A Long-Awaited Treasure : Paradise in a Box
Cabir Davis | 10/14/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Vanessa Paradis has long been amongst my Top 3 recording artists, and its wonderful that her team finally woke up to the fact that there are hardly any official releases of her work on DVD. Her 2000 Concert for her "Bliss" Album, "Au Zenith", was incredible, as it was the first documented version of her performing live, but this new, much more comprehensive work entitled "Divinidylle Tour" simply soars above her last DVD, considering how much work has gone into making this a Collector's Edition worth your money. Its great when artists respect their fans, and Vanessa certainly respects hers'.
Do remember that I am reviewing the more expensive (and far more essential) Collector's Edition, which consists of :
1. The "Divinidylle Tour" 2008 DVD (One DVD)
2. The "Divinidylle Tour" 2008 CD (One CD - note, this is the exact same CD that is available as a stand-alone product, so don't get confused)
3. Both the above are housed in a 100+ Page Glossy Photo-Book (of unusual dimensions) - the book consists solely of photos from Vanessa, Mathieu Chedid, and her entourage both on stage and off (mostly on)
4. A White-On-Gold Sticker with the tour name and artist name (this was especially beautiful, but I almost tore it as it comes stuck on the outside plastic wrap - its really gorgeous looking)
5. One Leaf Tour Flyer with the DVD Tracklisting, Set list, and the CD Tracklisting.
The CD does not contain all the songs performed on the tour, simply because the entire concert runs almost 2 long hours, and they cut out some songs on the CD. The DVD contains all the songs, of course.
You must also remember that is not a straightforward 'Concert' DVD. This is actually a comprehensive motion picture, filmed documentary-style, and the songs actually act as interludes between a lot of interesting vignettes. We get to meet Vanessa behind the scenes of the stage, her thoughts on the writing process, and the band is introduced as well. The film literally captures them travelling on a tourbus from Bercy to Montpellier to Nice, with songs performed at various venues. What I especially liked is that they kept the original tracklisting, so if you would like to view only the songs and skip the 'movie' part, you can actually choose songs individually from the menu instead of sitting through the whole film.
With this feature, the DVD works as both a full length Documentary, as well as a regular Concert DVD, so you can take your pick. And you know whats better, there are English Subtitles THROUGHOUT, except during the song segments. This is an especially welcome edition, as it opens up a whole new world of fans for Vanessa. The DVD is also coded as Region 0 (which means that no matter which part of the world you live in, THIS DVD WILL PLAY ON YOUR SYSTEM!) - so no confusion there as well.
Onto the actual concert itself. I found it great that they decided to film the Bercy (Paris) concert, and the film starts with Vanessa explaining her nervousness of singing before 15000 people (Bercy was the largest tour date she played on this tour). For world audiences, this number might seem miniscule, but remember that in France, anything over 5000 people at a concert is considered a gigantic packed house. With this in mind, the film shows the doors to the Auditorium opening, and people flooding in. The band members all have a little ritual before they take to the stage, which was cute, and the show begins.
One of my least favorite tracks on the original "Divinidylle" CD from 2007, was "Irresistiblement". Amazingly, Vanessa decided to open the show with this song, and it was stunning to see how she transformed this simple tune into an effective powerhouse opening - it sounds COMPLETELY different live - the effect is incredible. Mathieu Chedid, an accomplished musician and recording star in his own right, is happy to be the Accompanist on this tour, and plays second fiddle to Vanessa's centerstage quite happily. On their hit duet "Les Piles" (The Batteries), the two exchange a friendly banter that sounds so much more natural than the track on the record.
The great part about Vanessa's concerts is that because she tours only once every seven years (a fact she informs us early on in the DVD), fans both demand and get older hits, as well as 'rarities'. The big surprise on this tour was an inclusion of a really obscure B-Side from her catalog in the 1980s, called "Varvara Pavlovna". The song isn't a masterpiece by any means, but it was great to see Vanessa pay homage to her 1980s output, and not just sing "Joe Le Taxi". The composer for both was Franck Langolff, and Vanessa acknowledges his musical influence upon her life and career.
Eternal hit "Dis Lui Toi Que Je T'Aime" is a beautiful set-number here, and even more affecting is her version of "Chet Baker" (the song where infamously shifts between her lower register to the upper register - with spectacular results). Vanessa is not a singing, dancing sensation like many Western female artists, but is firmly in the middle - her dancing is pretty much unrehearsed and natural - she sways to the music, twirls her hips, headbangs with the guitarist - but its all very effective simply because she loses herself in the music.
Vanessa's greatest song (in my opinion) is "Pourtant", from 2000's "Bliss" Album. Her version here was especially poignant, even better than all her live performances of the track from 2000-2001. Its a mystical song, even spiritual, I think, and everytime she performs it, she brings a special grace and dignity to it that outstrips each former version of it. What a treat to watch her infuse it with a completely different vibe, on this tour.
Of course, the chunk of songs performed are from her 2007 album, but she includes both tributes to her children ("Bliss" to Lily Rose, and "Jackadi" for Jack Depp). Underrated classic "St. Germain", which was written for Vanessa by beau Johnny Depp, is performed with a rare simplicity that gives this stark tune new meaning. Its these sorts of slow, beautiful numbers that Vanessa excels at, and it was great to see that the audience simply lapped it up.
Of course, two tracks got the loudest applause, and you should probably watch these first when you get the DVD. The first is the title track, a huge No. 1 hit in France (its the sort of song that every Frenchman automatically knows the words to, by now), and the second is the incomparably addictive "Des Que J'te Vois", with its slinky chorus, and singalong verses. She transforms this song into a callout, involving the audience to sing along, and the track goes from a song to an epic in no time. Amazing.
Franck Monnet's influence upon Vanessa's work is very visible on this tour. He wrote her sensational "Pourtant" (which Mathieu mixes up on this tour with an amazing guitar solo and break), and he also wrote "La Bataille" (a pop-rock gem) that Vanessa brings the house down with. Franck is an underrated French recording artist known for his boyish charm and love of the written word, and has four albums of his own, ALL of which are worth owning - "Playa", "Les Embellies", "Au Grand Jour", and "Malidor". That last album is one of earths' least-discovered treasures, in my opinion.
Finally, "Divinidylle Tour" ends with Vanessa's trademark rendition of Jeanne Moreau's "Le Tourbillon de la Vie" (originally from "Jules et Jim"). While her duet with Moreau is what this song is most remembered for, Vanessa also quietly recorded an acoustic version of the track for the childrens' compilation entitled "Ma Chansons Enfance" (well worth tracking down this CD). It ranks as one of her finest moments on record, and its a fitting way to end the show, as she and the crowd sing the last few lines together.
To say that this show is spectacular is an understatement. I really hope I get to see her someday in concert, because she is raw, unpretentious, and just totally absorbed in her music. Unlike many artists who drone on and on with silly stage banter, even her banter is related to the music, and her musical choices are very much on point. Only a dream setlist would look like this, and Vanessa got it down exactly the way it should be. Perfection.
Of course, I'm biased as I've been a fan of Paradis since I was a kid, but really, this is the best thing she has released so far. All her studio albums are essential, but her work really just comes alive on stage - its inexplicable how she can transform one of her studio songs into something totally different on stage.
I got this DVD from Amazon's French site - there are four versions available - the single DVD version, the plain CD Version, the Collector's Edition Version, and the Blu-Ray Version. Please blindly just buy the Collector's Edition DVD, as the packaging is just exquisite. The book is a matte-black with black and gold art-paint on the front - like a proper coffee table book. They've put so much effort into this.
Five Stars. My Purchase of the Year."
FANtastique!
Mark Mccaffrey | Lafayette, CO | 01/16/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"We're huge fans and have massively enjoyed Divinidylle, both the original CD, the live concert CD and the DVD, though the later that we got is PAL format so we can only play on my Mac, which is OK but not ideal. Also, there's a booklet but not 90 pages of photos as described. That said: no complaints in terms of the content. Vanessa and her super talented crew are world-class musicians and entertainers, and I've been haunted for weeks by the songs, which show her roots with mentors like Serge G. and Lenny K.. But she's unique and a force of nature.
A mix of oldies woven in with the bulk of Divinidylle, this is a gem."
Track Listings (20) - Disc #1