Françoise Hardy, celebrated singer/songwriter/actress and lead figure in the French yé-yé movement, has passed away at the age of 80. Her career was most active between 1963 and 1976, with several releases that epitomize the genre. Her soft voice and silky command of the French language against the backdrop of sparse but well-executed instrumentation provide a window to a different time, where sidewalk café cigarettes and wine, strolls down le Champs de elysees, and a lazy nap in le parc du bois were the order of the day.

My journey into the world of yé-yé started in the early 2010’s with an anthology of Pussy Cat, and just before the pandemic, Third Man Records released a trio of albums by the also great singer France Gall. My wife and I went to a sparsely attended listening party in Detroit celebrating them on the eve of the whole world shutting down. Over the lock-down period I spun those records on repeat and it was during that time that I discovered the music of Françoise Hardy. Thanks to the Third Man releases and yé-yé compilations on other labels, there’s a bit of a yé-yé resurgence these days. Cheers and Godspeed to Françoise, who was one of the leaders and one of the best in the genre.

Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos. Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit.
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