Edith Piaf still has place in French hearts as nation marks centenary of her birth
To the French, she was La Môme, the Little Sparrow who warbled her way off the streets of Paris and into international stardom. Edith Piaf had a song for every occasion, most of which mirrored the drama of her colourful life.
Je ne regrette rien, sang the cabaret singer raised by prostitutes in her grandmother's Normandy brothel. When she died, the Catholic Church refused to officiate at her funeral because her lifestyle was deemed sinful, but the procession to the cemetery brought the French capital to a standstill.
The 100th anniversary of the singer's birth falls in December this year and her life and legacy is being celebrated in an exhibition in Paris, which runs until August 23. The National Library of France has amassed more than 400 exhibits including photographs, song sheets, handwritten notes, posters - some never before seen by the public - as well as film excerpts and musical recordings aimed at reminding visitors of the role the cabaret singer played in French cultural history and collective memory.
In her signature black dress, she seduced audiences with La Vie en Rose, Hymne à l'amour and Milord, the ballad of a lower-class girl who develops a crush on an elegant British gentleman.
"The magic of Piaf is her repertoire that touches everyone," says head curator Joël Huthwohl. "She sang simple songs with lovely melodies that spoke to everyone at those important moments in their lives. Also, the story of her life is fascinating and like a fairy tale; the poor, little girl born on the streets who became an international star."
Today her personality is still important but above all it is the songs, the melodies, that have endured
Piaf's life was a classic rags-to-riches tale. Born Edith Giovanna Gassion on December 19, 1915, in Paris, her parents were from a family of circus performers: her father was an acrobat, her mother an Italian-born cafe singer, and her maternal grandmother a flea trainer.