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NEWS! BORDERS AND BARNES AND NOBLE ARE PROUD TO CARRY IN THEIR STORES RAQUEL BITTON'S SUBLIME TRIBUTE TO EDITH PIAF. LOOK FOR 'PIAF..HER STORY..HER SONGS' ON DVD. PARIS BLUES,RAQUEL BITTON LATEST CD IN ALL STORES NOW. French jazz singer and recording artist Raquel Bitton is recognized as the foremost singer of French music in America today and has been internationally reviewed as the greatest interpreter of the music from the Edith Piaf repertoire.

RAQUEL BITTON lives in the San Francisco Bay area. She is the star of the award winning film "PIAF..Her story..Her songs" (LIONSGATE FILMS/On DVD now!)

Discover more about Raquel Bitton on her web site, www.raquelbitton.com.

REVIEWS

JAZZ TIMES MAGAZINE Reviews RAQUEL BITTON new CD "PARIS BLUES"

RAQUEL BITTON
Paris Blues (Raquel Bitton)
Last year, Dee Dee Bridgewater became the Gene Kelly of jazz, celebrating the joys of being an American in Paris with the Gallic valentine J'ai Deux Amours. Now, bona fide Parisian chanteuse Raquel Bitton is following suit, this time with an intriguing retro spin, paying track-by-track homage to 11 showbiz legends--Django Reinhardt, Sidney Bechet, Jean Sablon, Lucienne Delyle and Leo Marjane among them--who gave musical delineation to the arc of emotions that defined Paris prior to, during and immediately following the Second World War.

Even if you don't understand a word of French, it's impossible not to appreciate the raw grandeur of Bitton (who, as she's previously proven on CD and in various stage tributes, sounds precisely like a latter-day Edith Piaf) as she so expertly captures the smoky sophistication of Reinhardt's "Nuages" or the succulent joie de vivre of Bechet's "Petite Fleur" or, most profoundly, the gutsy magnificence of Marjane's "Je Suis Seule ce Soir."

-Christopher Loudon

Rasputin Manifesto/By Michael Fortes
Raquel Bitton
Paris Blues, (RB Records)

When music transports you far away to desired places you can't get to otherwise, or simply can't afford at the moment, it's successful on a very important level. Raquel Bitton's Paris Blues hasn't been released yet as of this writing (it is scheduled to hit stores on the 21st of February 2006), but I can already tell you it's an unqualified success.

Bitton's sweet, quavering yet controlled voice evokes the feeling of early 20th century Paris like few others singing in this day and age. She gives moving readings of Sidney Bechet's "Petite Fleur," Django Reinhardt's "Nuages," and the Billie Holiday-associated "I'm A Fool To Want You." Singing in both French and English, Bitton also takes us directly to the streets of Paris by including songs originally recorded by French jazz singers Lucienne Delyle, Suzy Solidor and Leo Marjane.

To top it off, Bitton's accompaniment is stellar throughout, with a piano-bass-drums rhythm section augmented by violin, guitar, mandolin, and a full bevy of horns and strings in tasteful arrangements.

2006 could be a big year for this Bay Area resident, as Paris Blues coincides with the release of the concert film "Piaf…Her Story…Her Songs," in which Bitton is documented singing twenty Edith Piaf songs in tribute to the late French chanteuse. Keep an eye and an ear open…

Jazz Trenzz: Raquel Bitton
"Paris Blues" (RB Records 2006)
Posted by: adminon Wednesday, April 12, 2006 - 08:16 AM

By Karl Stober

The moods and ambiance of Paris light up even brighter however with a more sensual tone as Raquel Bitton vocalizes the times then to the emotions now of that passionate city. Paris Blues released by RB Records in early 2006 has all the fire and intensity of an era filled with diverse attitudes. In Piafesque fashion Bitton releases vocally a splendid and compassionate expose of Paris 1940's style.

Whether the spins remind you of a night melting of romantic passion or of decanter of Bordeaux at a hidden Caf.. the tones seem to fit the feel of the moment. The arrangements have been calculated with mood as the catalyst in many of the cuts however its Bitton's delivery which ignited this travelogue of sound through Paris.

One spin, which opens the listener's imagination, is “Paris S'eveille La Nuit” an Amaila Rodrigues classic that allows Bitton the luxury of expanding her talent. The flow and distinct tones of this piece conveys the disposition and texture of her talent.

The gayety of the French of that era is displayed flawlessly in the Suzy Solidor cut “Escale” which Bitton performs magically. Sultry is style Bitton expounds on the truest of Solidor's compassion for her craft and country. The arrangement has captured the talents of Bitton along with the atmosphere of the times, very nice job!

Bitton along with an orchestra of fine talents has crafted with triumph a feel of an era, an era of turmoil and tension. Justifiably liberated by romance of country and belief in a people. Bitton's tones are eloquent almost angelic at times during the compositions. This is a select representation in jazz of Paris then portrayed now!

KHS
Bitton's homage to Edith Piaf
by Daniel Gewertz Boston Herald

Raquel Bitton performing the songs of Edith Piaf at Symphony Hall, Boston, last night. Raquel Bitton created a lovely homage to Edith Piaf . Piaf's songs were sung with high artistry and knowledgeable flair. Piaf was 4-feet-10 and bigger than life. As Bitton explained in charming anecdotes, Piaf was born literally in the streets, in a doorway. Her mother was a drug addict, her father a street-artist and drunk. She grew up in her grandmother's bordello and sang and lived on the streets from age 7. Before dying at 47, she became the world's most beloved singer. Bitton, by contrast, was born in Morocco, discovered French love songs from her dad's records, and moved, with her family, to San Francisco as a teen. She might be America's foremost singer of French music. For lovers of mid-century French pop music, last night's well-designed 24-song show was a rare treat. (The orchestra was best when it resembled a small accordion band.) "Bitton, for all her dignity and elegance.... "excellent, refined singer ..." The jaunty ....Milord'' came across like a jubilant burst of street-wise confidence. ....Mon Dieu,'' the song Piaf sang for her boxing champ boyfriend the night he died in a plane crash, held high drama. ....Hymne a l'amour,'' Jean Cocteau's favorite Piaf song, showed how truly accomplished Bitton is."

What's on Disc by Thomas Schulte Womanrock.com SEPTEMBER 2000 REVIEWS
Raquel Bitton "Raquel Bitton sings Edith Piaf"
Omtown/Higher Octave Music American vocalist Raquel Bitton is foremost among French music interpreters, especially the Edith Piaf songbook. She sings with controlled passion resulting in music eloquence, even elegance. She finishes her lines with the characteristic Piaf vibrator quaver. No attempt is made here to update the Piaf songbook with contemporary techniques. A small, acoustic, gypsy ensemble or silk-stringed orchestra backs her as she takes the Little Sparrow flight path with grace and style.

By DON HECKMAN

Mention French cabaret and the names Edith Piaf and Charles Aznavour always come to mind. Piaf, of course, has been a seminal figure, a primary influence and a musical model since her death in 1963 at the age of 47. French singer Bitton (a longtime Bay Area resident) does indeed sing the songs of Edith Piaf, but she does not do a simulation or an impression. Her remarkable French articulation of the lyrics to such classics as "La vie en rose" and "Non, je ne regrette rien" is Piaf-like, but Bitton's phrasing and her sound are her own. The result is a glorious contemporizing of one of the classic 20th century musical styles.

Raquel Bitton Sings Edith Piaf, "The Golden Album."

San Francisco's definitive Parisian Jazz and Blues singer, after a few years experimenting with an expanded repertoire, has come back home musically. On this beautifully produced and musically stunning 16-track CD, Bitton sings material that she does better than anyone else in our midst - the songs associated with Edith Piaf.

Listening to this CD, a glass of wine in hand, is a mesmerizing experience. Bitton's native language is French - her impassioned delivery of these lyrics has a trance-like effect on a listener. She shifts from French to English on most songs but doesn't lose her inflections or style.

Included here are the familiar and unfamiliar - "La Vie en rose" to "Cri du coeur." The latter was the first Piaf recording I'd ever heard, 45 years ago - guitarist Django Reinhardt accompanied the "little sparrow."

Bitton sings "La Foule" (The Crowd) magnificently, her "Hymn a l'amour " and "Non, je ne regrette rien" (No, I have no regrets) are heart-wrenching renditions. Listening to the last, I speculated that perhaps Billie Holiday had heard Piaf singing these songs - and also "Pleure pas," before she recorded "Don't Explain." Piaf and Holiday shared a poignancy in their delivery that few others have mastered; Bitton, here, is one.

Accompaniment to Bitton is provided by a couple of dozen Bay Area musicians - included are pianist Larry Dunlap, bassist Mario Suraci, trumpeter Allen Smith, Drummer Harold Jones.Smith's muted trumpet on "J'm'en fous pas mal" (which, somehow, becomes "I shouldn't care" ) and "Mon Legionnaire" have the perfect touch.

Bitton dedicates "Les Neiges de Finlande" ("Snows of Finland" ) to its lyricist, Henri Contet, whom she met only weeks before his death, at 92, in 1998. He wrote many of Piaf's lyrics and after he heard Bitton sing he wrote, ". . . you captured the "Climat' Piaf. The voice, the heart and the talent would have pleased her so."

The CD's accompanying booklet is informative and nicely set. All the recording and mixing was done at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, engineered by Fred Catero.

Philip Elwood
Examiner Music Critic

"Passion is at the core of the "Piaf" Persona, in this case there is a surrogate, she is RAQUEL BITTON."

Anna Kisselgoff.
New York Times

"Dear Raquel, your singing is superb, and I was so happy to find out to which extent you possess the "Climat" PIAF. Your voice, your heart, your talent would have pleased her so much, I assure you.

HENRI CONTET
(Author of more than 40 of Piaf's songs..Le Vieux Piano, T'es beau tu sais...)

"Wonderful!!! Magnificent! Bravo Raquel. I received this morning your CD "In A Jazzy Mood", you can't imagine how I felt, your interpretations are sublime! and the Orchestrations by BOB HOLLOWAY quite original! Hurrah! A million thanks my dear Raquel, Joy! Joy! Joy! -

PAUL MIsRAKI
(author and Composer of "In A Jazzy Mood").

"A phenomenally good singer, BITTON can rasp with the best, and on the softer tunes be crisply, sensationally Rhapsodic".