Carla Bruni Hypes Album, Not Hubby

But will she pose for the cover of BLURT?

By Fred Mills

Back in the day, when BLURT was just a little ol’ print magazine called Harp, we filled you in on Italian-born/French-raised chanteuse, France First Lade and former model/paramour to rock stars Carla Bruni. At the time — our September 2007 issue — her first English language album, No Promises, was was available only on iTunes and at Barnes & Noble, effectively cutting out a huge chunk of her potential customer base, but it subsequently arrived “officially” at all retail and web outlets on February 19 via Downtown Records.

It was pitched by the label thusly:

No Promises is a true celebration of the English language, a tribute to the literary greats of our time. Carla’s fascination and deep appreciation of the language prompted her to make an album comprised of her favorite poems interpreting them into delicate and introspective songs. From Emily Dickinson’s “I Felt My Life With Both My Hands” to WH Auden’s “Lady Weeping At The Crossroads”, to William Butler Yeat’s “Those Dancing Days are Gone” and “Before The World Was Made,” the songs flow with understated emotion and a respectful interpretation that does not overstep its creators vision, instead enhancing and modernizing the time-tested lyricism of these shimmering works. All the while, Carla’s voice floats smoothly along the lines of prose, using the words of others to tell a story that is all her own.

Now arrives word of Bruni’s third album, Comme si de rien n’était  ("As if Nothing Had Happened"), which will be released on CD in the US next week, also on Downtown, and apparently already a #1 hit in France, which isn’t all that surprising, but it’s also making iTunes waves internationally. As you might surmise from the title, it’s mostly sung in Bruni’s adopted French language.

Bruni’s set to be interviewed by Barbara Walters this Friday on 20/20, and though the appearance is billed as a performance/interview, you can bet the bulk of the program will focus on Bruni and her relationship with her husband — who just happens to run France — regardless of how she tries to steer the conversation.

Bruni also graces the cover of this month’s Vanity Fair, pictured above. But you can find a lot more “interesting” and “artsy” photos of her simply by going to Google Images… or at least that’s what we’ve heard.

The label scoop on the new album:

 
Produced by Dominique Blanc-Francard, the critically lauded album features 10 original compositions by Carla Bruni, one song written in collaboration with French novelist Michel Houellebecq,  another with singer Julien Clerc, and two cover songs, including a stunning version of Bob Dylan’s “You Belong To Me."  At Carla Bruni's request, her royalties from the album will be donated to Fondation de France, for charitable and humanitarian causes. Comme si de rien n’etait is the follow-up to 2007’s No Promises, which debuted at #1 in both the Billboard European Top 100 Albums Charts & the French Album Charts.  

Comme si de reien n’était – track list:

1. ma jeunesse
2. la possibilité d'une île
3. l'amoureuse
4. tu es ma came
5. salut marin
6. ta tienne
7. péché d'envie
8. you belong to me
9. le temps perdu
10. déranger les pierres
11. je suis une enfant
12. l'antilope
13. notre grand amour est mort
14. il vecchio e il bambino