French Music: Jacqueline Taïeb “Le coeur au bout des doigts”

French Music Then and Now: Interesting music from France and the Francophone world

Why I write about music?

I think about music a lot and I am constantly listening to it. France has a long history of amazing music and covers all kinds of genres. The country and the francophone world has been a major producer of musical culture for generations.

In this series “French Music” I am going to drop in tracks that I like or that I have been listening to. For me, this is a great way to appreciate a lot of French culture from skilled artists of all genres. The only thing connecting them is that they are in French or I am hearing them in France quite a lot.

I’ll say a bit about them and eventually put together Spotify & YouTube playlists as well. I’ll try to keep it brief, but you can also just skip what I have to say & go right to the music.

Enjoy.

Keith

 

French music - Jacqueline Taïeb

Jacqueline Taïeb: a popular, but under-appreciated yé-yé singer

Le Coeur au Bout des Doigts” by Jacqueline Taïeb.

“The Heart at Your Fingertips” was released in 1967 & Taïeb is another yé-yé singer to bring a heavily American-influenced sound to the French music scene.

Born in Tunis, Tunisia in 1948, she became famous with her first, almost garage band-sounding hit, “7 heures du matin” (“7 in the morning”). Important at the time, but not my favorite. “Le Couer au Bout des Doights” showcases her voice and singing much better for me. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to find out who performed with her. As with many American recording studios of the time, many uncredited studio musicians showed up on all kinds of albums. The emphasis was much more on the singers at the time.

She was popular at the time, but in recent years, Taïeb’s experienced a bit of a resurgence as the 1960s French pop scene has been revisited and celebrated among collectors and aficionados of the period.


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About the Contributor

Keith Christiansen

As a former NYC teacher and lifelong traveler, I share experiences that focus on modern France’s cultural curiosities and the everyday realities of living abroad—not just the tourist version. Discover more on Substack or Instagram @home_elsewhere

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