Petit Frank

"Petit Frank"
Single by François Feldman
from the album Une Présence
B-side "Encore plus belle endormie"
"Fragile Queen" (CD maxi)
Released October, 1990
Format CD maxi
7" single
7" maxi
Recorded France, 1989
Genre Pop
Length 3:50
Label Phonogram
Writer(s) François Feldman
Jean-Marie Moreau
Producer(s) Jean Fredenucci
François Feldman singles chronology
"C'est toi qui m'as fait"
(1990)		 "Petit Frank"
(1990)		 "J'ai peur"
(1991)

"Petit Frank" is a 1989 song recorded by the French singer and songwriter François Feldman. It was the fourth single from his 1989 album, Une Présence, and was released in October 1990. As for the previous three singles from the album, "Joue pas", "Les Valses de Vienne" and "C'est toi qui m'as fait", it met a great success in France, reaching #1 on the chart, becoming thus Feldman's second number-one hit.

Song information

As for the previous singles from the album Une Présence, "Petit Frank" was written by Jean-Marie Moreau, while the music was composed by François Feldman himself. The song enjoys a "genuine sensitivity" and its "main character is a boy, abandoned or orphaned, presumably placed at the Assistance publique - Hôpitaux de Paris, faltering between combativeness and vulnerability".[1] The lyrics evoke the suffering of the child who tries to be courageous, in spite of his mother's death when he was ten, as it is said in the refrain. The music video, shot in black and white, shows the boy tormented by his schoolmates who do not understand his suffering. Feldman stated that this song was not autobiographical or personal at all, because his childhood was very happy and pampered.[2]

The song is included on Feldman's compilations, Two Feldman and Gold.[3]

Chart performances

In France, the single debuted at #39 on October 6, 1990, before climbing straight to the top twenty, then entered the top ten in its fourth week. It hit #2 in its eighth week, but remained blocked for five weeks by Mecano's smash hit "Une Femme avec une femme", which topped the chart then. Then it peaked at #1 for three consecutive weeks, then didn't manage to drop on the chart, totalling 16 weeks in the top ten and 22 weeks on the chart (Top 50).[4] It was not certified by the SNEP, even it its sales exceeded 500,000 copies.

"Petit Frank" remains the 468th best-selling single of all time in France and the 48th of the 1990s.[5] With "Les Valses de Vienne" and "Petit Frank", François Feldman became the first and the last artist who reached number-one in 1990 in France, becoming thus the French first artist to obtain two number-one on a year.

Track listings

7" single
  1. "Petit Frank" — 3:50
  2. "Encore plus belle endormie" — 3:03
7" maxi
  1. "Petit Frank" (extended version) — 4:58
  2. "Encore plus belle endormie" — 3:03
  3. "Petit Frank" — 3:50
CD maxi
  1. "Petit Franck" (extended version) — 4:58
  2. "Encore plus belle endormie" (Live 90) — 3:03
  3. "Fragile Queen" — 6:02
  4. "Petit Franck" (new version) — 3:50

Certifications and sales

Country Certification Date Sales certified Physical sales
France Should be Gold — — 545,000[5]

Charts

Chart (1990-1991) Peak
position
French SNEP Singles Chart[4] 1
Preceded by
"Une Femme avec une femme" by Mecano		 French SNEP number-one single
December 29, 1990 - January 12, 1991 (3 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Il faut laisser le temps au temps"
by Félix Gray and Didier Barbelivien

References

  1. ↑ Elia Habib, Muz hit. tubes, p. 199 (ISBN 2-9518832-0-X)
  2. ↑ François Feldman's biography, François Feldman Feldmanfrancois.com (Retrieved December 10, 2008)
  3. ↑ Gold, track listing Lescharts.com (Retrieved July 7, 2008)
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Petit Frank", French Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved July 7, 2008)
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Best-selling singles of all time in France Infodisc.fr (Retrieved July 6, 2008)