It’s a song that resembles us. Clémentine, the ideal French girl from Japan

Clémentine, after a discreet start to her career in France at the end of the 80s, signed with a powerful Japanese record company, and began an astonishing career as a French singer for the Japanese market, with an original repertoire and numerous elegant covers.

In partnership with the exhibition It’s a song that resembles us – Worldwide hits of French-speaking popular music At the Cité internationale de la langue française in Villers-Cotterêts, these chronicles look in detail at each of the stories presented there.

For those of us who live in this culture, when we hear this timbre of voice, this musical colour, the reference to Saint-Tropez, we are transported to the enchanted sixties. Brigitte Bardot, the sun, Geneviève Grad, the convertibles filled with tanned teenagers…

But when you’re in Japan, the stakes are almost more existential. This song tells of another way of life. The Côte d’Azur within reach of the motorway, six weeks of paid holidays, a unique and seductive freedom, for those who don’t live in Western Europe.

And this is what Clémentine has been saying for several decades. Here, it is a song from 1992, which appeared on the album in private Flight 270 to Tokyoan album that was never released in France. Because Clémentine is a French singer, in Japan only.

Stop being French, try being Japanese. What you hear there is France, the most desirable France. A sweet France to live in, flooded with sun and freedom. Here is Syracuse, one of the most beautiful classics composed by Henri Salvador, in an album by Clémentine released in 2000, Travels. Because she willingly mixes this archetypal France with the Brazil of bossanova and the jazz of an ideal club in mythological New York.

That’s still about forty albums, including compilations, about forty albums released in Japan. Clémentine’s first 45 in 1988, and it’s in France. It’s the time when Patricia Kaas achieved fame by singing Miss Sings the Bluesand a record company thinks it’s not absurd that this girl sings jazz.

Except that the record doesn’t work, but Clémentine Mitz – that’s her name – really loves jazz, and she’s the daughter of a jazz enthusiast, so passionate that he even created a label to record his favorite musicians. And since her single on a major label doesn’t work, Clémentine records an album on an independent label.

1988, an afternoon in Paris, the opening track of the album Blue Continentsigned by saxophonist Johnny Griffin and singer Clémentine. A mainstream jazz album of great elegance, illuminated by Clémentine’s silky voice. The album is released in Japan, and in this jazz-crazy country, it is a big success. Then an idea comes to Sony Japan. What if Clémentine recorded directly for this market? And an extravagant story begins…

In this episode of This song reminds me of usyou hear excerpts from:

Clementine, Saint Tropez, 1992

Clementine, Syracuse, 2000

Clementine, Absolutely jazz, 1988

Clementine, An afternoon in Paris, 1989

Clementine, What is the weather in Paris?, 2021

Clementine, Star and you (BOF Kizumonogatari Part 2: Nekketsu), 2016

Clementine, What is the weather in Paris?, 2021

You can also extend this column with the book This song reminds me of us published by Heritage Publishing.

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