was short.

Måske bedre hvis man kan fransk

Serviu para me lembrar do meu desgosto carregado de preconceito do francês.

Nope. I think the rulebreaker is English unless I feel a lot of emotion.

Wasn't my thing.

I think the combo of French, big band and live audience is too much to process. Not something I would ever pick

I wasn't able to listen to all of it. I just don't like it. It's not because I don't understand the language (don't think I would have liked it more in English). I just don't like this type of music

Nope, not for me.

Not my tempo

Listened Before? N No. I'm good. I did not need to hear a guy sing in French with accordion backing from the 60s. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Amsterdam

Yet another troll addition to the list. This is not good.

Don't listen to foreign songs. Started and skipped the rest.

for those over the pond this is what the eurovision song contest used to sound like in the 60s.

Nah

Could have very happily dropped dead without hearing this Kronenberg advert dross.

Not my cup of tea. Just didn't connect with this one. 1/5

I wanted some more diversity on the list, so it looks like I should be happy, but this is not what I had in mind. Can't enjoy it since my French is limited to voulez vous coucher avec moi

The constant and droning applause does you no favors when you're high

The 60s brought us so many great sounding records and this is not one of them. I do not speak French so all I can really appreciate is the instrumentation and his vocal performance and both are weird in a bad way at parts and lackluster in other parts. Like what the hell is he doing on "Tango funebre". That does not sound good and the same goes with "Le plat pays". I read that this genre, Chanson, is lyric-driven so I might just not be getting the full picture but he is singing so harshly and not in a good way. It sounds like an American doing an offensively bad French accent with all the classic tropes played up to the maximum. It kinda sounds like it is the source of French stereotypes, like if you told me that people started believing French people were snooty/rude solely because of this record I would believe you 100%. It feels manufactured and sort of feels like it lacks any soul or passion that an artists typically has when making art. He sounds like he is constantly straining to sing these notes like he is forcing it. I did like "Amsterdam" and thought "Les jardins du casino" and "Les Toros Avec Final" were a fine songs but I would never come back to anything else on the album. 3.5/10 but I definitely am not getting the full picture as a non French speaker.

It's French. Need I say more?

eww,i hate this

I’m pretty tolerant of most albums and will endeavour to listen to the whole album, regardless of what I think. This was so torturous that I only got half way before deciding it wasn’t going to improve and it did hurt my ears ! What is it doing on this list ??? 1*

Again, maybe I’m jaded that there is no Rammstein, but why must listen to this. Why is this album on the list!? I have no idea.

Lolz no thank you

So… evidently this guy is very influential and people love him. It feels like Tom Waits on a bender in France. Not for me.

I just don't have the context I would need to enjoy this. The accordion bits were nice, but this guy's voice doesn't do it for me and I don't know French. To me, very bad unfun not good times.

You can sing in french, but it won't make it any better.

It's a joke right? Come on. I HAVE to listen to THIS before I die? Tedious. I kept waiting for a punchline that never arrived.

no.

This isn't it

Thanks but no thanks. 1/5

No.

Definitely not for me

Æj ég veit ekki, alltilagi ad láta þetta renna í gegn. Ekki mjög eftirminnilegt.

Get ekki

2 1/2

The man can sing but yeah not my thing.

im sorry dude it sounds like french mickey mouse

I could have died without listening to this.

Not really heavy metal like I asked...

Nooit wat mee gekund, vandaag ook niet.

This just didn't do it for me.

Not going to lie skipped right through this - just totally not for me on many many levels - I don’t need a french crooner, nevermind a live album of one

Not really sure why this album is on the list, as I don't feel I particularly needed to hear it before I die. I found the songs quite uninteresting and unoriginal. Simple songs, with simple and predictable melodies. My French is mediocre at best, so can't really comment on the lyrics. I won't be coming back to Jacques.

Struggled through not knowing what they said. It's over atleast.

All french but kinda lit

Hell of a voice. Simply not my thing.

Call that singing!? I can’t understand a word he’s saying. Lol jk! (Gotta love Spanish) also listen out for the horse half way through les Bon Bons

Well I gave it a go but its just not for me I'm afraid!

Maybe I was listening in the wrong context, but I found his singing voice grating. It could have been groundbreaking at the time, but for me it blurred into the background a bit until he started shouting occasionally

French tings

whatever lol

This wound me up big time

It's just not for me.

Utter drivel.

Not u