This is the first time I decided to make an album that was not my new songs or compositions. I, like millions of others, adore the classic American standards and have always wanted to add my contribution to the mix. Here, I have chosen some of my all time favorites. There are, of course, hundreds more, but I have always been dying to do "My One And Only Love", "How Insensitive" and "Here's That Rainy Day". I hesitated to call this a jazz album because my interest in this music seems to be the exact opposite of most jazz musicians, which is to make these melodies your own, change chords, and create a very personalized rendition. My way is to sing them straight, simplify the chords, and just let the song shine by itself. This was made very simple for me by being lucky enough to work with, (can't think of a big enough word,) hugely fabulous musicians. The idea of LeClub Metropole was just a fantasy of me singing in a French nightclub sometime between 1920 and 1960. My drawings of this fantasy club were not to be included, but everybody loved them so much that I gave in. Maybe I was really at this place. Who knows? (Here is a note to me and the producer, David West, written from Jon Crosse, the music director for the Paul Anka orchestra and our FABULOUS horn player:) Hi Francine and David, I just returned from an Anka concert in Santiago, Chile and was so glad to find my copy of LeClub Metropole had arrived. I've got it on now, and I had to let you both know what wonderful work you both did -- it sounds SO good! We can all be VERY proud of turning out such an eminently listenable product! Congratulations are definitely in order, especially to you two, and certainly to everyone involved. Excellent job! Best, Jon - Ms. Francine, May 2012