Franck Pourcel

French violinist Franck Pourcel earned his reputation chiefly through jazzy string treatments of pop material, as well as through his polished easy listening productions and numerous film scores. He first pursued classical violin instruction at the Paris Conservatoire, yet the magnetism of jazz proved impossible to ignore; Stephane Grappelli counted among his chief inspirations. After completing his training, Pourcel performed with assorted jazz groups, a path that led him to assume leadership of the French Fiddlers late in the 1940s.

The ensemble comprised violinists who specialized in jazz-inflected readings of classical repertoire or in classically styled renderings of pop and jazz pieces. They secured a contract with Pathe-Marconi and continued honing their approach in pursuit of a larger public. Their breakthrough arrived in 1952 with a recording of “Blue Tango.”

In 1959 the French Fiddlers issued a version of “Only You” driven by a pronounced beat; the track appeared under the billing Franck Pourcel & His Rockin’ Strings. Comparable textures enjoyed wide currency throughout the 1960s, although other performers frequently enjoyed greater commercial impact. “Only You” remained Pourcel’s sole U.S. Top Ten entry. Even so, he and the Fiddlers—who appeared on disc under several aliases—had sold more than fifteen million records worldwide by the early 1970s. Pourcel kept issuing easy listening albums and composing film scores through the 1970s and into the following decade.