In a message dated 3/18/01 11:39:19 PM Eastern Standard Time,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> I know Edith Piaf had a tragic love life -- and who hasn't? -- but was she
> ever involved with some kind of a kingpin? And, if I remember correctly, I
> think she died because of some kind of substance abuse -- was it cocaine?
>
She died of cancer at the young age of 48, but yes she had a problem with
alcohol and morphine. I believe that Joni was paying homage to Piaf. I found
this interesting tidbit in my research:
. At the age of nineteen, she was discovered by nightclub impressario Louis
Lepli e, and because she had been singing a song about a sparrow, he
christened her La Mt me Piaf, street slang for "Kid Sparrow." Patrons of
Lepli e's club Gerny's were astonished by the power and richness of her
voice, and by her diminutive size for she was only four feet ten inches tall
and weighed probably not much more than eighty pounds. But, her initial
success at Gerny's was cut short when Lepli e was murdered, probably over
money and probably by some young toughs to whom he had been introduced by
Piaf. Although she was cleared of any complicity in the murder, the scandal,
and her reputation as a friend of most of Paris' pimps, prostitutes, and
petty criminals, drove her out of Paris for a time and forced her to perform
in provincial movie houses and bistros to keep from starving once again.
He would often stay in houses of ill repute to stay warm.
You can read a brief biography as well as sound clips
here:http://soundprint.org/documentaries/more_info/piaf.phtml
-Rose
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
