Mink DeVille
Le Chat Bleu

THE REVIEW

10 years ago, a Latin Springsteen and the best singer of the year according to “Rolling Stones” in 1980 left us.

I write about him, how could I not? He is the perfect man. During concerts, he stops and gives roses to the women present, regardless of the audience's boos. How can you not love someone like that? Very thin, with a goatee, tattoos, an earring, and long hair, the Latin man who would do anything to walk you home “Just To Walk That Little Girl Home,” but slowly and with feeling.

Someone who fascinates you and makes your blood boil, someone who releases a track like “Mazurka” in 1979 (!), with the accordion as the main instrument, and presents it to Capitol, which among its artists had Pink Floyd, Iron Maiden, Queen, Gentle Giant… Once he received the obvious rejection (due to the record executives' incompetence), he moved to France, gathered good musicians, self-produced, chose a beautiful cover, and released another masterpiece: Le Chat Bleu.

That rejection was a welcome one, Paris is felt everywhere in this album, in the songs imbued with rock'n'roll and dark atmospheres, in “Heaven Stood Still,” in his dozens of cigarettes smoked with pain at every moment. Willy De Ville is the man who makes you feel like a queen, who you know exactly what he wants, a damn chicano who keeps holding you back “You Just Keep Holding On”…

I’d better stop here, the one who puts up with me daily is arriving…

One last quick thing, before he reads, there’s nothing about Mink De Ville on Debaser!!!

Live, they were an experience equal to the E Street Band, a show sharp as a knife (a switchblade). I had the incredible fortune to see them in Turin many years ago, and I keep an indelible memory of it. In this album, you’ll find a mix of soul, romantic rock, a pinch of punk, cajun, and so much... love!

PS, writing a review in two stages didn’t please me, I apologize in advance, but trust me despite my ramblings, this CD, Coupe de Grace, and the live are other unmissable masterpieces.