Pour toi Arménie

Infobox Single
Name = Pour toi Arménie


Cover size =
Border =
Caption =
Artist = Various French artists
Album =
A-side =
B-side =
Released = February, 1989
Format = 7" single
Recorded = 1989
Genre =
Length =
Label = Trema-EMI
Writer = Charles Aznavour
Producer = Georges Garvarentz
Gérard Melet
Jacques Revaux
Audio sample? =
Certification = Platinum France, 1989
Last single =
This single =
Next single =
Misc =

"Pour toi Arménie" is a 1989 song written and composed by Charles Aznavour, and recorded by a group of French singers (and also a few actors and TV presenters) who were popular at the time. This charity single was intended to raise funds to help the Armenians who lived a terrible earthquake (see 1988 Spitak earthquake) on December 7, 1988. It sold more than 1 million copies under the Trema-EMI label. [cite web | url = http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1413053 | title = Pour Toi Armenie | accessdate=2008-02-24]

Background and writing

This song was entirely written and composed by Charles Aznavour which made a great tribute to the country of his ancestral origins and his relationship that he always have kept in his heart. After the earthquake in Armenia, he asked his singers, actors and TV presenters friends to sing with him "Pour toi Arménie", song devoted to help victims of this tragedyElia Habib, Muz hit. tubes, p. 151-152 (ISBN 2-9518832-0-X)] .

At the same time, in the United Kingdom, the collective band named Rock Aid Armenia made a cover of "Smoke on the Water" also for the same charitable purposeElia Habib, Muz hit. tubes, p. 151-152 (ISBN 2-9518832-0-X)] .

Vocalists

The artists that composed this group were :
*Adamo
*Serge Avedikian
*Marcel Amont
*Amino
*Rosy Armen
*Charles Aznavour
*Katia Aznavour
*Didier Barbelivien
*Phil Barney
*Gilbert Bécaud
*Jane Birkin
*Gérard Blanc
*Richard Bohringer
*Zani Boni
*Carlos
*Jean Carmet
*Jean-Pierre Cassel
*Alain Chamfort
*Frédéric Château
*Louis Chédid
*Julien Clerc
*Nicolle Croisille
*Dallas
*David and Jonathan
*Michel Delpech
*Sacha Distel
*Dorothée
*Michel Drucker
*Yves Duteil
*Elsa Lunghini (credited as Elsa)
*Jean-Pierre Foucault
*Roland Giraud
*Richard Gotainer
*Félix Gray
*Serge Guirao
*Johnny Hallyday
*Robert Hossein
*Images
*Jaïro
*Véronique Jannot
*Patricia Kaas
*Kimera
*David Koven
*Gilles Lacoste
*Jean-Luc Lahaye
*Francis Lalanne
*Serge Lama
*Philippe Lavil
*Lio
*Marie Myriam
*Didier Marouani
*Mireille Mathieu
*Fred Mella
*Macha Méryl
*Eddy Mitchell
*Pierre Mondy
*Gilbert Montagné
*Éric Moréna
*Nana Mouskouri
*Georges Moustaki
*Thierry Mutin
*Nacash
*Nicoletta
*Florent Pagny
*Vanessa Paradis
*Popeck
*Jackie Quartz
*Rachid
*Serge Reggiani
*Renaud
*Line Renaud
*Pierre Richard
*Dick Rivers
*Patrick Sabatier
*Henri Salvador
*Michel Sardou
*Shushana
*Alain Souchon
*Linda de Souza
*Jean-Marc Thiebault
*François Valéry
*Rosy Varte
*Hervé Villard
*Marina Vlady
*Laurent Voulzy
*Jacques Weber

All the names feature on the single's cover.

Track listings

; 7" single
# "Pour toi Arménie" — 4:05
# "Ils sont tombés" — 4:06

Chart performances

Since it was launched, the single was a great success. It went straight to #1 on February 11, 1989 on the French SNEP Singles Chart (Top 50) and remained there for ten weeks. Then it kept on dropping and left the chart after 18 weeks of attendance ["Pour toi Arménie", French Singles Chart [http://lescharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Pour+Toi+Arm%E9nie&titel=Pour+Toi+Arm%E9nie&cat=s Lescharts.com] (Retrieved February 19, 2008)] . The same year, the single was certified Platinum disc by the French certificator, the SNEP.

The song featured for a long time on the Guiness Book of Records because it was the first single to enter the French Singles Chart at #1. [Alex P. King, "Hit-parade, 20 ans de tubes", 2005, Pascal Ed., p. 9 (ISBN 978-2350190099) [http://membres.lycos.fr/vingtansdetubes/HistoireHitparade.pdf Vingt ans de tubes] (Retrieved April 23, 2008)]

It was also the first appearance of Charles Aznavour on the Top 50.

References