BARB JUNGR: Chanson - The Space in Between

Barb Jungr

Chanson - The Space in Between

Queen of Cabaret Barb Jungr's original take on the songs of Jacques Brel. "I say, light that Gaullloise, sip a Ricard and go for it!"

You really do owe it to yourself to hear this album
Rock'n'Reel

This is a stunning album. There is no space in between Barb Jungr and these songs, she inhabits them with such passion and conviction. What a joy that the chanson genre has found her!
Women in Music Magazine

How to capture the elliptical sentiments of a chanson for an English-speaking audience? One approach, favoured by that statuesque cabaret singer Karen Akers, is to preface each song with a brief and unobtrusive summary.

Barb Jungr has opted for commissioning translations of Jacques Brel, Leo Ferre and co. On the whole, the renditions are so sensitively handled that only the most fastidious purists could object. More to the point, Jungr has surrounded herself with a first-rate musical team including Fran Landesman's artful pianist-arranger Simon Wallace. Jungr's voice never strays into melodrama on Ne Me Quitte Pas or La Chanson des Vieux Amants. She also adds April in Paris and I Love Paris to the mix without provoking a sense of deja-vu.

It takes courage - not to say foolhardiness - to adapt the poetry of French songs for English ears. Barb Jungr's imaginative programme of Brel, Ferre and Prevert - seasoned with the occasional modern pop number - was a welcome success at Edinburgh this year.
The Sunday Times