In this episode of The A to Z of Wartime Song, hosts Lili Redman and Tom Carradine explore the romantic and iconic "La Vie en Rose", the song that became Edith Piaf's signature. They trace its creation in post-war Paris, from Piaf's own lyrics to Louiguy's melody and Marianne Michel's crucial lyric tweak that transformed "Les Choses en Rose" into "La Vie en Rose". The discussion delves into Piaf's extraordinary and often tragic life - from her childhood in a Normandy brothel, to her discovery in the streets of Paris, to her wartime years performing under Occupation and her daring role in helping prisoners escape. Along the way, Tom and Lili uncover Django Reinhardt's remarkable story of survival and innovation, examine the differences between the French original and Mack David's American translation, and reflect on why Piaf's chanson endures as one of the most beloved songs of the 20th century. SPOTIFY PLAYLIST You can listen to ALL of the songs that Tom and Lili talk about in the episode on their Spotify playlister here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1FQDrBphYqYLAuN6Jm01PN?si=b777dc33a703408a REFERENCES Belvoir Castlehttps://www.belvoircastle.com/ Bluebird Bells @ Belvoir Castlehttps://www.instagram.com/reel/DOB-N5pjOHm/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Lili Drenched at Belvoir Castlehttps://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1417482409903905&set=a.312306463754844 Talbot Househttps://www.talbothouse.be/en Talbot House - Concert Party Pictureshttps://www.facebook.com/talbothouse.be/posts/pfbid0gsiYG8fb3sFqutLhLp6WbpZauSxPf66TasbTstnLX5UciNBS5M2hMSFpF8YVZzh1l Don't Dilly Dally - London and SE Tourhttps://www.dontdillydally.co.uk/ Kenneth Williams - My Crepe Suzettehttps://youtu.be/6MbZjzIg5w8?si=UtTmkGpnMVwym8n_ Allo Allo - English Policemanhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYNXMWRdCx0 Edith Piaf - La Vie en Rosehttps://youtu.be/rzeLynj1GYM?si=mHQw9e1H2YsIYTuN Edith Cavellhttps://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/london-statues-and-monuments/edith-cavell/ Edith Piaf - No Regretshttps://youtu.be/rzy2wZSg5ZM?si=gFlJGJ4pWXZrcKA5 Grand Hotel de Clermont - Hotel from Hell!https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g187147-d3477361-Reviews-Grand_Hotel_de_Clermont-Paris_Ile_de_France.html Kilburn Gaumont State Cinemahttp://www.arthurlloyd.co.uk/KilburnTheatres.htm#gaumont http://www.arthurlloyd.co.uk/Kilburn/Tour/KilburnStateTour.htm One-Two-Two Brothel in Parishttps://www.atlasobscura.com/places/one-two-two-wartime-brothel Edith Piaf Gravehttps://www.findagrave.com/memorial/1334/%C3%A9dith-piaf Saint-Saëns - The Swanhttps://youtu.be/3qrKjywjo7Q?si=Cq6SWOGdKsGMT-eG Edith Piad - L'accordéonistehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhu-0IBZm5s Be Our Guesthttps://youtu.be/afzmwAKUppU?si=ks55JKywYhSnMYbp Around the World - Victor Young and Harold Adamsonhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hScyoga67Tw Fabulous Places - Doctor Doolittlehttps://youtu.be/10AMqdJUcFY?si=eAUMRoaeQpvLaHAM Charles Trenet - La Merhttps://youtu.be/PXQh9jTwwoA Mein Kleiner Gruner Kaktushttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjMw0kEw6B0 Knees Up Mother Brown (with Verse)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrvDiTB8QwA International Al Jolson Societyhttps://www.jolson.org/ CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro00:49 Catch Up03:03 V = La Vie En Rose07:22 Edith Piaf11:46 Django Reinhart17:49 Edith Piaf During WW226:08 Discussing the Sheet Music27:45 When Did We First Discover It?28:32 Discussing the Lyrics34:14 Discussing the Music39:01 Discussing Versions: Edith Piaf40:39 If You Liked That You'd Like This46:51 Mentioned in Dispatches49:23 Teaser for Next Week49:57 Outro SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS You can follow the podcast on social media:http://instagram.com/warsongspod https://www.facebook.com/warsongspod Find more information about Lili Redman here: https://liliredman.com/https://www.instagram.com/lili__redman/ https://www.facebook.com/ScalaLil Or Tom Carradine here:https://www.tomcarradine.com/https://www.instagram.com/tomcarradine https://www.facebook.com/mrtomcarradine CONTACT THE PODCAST If there's a wartime song that you think they should discuss, or if you have a personal or family story connected to one, drop them a line at [email protected] to be "Mentioned in Dispatches". LISTENING LINKS Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7ktQ4nyudmPRLcCNyNxEfv?si=ac9e1babe6834f2b Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-a-to-z-of-wartime-song/id1806037318 If you've enjoyed this episode Lili and Tom would be grateful if you'd leave a review and make sure you've subscribed and turned on notifications so you'll never miss an episode.