How It's Used

"On the videotape you can actually see old dance footage from the cakewalk to the Charleston; you can watch Baker cut a rug and listen to her rendition of her signature song, 'J'ai deux amours'; there's even an extended selection from Bechet's 'Premier bal' plus a remarkable clip of the gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt's fancy finger work, despite a crippling injury that limited movement in two of his digits."

"The amour between Mr. Allen and France is well known, but he has an ambivalent relationship with Americans that makes his status as a pitchman questionable. His U.S. fan base largely deserted him after he left his longtime paramour, Mia Farrow, in 1992 and later married her daughter, Soon-Yi Previn. Conjouring up memories of that affair, the French promotional video features a soundtrack of Josephine Baker crooning J'ai deux amours."

"Shy and self-effacing, Peyroux at first seemed slightly ill at ease beneath the chandeliers of Bush Hall. There is still more than a hint of the street busker about her. Her set, though, quickly established its own pace. There was nothing showy or melodramatic about her performance. Her compact group, anchored by Scott Amendola's understated drumming, knew exactly how hard to push on the old gospel-tinged anthem 'Lonesome Road' and the intelligent cover of Bob Dylan's 'You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go.' Rob Bargad added immensely subtle piano accompaniment and a discreet touch of Hammond organ.

"Best of all was the stark, haunting treatment of Hank Williams's Weary Blues and a nostalgic day-trip to Montmartre on J'ai Deux Amours."

"Dee Dee Bridgewater's new album 'J'ai Deux Amours' is a lush valentine to France, but jazz's most dynamic vocalist has her ears open to the world. With its gorgeously textured arrangements of chanson Francaise classics such as 'Ne Me Quitte Pas' and 'La Belle Vie,' the project makes perfect sense for Bridgewater, who's offering a tribute to the country that embraced her while continuing her journey away from well-worn jazz and American Songbook standards."

"It was inevitable that Josephine Baker would be cast as leading lady, and not only because her career leapt from New York to Paris or because her signature chanson, 'J'ai Deux Amours,' identifies her two loves as her homeland and her adopted city."

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