The language barrier may be one of the reasons that French music – Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg’s infamous Je T’Aime Moi Non Plus being the sole exception – is not as widely popular among the Maltese as, say, Italian or British music. To quote a worn-out cliché, however, music is a universal language transcending all barriers, and, after listening to the 13 songs on this Putumayo release, this couldn’t be clearer. Since my grasp of the French language isn’t too impressive, I focus on the music instead, which is by and large quite straight

forward and catchy, melodic and infectious; whether it’s Barbara’s sweet voice or the huskier tone of Serge Gainsbourg.

While the styles flit from classic to modern and back, French Café has a consistent air of sophistication, by way of elegance that is, not complexity. This is mostly evident in the selections by the legends of French chanson, namely Gainsbourg, Jane Birkin, Brigitte Bardot and Georges Brassens, but the modern cuts, especially the two by Paris Combo, Polo’s La fee Clochette and Sanseverino’s Mal O Mains, are equally stylish and evocative of the country’s traditional café culture. Evenly balanced between old and new, French Café is a convenient introduction to one of Europe’s richest musical cultures.