Guitarist Rodolphe Raffalli is known internationally for his performances of Georges Brassens material, and here he accompanies Renée Garlène, a singer whose precise, rare tone provides sensitive and delicate readings of the same composer’s repertoire. Together they form an extraordinarily musical duo: the guitar’s aerial phrases seem to hold conversations with the songs themselves, and the pair are backed by a wonderful rhythm section, notably partnered by Teofilo Chantre, the great musician from Cape Verde. Here the Brassens repertoire is tinted with jazz, swing and Brazilian rhythms, providing music that softly weaves through these songs to emphasize all the power of the poetry behind the melodies of Brassens. Augustin Bondoux & Patrick Frémeaux