Calogero, the new benchmark of French pop

Le Regard Libre N° 32 - Jonas Follonier

In the baby-boomer generation, he's leading the way in current French chanson. His new, pop-flavored album builds on the success of his last, revealing an artist who is totally in control of his art. Calogero, one of our musical favorites.

Born in Isère, France, in 1971, Calogero Joseph Salvatore Maurici made a name for himself on the French music scene with his second solo album, Calogero, released in 2002. This opus contains the famous Weightless announced the style of the artist, who doesn't hesitate to use his head voice in the choruses. Guitarist, bassist and pianist, Calogero is a member of the French pop-rock movement that favors melodies.

Liberté chérie and cherished love

With Liberté chérie released on August 25, Calogero delivers a highly accomplished album, continuing the perfect artistic identity of his latest, Fireworks. With its airy refrains, rich arrangements and creative bass, Calogero's genius is instantly recognizable, Flying at night. In fact, this song has a very Polnarevian tone, as much in the way the chorus is sung as in the melody and even the lyrics. «Behind every house, people dream, people love. It's beautiful as seen from an airplane, we all look the same.» It's like being in Holidays.

Read also | Polnarevolutions

The importance of love is an omnipresent theme on the album. We know each other by heart, very rocking, questions what makes a couple last, while The kiss without a name plunges us into memories of clandestine love affairs, set to a delicious waltz tempo. The album's eponymous song, Liberté chérie, alludes to the Paris attacks and their target: a certain art de vivre marked by freedom, humor and love. Very simple, but very true, this song composed by Calogero and written by Marie Bastide is a song of reclamation: «And that's how they live here; they're the guardians of this country.»

A reference

All in all, the album's lyrics come as no surprise, remaining as faithful as ever to the altruistic, emancipatory line that Calogero likes to propose to his songwriters. However, it is for its musical research that the album Liberté chérie deserves undeniable respect. We are dealing with an artist who innovates every time, while remaining true to his style. Above all, Calogero has lost none of his ability to create magnificent melodies that easily linger in the memory.

The song Fundamental is the finest example of this. The third single release from the album, this piano-driven ballad with guitars and metallophones is sure to become one of Calogero's greatest hits. On a par with If only she could miss me (2004) and The Portrait (2014), Fundamental comes from a perfect mastery of melody, and presents the right words that in pop can be simple but must speak to everyone (the lyrics to this song are by Paul Ecole):

«We all
A Souchon song that drags us along
An old turtleneck in the way
A new school year, the smell of a kit
In our memories, we all
All those things that last and hold
An old poster of Saint-Etienne
Words that demolished us
Some “I'd rather be friends”...”
All these stones on which we hoist ourselves
And make us a building
At the back of our minds
All these fundamental things
All these stones turned towards the past
That push us and make us grow
Hidden there, deep in the mind
These are the basics.»

Calogero is an excellent musician, a classy man and a star who doesn't cheat. Performing his song Fireworks in front of his piano on July 14th in Nice in tribute to the victims, the singer broke down in tears before the end of the song, leaving the orchestra to play the final chords. A moment of great emotion. Calogero is one of those stars we don't fall for for nothing: it's because we know deep down that they're whole people. You can feel it in their presence, in their voice, which, like their eyes, reveals the expression of their soul. Their music. And that's how they become benchmarks. Calogero is now one of them.

Write to the author: jonas.follonier@leregardlibre.com

Photo credit: Wikimedia CC 4.0