Notre-Dame de Paris: Version anglaise

Notre-Dame de Paris: Version anglaise
International CD cover
Cast recording by
various artists
Released2000 (2000)
GenresPop/rock, show tunes
LabelsPomme Music
Epic, Columbia

Notre-Dame de Paris: Version anglaise, also marketed as simply Notre-Dame de Paris, is an album containing a cast recording of the English-language adaptation of the musical Notre-Dame de Paris. It was released in 2000 in France on the Pomme Music record label[1] and internationally by Sony's subsidiaries Epic Records[2] and Columbia.[3]

Background

The musical was translated into English by American lyricist Will Jennings.[4] Most of the original French cast remained intact from the French version. As noted by William Ruhlmann in his review for AllMusic, the French singers "adapt to the change in language without much trouble, perhaps in part because Jennings' translations are so spare and simple."[4]

The album also features a "guest star", Celine Dion, who opens it with her rendition of the song "Live for the One I Love",[4] repeated further on as sung by cast member Tina Arena.[5] Dion's recording of the song, an English-language version of "Vivre", was previously available on her 1999 compilation, All the Way... A Decade of Song.[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStar[4]

The AllMusic website rates the album 3 stars out of 5.[4] William Ruhlmann first notes in his review that the original musical "was an enormous French hit, both onstage in Paris and in record stores", but doesn't find the album to be worth "the fuss", writing: "On a single disc, with a running time of just over an hour (as opposed to the two-disc original [French] cast version), this recording of Notre-Dame de Paris makes it sound like a ballad-heavy show. Song after song is taken at a slow pace, with brief melodic motifs repeated over and over" and concluding: "[B]ased only on this recording, one is left wondering what all the fuss in Paris was about, since the show seems to drag along for most of its length." "It may take a staging of the musical in an English-speaking country to explain what the French found so compelling," he adds.[4] Among the cast, he singles out Garou, "who has a gravelly, Joe Cocker-like voice appropriate for the long-suffering Quasimodo."[4]

On the other hand, in another review on the AllMusic website, Heather Phares describes the musical as "vivid and memorable" and Richard Cocciante's songs as "evocative".[7]

Track listing

CD – Pomme Music 952 612

No.TitleArtist(s)Length
1."Live for the One I Love"Céline Dion 
2."The Age of the Cathedrals"Bruno Pelletier 
3."The Refugees"Luck Mervil 
4."The Bohemienne Song"Tina Arena 
5."Belle (Is the Only Word)"Garou / Daniel Lavoie / Steve Balsamo 
6."My Heart If You Will Swear"Natasha St-Pierre [sic] 
7."Torn Apart"Steve Balsamo 
8."The Bells"Garou 
9."The Pagan Ave Maria"Tina Arena 
10."Your Love Will Kill Me"Daniel Lavoie 
11."Moon"Bruno Pelletier 
12."God You Made the World All Wrong"Garou 
13."I'm a Priest"Daniel Lavoie 
14."The Birds They Put in Cages"Tina Arena / Garou 
15."Cast Away"Luck Mervil 
16."Live for the One I Love"Tina Arena 
17."Dance My Esmeralda"Garou 

Cast

Charts

Chart (2000) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[2]58
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[8]47

References

  1. ↑ "Notre-Dame De Paris (Version Anglaise) – CD (Album), 2000 [r1951609]" – via Discogs.
  2. 1 2 "Lescharts.com – Musical – Notre Dame de Paris [Version anglaise]". Hung Medien. Retrieved 10 August 2026.
  3. ↑ "Notre-Dame De Paris – CD (Album), 2000 [r4387698]" – via Discogs.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ruhlmann, William. "Various Artists: Notre Dame of Paris". AllMusic. Retrieved August 10, 2026.
  5. ↑ The album's covers.
  6. ↑ "Sélection disques " Faites tourner " par Victor Hache, Didier Rochet et Fara C." L'Humanité. November 26, 1999. Retrieved August 10, 2026.
  7. ↑ Attention: The review's text corresponds to the English version and doesn't match the cover and the track list.
    "Original Cast Recording: Notre Dame de Paris: Complete Cast Production". AllMusic. Retrieved August 10, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Musical – Notre Dame de Paris". Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
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