Universal announced that L'Aigle Noir, their special boxed set of Barbara albums, would be available in record stores in November - but fans will now have to hold out until 2 December! However, such a delay is trivial when you consider that what really matters is that we will soon have a new "complete works of Barbara" (replacing the previous boxed set of albums, Ma plus belle histoire d’amour... c’est vous, released in '92). Going one better than the old "complete works" – 13 albums arranged in strict chronological order – Universal have taken a radically different approach this time round, presenting the legendary chanson star's studio albums with their original covers. What's more, collectors will be delighted to learn that several of the albums now feature special bonus tracks (previously only released as singles) and two CDs in the current batch were also previously unavailable to the public.

Going in chronological order that means fans can now get their hands on: Barbara chante Barbara (1964), Barbara N°2 (1965) featuring four special bonus tracks (Tu ne te souviendras pas, Attendez que ma joie revienne, Le Verger de Lorraine and Ce matin-là), Barbara chante en allemand (1967, the rarest of Barbara's LPs featuring the legendary "Dame brune" singing in German!), Ma plus belle histoire d'amour... c'est vous (1967), Le Soleil noir (1968) (with the bonus track Moi, je me balance), Madame (1969) (with four special bonus tracks Les Amis de Monsieur, La Vie d'artiste, Elle vendait des p'tits gâteaux and La Chanson de Margaret), L'Aigle noir (1970), Amours incestueuses (1972), La Fleur d'amour (1972), La Louve (1973) which includes the special bonus track L'Homme en habit rouge, Seule (1981) and Barbara (1996).

But the jewel in the Barbara crown has to be the rarest of rare albums which precedes these 12 CDs and which features a truly exceptional recording of the singer performing at the "Mardis de la chanson" in November 1963. The "Mardis de la chanson" ("Singing Tuesdays") organised by Philips, were not only designed to act as a launchpad for the label's established artists (Boby Lapointe or Gainsbourg), but also to "try out" new up-and-coming names label bosses believed had strong potential. And it is this rare "Mardis de la chanson" album which is really about to make music history. Now, for the first time, fans can hear the original version of Nantes, a song dealing with the death of Barbara's father. (Up until now only an 'inner circle' of Barbara obsessives had been privileged enough to hear the original recording!) The "Mardis de la chanson" album also includes another very special bonus track, Avec. Made on the strength of a special request from Claude Dejacques (the legendary artistic director who stepped into Jacques Canetti's shoes at Philips), the song was recorded with the aim of getting label bosses to sign a recording contract with Barbara. And this is the very first time it has been made available to the general public!

Another precious rarity closes Universal's new boxed set, too. Fans will find a CD featuring 16 previously unreleased songs recorded between 1964 and 1967. Seven of these songs (featuring Michel Gaudry on double bass and Joss Baselli on accordion) were recorded in Hamburg in November 1966 during sessions for Barbara's German album, Barbara singt Barbara (and these include the original versions of Y’aura du monde and Ma plus belle histoire d’amour as well as other songs from the same album which the singer would re-record a year later). Other gems on this final album include a word-changed and minimally-orchestrated version of A mourir pour mourir, two working versions of Sans bagages and Le Bel Age, A simple piano-and vocals version of Une petite cantate, two alternative takes of A chaque fois, two different orchestrations of Parce que je t’aime and a superb previously unheard version of the Barbara classic Madame.

What's more, the booklet accompanying Universal's boxed set of Barbara memorabilia is a collector's item in itself. This wonderfully informative and detailed booklet includes memories from the musicians who worked with Barbara, comments by the singer's official biographer, Sophie Delassein, about her work in the studio and an article by the French writer and critic Jérôme Garcin about the story behind Barbara's record covers. It also includes extracts from interviews with Claude Dejacques (Barbara's 'artistic director' between 1964 and 1970), sound engineer Roger Roche and Nadine Laïk (Barbara's personal secretary between 1964 and 1973).

Pantin 1981

While fans are waiting to avail themselves of Barbara's new "full works", they can get their hands on the double CD Récital Pantin 81 (the first digital re-release of Barbara's legendary live LP recorded at a series of concerts she performed in a circus Big Top on the outskirts of Paris between 28 October and 21 November 1981). Two immortal classics were written specially for this occasion: Regarde (a song celebrating François Mitterrand's triumph in the presidential elections that spring) and Pantin (a song Barbara performed at her final Pantin concert as a special thankyou to her audience). But perhaps the best bonus on Récital Pantin 81 is the track Barbara et son public. Originally exclusively released as a promotional single, this track features a superb medley of Barbara classics belted out live by the audience with Barbara intervening every now and then. This truly unique recording captures the very special ambience of the French diva's live shows and the exceptional relationship she enjoyed with her fans.

 Another recently-released piece of Barbara memorabilia which will find itself in more than one Christmas stocking this year is the DVD version of the singer's final Pantin concert. Produced by Guy Job, the original footage of the show was edited under the supervision of the singer herself (which explains why the order of the songs on screen do not correspond to the running order on stage!) No matter, the film gives us a glimpse of Barbara at the very height of her form, striking dramatic poses, making exaggerated gestures and moving around the stage in the most gloriously melodramatic way. What's more, Job's concert footage should be recommended for its unusual camera angles, its surprising modernity and its passionate celebration of Barbara on stage.

Recommended Reading

Barbara is also celebrated in the French publishing world this month. Fayard has just brought out an illustrated large format edition of Il était un piano noir (the singer's uncompleted memoirs, previously published in 1998). The book includes rare photographs from the singer's childhood and adolescence, but unfortunately these are presented without captions (which means readers have to flick back and forth to the page of photo credits for further details!) Annoyingly, while many of the most flagrant errors in the book's original version have now been corrected, we are sorry to see that there are still numerous spelling mistakes and minor factual errors in this new version.

Those looking for editorial rigour and precision should turn instead to Rappelle-toi Barbara, the new paperback version of the remarkable biography written by Sophie Delassein (a journalist for French weekly Le Nouvel Observateur). Published by 10/18, Delassein's impeccably researched and in-depth work, is an essential tool when it comes to piercing the mystery of the legendary "Dame brune."