Melody for Monday: She, Charles Aznavour

Charles Aznavour's 'She' - is it really about a woman? Or is it about a precious place, a time? The mystery of this 1974 delicate beauty is like a locked attic. The opening strains lay down the gauntlet as Aznavour starts his song of love, his homage to being smitten.

Like a detective observing the enigmatic objet l'amour from afar, he starts, 'She may be the face I can't forget/ A trace of pleasure I regret/ Maybe my treasure or price I have to pay.' The melody is a slow dance with a shadow.

Aznavour's voice glides over the notes, caressing them like remembered memories. The piano tiptoes, the strings breathe. It's the soundtrack to a rendezvous.


Elvis Costello covered Aznavour's classic in 1999, for the Julia Roberts-Hugh Grant-starring film Notting Hill. The original song by Aznavour, with lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer, was rendered in French, German, Italian and Spanish.

One could argue that Aznavour's French rendition, 'Tous les visages de l'amour' (All the Faces of Love) is the best. But it's the brittle quality of the original English that takes the song to another level, mixing it with the air.