Page 234 - WDT INTERACTIVE

FAREWELL TO FRANCE’S SINATRA A HALF DAY AT D-DAY

s we strolled into an early-morning marketplace f there’s one lasting impression of seeing Nor-
Ain Libourne, a fairly tranquil Middle Ages village Imandy’s D-day beaches for the first time, it’s this:
(aren’t they all) not far from the larger city of Bordeaux in Gratitude.
southwestern France, we heard lilting melodies wafting in Because you can’t help but think about the many,
the air. many, many thousands of those who lost their lives
Not surprising – such songs were surely fitting for a defending our way of life.
farmer’s market that’s been held three days a week since Being American, you think about the tens of
the mid-1800s. thousands of Allied troops, including some 9,000 or so
But for a brief moment, our guide was perplexed. American soldiers, most not much older than teen-
Then she realized it was a market-wide tribute to Charles agers, who didn’t have a chance of survival, not even
Aznavour, who had passed away the previous day at 94. if everything had gone perfectly according to plan.
As we continued to stroll, it was clear that many Which it didn’t.
merchants had brought portable CD players to devote the Then you think about the Allied armada of 5,000 and
day to his memory. 13,000 aircraft that supported the invasion and about
I knew of Aznavour only vaguely, only that he was long how that glorious – inglorious for so many more
regarded as “France’s Sinatra,” no small claim to fame. – morning of June 6, 1944, the largest amphibious
Curious, I did some research. invasion in history, changed history from that moment
Spanning a nearly eight-decade career, he sold more forward.
than 180 million records in 80 countries, with an estimated Because we almost lost.
1,200 performed songs to his name, including some 1,000 Because when you really think about it, there’s
he wrote himself. simply no way the Allied forces could’ve, should’ve
Known for his melancholy stylings and gravelly voice, he emerged as conquering heroes in the beachhead
recorded duets with Sinatra, Elton John, Céline Dion, Bryan battles that ultimately led to the end of WW II.
Ferry and Sting, plus classical tenors Luciano Pavarotti So much went wrong in those early-morning hours,
and Plácido Domingo. He recorded and performed in the tour guide explains, animatedly reeling off facts
French, Spanish, English, Italian, and German and was a and strategies and missteps and miscalculations and
popular one-man show in Las Vegas. how, somehow, just enough went right, just enough,
He stood only 5-3, was oddly ill at ease on stage and barely. You listen, but you hear only the sounds of the
lacked star-quality charisma, traits that softened only bristling wind.
slightly throughout his career. As he once said: “My ugly Exiting the tour van at La Pointe du Hoc, located
face, my lack of height, my uncommercial songs. I was between the more widely-known assault sites of Utah
told I would never be a success.” Beach and Omaha Beach, well within sight only a few
Yet, he eventually rivaled Sinatra, Elvis and the Beatles. miles distant, you look out over the scene unfolding
Loath to retire, he gave what turned out to be final before you, with scattered wind-blown brush, a
concert – in Osaka, Japan -- a few weeks before his death. smattering of trees, well-worn walking paths, so much

234 WDT MAGAZINE WINTER 2018