Seule ce soir (Alone Tonight) is Canadian jazz artist Emilie-Claire Barlow's ninth album — her first solely en français — comprising new arrangements of songs she's recorded previously, and six completely new covers including "Petit matin" by Sylvain Lelièvre, "Croissants de soleil" by Ginette Reno and "La belle dame sans regret" by Sting.
Seule ce soir will be officially released on Oct. 16, but you can preview the entire album as of now on our French-language sister site, espace.mu.
CBC Music reached Barlow at home in Toronto, for a little tête-à-tête about her latest essay.
Q: Pourquoi French? Pourquoi now?
A: I find the language to be beautiful and very musical. I appreciate the poetry of French lyrics — and it changes the sound of my voice, as the mouth adapts to the necessary shapes. Many people assume that I am French on my mother's side, because of my name, [but] there is no French in my background. The truth is my parents just loved the name.
The desire to do an all-French album was to have an opportunity to immerse myself a little deeper in the music and the language. I feel that I have been working up to it for a while. Regardless of the language, the tone of many of these songs really reflected where I am in my life right now, so it seemed very natural.
Q: You've recorded many of the songs on Seule ce soir before. Why record them again?
A: The original idea was to compile all of the tunes I have recorded in French onto one disc, with some additional material. But upon listening to the originals, I quickly realized that I wanted to record new versions.
I have a deeper connection to the songs, having performed them many times. And on a personal level, having gone through some ups and downs over the past while, I also understand myself a little better! I am so grateful to be able to channel these experiences and emotions into something artistic.
Q: "Boots for walking" versus "Bottes pour marcher."
A: I think that the level of "sass" is pretty equal in both versions. And though the translation is fairly direct, the French version strikes me as a bit more empowering. Instead of "walking all over" him, she uses those boots to simply leave and walk away.
EN"These Boots Were Made for Walking"
The Beat Goes On (Empress Music, 2010)
FR"Ces bottes sont faites pour marcher"
Seule ce soir (Empress Music, 2012)
Walk all over or walk away? Tell us which you prefer in the comments below.
(Photo: Ian Brown/Six Media) This interview has been condensed and edited.
Related:
The beat goes on for Emilie-Claire Barlow